Saudi Arabia releases details on 330 convicted for terrorism plots

(CNN) - Most of the 330 men convicted by Saudi Arabia for taking part in terror plots have been jailed following trials criticized by a rights group for their lack of transparency.

Saudi Arabia reported last week that 330 people had been convicted of membership in a "deviant group" - a reference to the al Qaeda terrorist network, founded by Saudi exile Osama bin Laden.

On Monday, a Justice Ministry spokesman released more details about the group, saying that 323 will serve time in jail "varying from a few months to 30 years, with 13 of them sentenced to more than 20 years," according to the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA).

The other seven were acquitted, the spokesman Abdullah bin Hamad al-Saadan said. Most of the 330 are Saudi nationals, and al-Saadan said he knew of no women among the group, according to SPA.

The 330 were "involved in the deviant group's work, communication, coordination and working with external forces that are conspiring against the national security to spread chaos and disrupt security," according to a court statement published by SPA last week.