Two Indians wounded in shooting in eastern Saudi Arabia

Two Indians and a Saudi policeman were wounded by gunfire in eastern Saudi Arabia as authorities were looking for suspects allegedly linked to unrest in the area, the interior ministry said on Tuesday.

A police traffic patrol "came under heavy fire from a farming area" in the Shia-majority Qatif district on Monday evening, the ministry's spokesman said.

The Indians, who are in stable condition in the hospital, were passing by at the time of the shooting, he said.

The ministry spokesman did not identify the perpetrators but warned the public not to provide assistance to people on a list of 23 wanted suspects issued in 2011 after unrest in the eastern province.

Saudi Arabia's Shia minority, who complain of marginalisation in the Sunni-dominated kingdom, began protests that year in Eastern Province where a majority of Shias live.

Many suspects on the wanted list have already been detained or killed in shootouts.

Last month, Saudi Arabia's Supreme Court confirmed a death sentence against Shia cleric Nimr al-Nimr, a leader of anti-government protests convicted of sedition and other crimes.

Activists are calling for the sentence not to be carried out, saying Nimr engaged only in peaceful opposition.

He is one of seven Shias sentenced to death in connection with protests and unrest since 2011, activists said.

Three of the convicts - including his nephew, Ali al-Nimr, who has been sentenced to be crucified -  were under the age of 18 at the time of their arrests.

Over the past year, Shias in Saudi have been targeted by suicide bombings and shootings claimed by the Islamic State group, which considers them heretics.

In the latest attack, a gunman killed five Shias in the Qatif area last month during commemorations of Ashura, one of the holiest observances of their faith.