JEDDAH, 13 May 2006 — A man opened fire on the US Consulate in Jeddah yesterday afternoon, the Interior Ministry said. The motive for the drive-by shooting was not known. No casualties were reported.
Eyewitnesses said the assailant was armed with a pistol and that he tried to escape in a Nissan Maxima after the shooting. The suspect was shot and wounded by the police when he tried to get out of the car.
Officer Hazim Kutbi was treated for minor injuries received during the confrontation with the suspect near a Saudi government building where the gunman was caught following the car chase.
The incident happened after Asr prayers.
On Dec. 6, 2004, armed men used explosives to infiltrate the US Consulate. They were all stopped, but not before taking the lives of five men. US officials inaugurated the Heroes Hall in the Jeddah Consulate on May 6, honoring the men, all non-US citizens, who died in that attack.
“The consulate’s new building honors the five men, our heroes, who laid down their lives for their friends here on Dec. 6, 2004, to those who were wounded in that attack, and to all those, living or dead who encourage us day after day to do better,” US Consul General Tatiana Gfoeller said at the inaugural ceremony.
