A Riyadh court has sentenced seven men to between six and 20 years in jail for offences that included taking part in protests in the town of Qatif, in Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province, state news agency SPA said.

SPA said the seven had been also convicted of chanting slogans against the kingdom as well as possessing and making petrol bombs and hurling them at security forces.

Minority Shi'ites have staged sporadic protests in Qatif since 1979. The town's most recent wave of demonstrations began during the Arab uprisings of 2011 and continued through 2012. - Reuters