Saudi Arabia's Interior Ministry spokesman Mansour Turki gestures during a news conference in Riyadh March 24, 2013. REUTERS/Stringer
RIYADH (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia will jail for 3-20 years any citizen who fights in conflicts abroad, according to a royal decree released on Monday, in an apparent move to deter Saudis from joining rebels in Syria and then posing a security risk once they return home.
Saudi Arabia's Islamic religious authorities have previously spoken out against Saudis joining Islamist militants involved in Syria's civil war, but the Interior Ministry estimates that around 1,200 Saudis have gone there nonetheless.
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