RIYADH, 7 November 2003 — A terrorist was gunned down and eight security men were slightly wounded yesterday in Riyadh in a shootout with suspected Islamist militants, the Saudi Press Agency said.
At least five suspects were detained, according to a member of the security forces, who continued to cordon off the site several hours after the dawn clash in Al-Suwaidi district, south of the city.
According to eyewitness and neighbors, the drama began early in the morning. “At about 3.30 a.m. I heard the sound of a helicopter flying overhead. I immediately went to the rooftop to see what was going on. After a little while I heard the sound of machine guns and firing and a loud explosion,” said one neighbor who did not want to be named. “I went to the area after hearing the sound of shootouts and saw police and the terrorists besieged in the building exchanging fire,” said another eyewitness.
“It was total chaos. Onlookers were everywhere,” he said.
“If you think the police had the area sealed off before the shootout began you are mistaken. They only began doing that after one of their men was shot and injured during the firefight. It was terrible. People who had come to see what was happening were running for their lives,” he added.
“The helicopter that was flying over turned off its beams when the terrorists on the rooftop began firing at it,” said an eyewitness who watched the events from his house. Arab News later saw a car the terrorists blew up when they exchanged fire with police while other cars were riddled with bullets. A source told Arab News that a dark-skinned bearded man, thought to be pious, rented the villa the terrorists were living in. The source said the man had told the landlord that he, his wife and his mother wished to live there.
“The bearded man’s neighbor informed the landlord after a while that he had never seen a woman enter the house and that he was starting to get suspicious of the man as he kept seeing him bring in large black suitcases,” said the source.
Eyewitnesses also told Arab News that several of the terrorists managed to escape fleeing in two cars, a Ford Crown Victoria and a Nissan Maxima.
