The number of people detained for security reasons in the nation's prisons has reached 3,472, of which 85 (or 2,953) are Saudi, according to statistics released by the Ministry of Interior.

The detainees were charged with involvement in terror cases, or financing terror acts and other security issues that had relevance to national security, local media said.

The Saudis were followed by Yemenis (183), Pakistanis (38), Egyptians (33), Chadians (20), Palestinians (16), Bangladeshis (10), Indians (9), Iraqis, Bahrainis and Afghanis (7 each), Lebanese (5), Nigerians and Somalis (4 each), Americans (3), Russians, Malians, Filipinos, Eritreans, and Burkina Faso (2 each), and a detainee each from the United Arab Emirates, Algeria, Angola, Cameroon, Morocco, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mauritania, Oman, Qatar, Canada, Libya, Turkey. The nationalities of eight detainees could not be ascertained.

According to the ministry’s website (tawasul), the most recent detainees include 44 Saudis, five Yemenis, four Egyptians, three Indians and one each from Chad, Jordan, and the United States.