AFLAJ, 29 November 2005 — Since the government banned gunfire from wedding celebrations, most of the Kingdom has settled down. In Aflaj Province, however, it often sounds as if a gunbattle is raging. Unfortunately, that is exactly what’s happening.

One of Saudi Arabia’s largest provinces, sprawling 200 kilometers from north to south and 180 kilometers from east to west in the central region, people are finding that those who believe carrying firearms is a way of life discover too often that it also is a way of death. In the last two years, innocent bystanders, educators, government officials and police officers have become the targets of lawless gunfire.

Two police officers were wounded in 2004 during a fusillade launched at their vehicle; last year a former manager of the department was hospitalized after an ambush. The Anti-Drug Department building and the Traffic Department building also have become gunmen’s targets.

Not even schools are safe. The principal of Ibn Baz Elementary School was seriously injured when he suffered multiple gunshot wounds in an attack, according to a recent report in Al-Riyadh newspaper.

Students aren’t safe, either. In another incident, a student was shot twice and seriously wounded as a classmate chased him with gun blazing. Al-Hussein ibn Ali Elementary School became a fire zone a few months ago when a gunman riddled the building with bullets. Children escaped injury in that incident.

Police classify most of these cases as retaliatory. Police records are full of violent acts involving knives and other weapons excluded from the shooting reports.

Some attribute the problem to an active gun smuggling business in the vast province with links to the south. Weapons are easily available, with a new Kalashnikov assault rifle selling for SR1,800 — cheaper than some mobile phones. A 9 mm semiautomatic pistol can be bought for SR700.

Others say the violence is the result of drug smugglers who also ply the remote areas. One police officer told the newspaper that drug sales increase during exam seasons — and sometimes student drug users become violent and start shooting at government buildings or attacking people.

Despite warnings about carrying unlicensed weapons, many people still do. An officer told Al-Riyadh some citizens are literally armed to the teeth — even in safe areas without families to protect.

Weapon sales have declined during the last three years because of police restrictions and the prohibition of gunfire at wedding celebrations, yet the crack of gunshots still resounds the many areas of the province. Residents are asking police to crack down on the lawlessness, acknowledging that more police officers and modern equipment, including helicopters, may be necessary to track down the smugglers who now are shielded by the rough terrain and the province’s vast size.

For now, residents can only hope that help will come before a stray — or aimed —bullet hits them or one of their loved ones. Until then, the best advice in Aflaj Province may be to keep your head down.