A Saudi general was tortured to death after he was arrested by authorities on Nov. 4, a senior Saudi official was quoted by the Arab media as saying.

Maj. Gen. Ali Bin Abdullah al-Qahtani, who served in the Royal Guard, was subjected to physical and psychological torture since his arrest as part of a campaign of arrests by authorities, including a number of princes and businessmen, in what they called anti-corruption efforts.

The source confirmed that Qahtani was subjected to "torture sessions until his death by electric shock on the morning of the 12th of this month and his family found it difficult to identify his features on the receipt of his body."

Western newspapers had quoted Saudi sources as saying that dozens of detainees, including princes, had been tortured by professional officers.