RIYADH, 19 November — The Kingdom will shortly introduce legislation to control the sale of arms and ammunition in the country, an Interior Ministry official said in comments published yesterday.

"We are studying whether to authorize shops to sell arms and ammunition and the decision will be announced soon," Gen. Sultan ibn Zayed Al-Hussein told Al-Riyadh daily.

"Strict measures will be introduced to prevent the unauthorized buying and selling of such weapons and to reduce gun-running in the Kingdom," the official said.

The government had set a mid-November deadline for gun shop owners to obtain licenses or face legal action.

Many people, especially tribesmen in isolated areas, hold guns illegally.