RIYADH, 10 June 2004 — BBC journalist Frank Gardner who was critically wounded in a shooting here earlier this week underwent surgery yesterday following an improvement in his condition, according to a source.
“A slight improvement by Frank Gardner today has allowed surgery to be carried out,” said the source, without providing further details.
Two BBC managers and a security adviser arrived in Riyadh on Tuesday in the wake of the attack on Gardner and Simon Cumbers. Cumbers, a cameraman, died on the spot.
Earlier, a source at the British Embassy said Gardner’s condition was “critical but stable”.
Gardner had earlier undergone surgery at King Faisal Specialist Hospital (KFSH) on Monday and remains in the hospital’s Intensive Care Unit. Gardner is a leading journalistic authority on the Arab world. The British ambassador in Riyadh, Sherard Cowper-Coles told BBC 1, “If anyone knew his way around the Middle East in general and this country in particular, it was Frank Gardner.”
Simon Cumbers’ widow, Louise Bevan, and two other family members accomapanied the BBC team. Cumbers is survived by Bevan, his parents, a brother and a sister.
Culture and Information Minister Dr. Fouad Al-Farsy yesterday sent a cable message to BBC Chairman Michael Grade expressing his deep sorrow over the terrorist attack on the BBC journalists.
On Tuesday, American Robert Jacob became the latest victim in a series of attacks targeting Westerners in the Kingdom. Jacob, an employee of Vinnell Corporation, was shot dead in his Riyadh home by gunmen.
The US company which trains the Saudi National Guard said yesterday it was not at this time considering evacuating staff from Saudi Arabia. A Vinnell official declined to comment on whether the company, a unit of Northrop Grumman Corp., would request more security from the Saudi authorities.
