Saudi authorities said that two "dangerous terrorists" with suspected linked to the Islamic State extremist militia were killed today in a police raid in the capital Riyadh.

A spokesperson for the Saudi Interior Ministry, Mansour al-Turki, said that the two Saudi men were the makers of explosives used in recent attacks in the kingdom.

The pair were hiding inside a house in northern Riyadh where they had manufactured explosives, al-Turki said in a statement carried by Saudi state news agency SPA.

"They were asked to surrender, but they refused and started shooting intensely at security men in an attempt to escape," he added.

Security forces returned fire, killing the two. A policeman was slightly injured.

Explosives belts, a home-made bomb and suspected explosive substances were seized inside the house, al-Turki said.

In recent months, Saudi Arabia has seen several attacks. Islamic State took credit for some of the attacks.

- dpa