Saudi national opens fire at US Naval station in Florida

Four people, including the shooter, died on Friday at the Pensacola, Florida Naval Air Station. This marked the second deadly shooting as a US military facility in less than a week.

The base employs about 16,000 people, including 7,400 civilian personnel. Members of the military are usually restricted from carrying deadly weapons around military installations unless their daily duties require it.

The alarm was raised at about 7 a.m. local time, and a sheriff’s deputy shot the assailant dead just a few minutes later. On top of the three who died, seven other people were brought to a local hospital to be treated for injuries.

Two of the injured were sheriff’s deputies, one was injured on the arm and one on the knee, but both were expected to survive.

“Walking through the crime scene was like being on the set of a movie,” Sheriff David Morgan said at a press conference.

Later, it emerged that the gunman was a citizen of Saudi Arabia. He was was part of that country’s Air Force and apparently in the United States in an official capacity.

“The government of Saudi Arabia needs to make things better for these victims,” said Florida Governor Ron Desantis. “They are going to owe a debt here.”

The attack came just two days after a 22-year-old active duty sailor opened fired on three civilian employees at the Naval shipyard in Pearl Habor, near Honolulu, Hawaii. Two of his victims succumbed to their injuries, and the attacker fatally shot himself before police could intervene.

es/aw (AP, AFP, Reuters)

Article source: https://www.dw.com/en/saudi-national-opens-fire-at-us-naval-station-in-florida/a-51564447?maca=en-rss-en-all-1573-rdf