Subscribe free to our newsletters via your
. Military Space News .




TERROR WARS
Two US defence contractors shot at in Saudi: employer
By Ian Timberlake
Riyadh (AFP) Feb 1, 2015


A US defence contractor said Sunday that two of its American employees came under fire in the latest attack against Westerners in Saudi Arabia.

It was the second time in recent months that staff of the contractor Vinnell Arabia have been targeted.

"We can confirm that two Vinnell Arabia employees were involved in an incident on Friday, in which they were shot at by assailants in the al-Ahsa province of Saudi Arabia," the company said in a statement issued through a public relations firm.

"Both employees were injured but are in stable condition at a local hospital," it added.

Saudi police said earlier that one American had been wounded in a shooting in the eastern region which is the source of most of the kingdom's oil wealth.

Vinnell Arabia provides training for the Saudi National Guard, a parallel army.

A source close to the incident told AFP that several rounds were fired at the Vinnell vehicle from a white car.

The Vinnell driver was hit several times, the source said, adding he was not aware of injuries to the second employee who was able to drive his wounded colleague to hospital.

The incident occurred just east of a National Guard base near Hofuf city.

On Friday, a resident of al-Ahsa told AFP that police had blocked off the area around a National Guard facility.

Asked about a possible motive for the shooting, interior ministry spokesman General Mansour al-Turki said: "We're still waiting for the results of the investigation."

The attack is the fourth against Westerners in the kingdom since October. It comes as Saudi Arabia participates in United States-led air strikes against the Islamic State jihadist group in Syria, raising concerns about possible retaliation.

In October, one Vinnell employee was shot dead and another wounded at a petrol garage in the capital Riyadh.

The interior ministry identified the suspected shooter as a US-born Saudi who had been fired from Vinnell Arabia.

"It was not a terrorist-related incident," Turki said.

Vinnell's Facebook page says it is "dedicated to providing the best in military training, logistics and support" to the Saudi National Guard, using expertise from former US military and government personnel.

The Guard has around 200,000 men whose duties include combating "terrorism".

It has infantry, mechanised and special forces wings, and is reportedly to acquire Black Hawk and Apache helicopters from the US this year.

Formed from tribes traditionally loyal to the ruling al-Saud dynasty, it operates in parallel, and as a palace-directed counterbalance, to the regular armed forces.

- Dane shot -

The October shooting was the first deadly attack on Westerners in Saudi Arabia since several were killed in a wave of Al-Qaeda violence between 2003 and 2007.

Among the targets at that time was a compound housing Vinnell staff.

The latest attack on Vinnell recalls the wounding of a Dane in November. He was driving away from his workplace when he was fired on from another car.

Last month, security officers arrested three Saudis on suspicion of involvement in that attack, saying the suspects acted "in support of" the Islamic State group.

A week after the Dane's shooting, someone stabbed and wounded a Canadian at a mall on Saudi Arabia's Gulf coast.

Police arrested a Saudi suspect but Turki said the incident was not "terrorist"-related.

Saudi Arabia blamed IS-linked suspects for the November killing of seven members of the minority Shiite community in Eastern Province.

IS has seized swathes of Iraq and Syria, where it has been accused of widespread atrocities.

Late on Saturday, the group claimed in a video that it had beheaded 47-year-old journalist Kenji Goto, the second Japanese hostage it had killed in a week.

The Pentagon announced in January that nearly 1,000 American troops will soon be sent to Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Qatar to train moderate Syrian rebel forces as part of a long-planned effort to take on IS.

US officials have declined to give a breakdown of exactly how many trainers and support troops will go to each country.


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


.


Related Links
The Long War - Doctrine and Application






Comment on this article via your Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle




Memory Foam Mattress Review
Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily
XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News





TERROR WARS
Women joining IS militants 'cheerleaders, not victims'
London (AFP) Jan 28, 2015
Western women who join Islamic State militants are driven by the same ideological passion as many male recruits and should be seen as potentially dangerous cheerleaders, not victims, experts said Wednesday. A new study from the London-based Institute for Strategic Dialogue (ISD) said the estimated 550 women who have travelled to Iraq and Syria are expected to marry, keep house and bear child ... read more


TERROR WARS
US Missile Defense Agency spends $58M on new Alabama facility

Raytheon given $2.4B FMS contract for Patriot fire units

US delivers second radar defense system to Japan

US Ballistic Missile Defense Needs More Testing

TERROR WARS
Russia to Test Strategic Missile Forces in Unscheduled Drills

Russia Will Test Launch Iskander-M Missiles During March Drills

Navy authorizes SM-6 missile for more ships

Hezbollah chief threatens Israel over Syria strikes

TERROR WARS
Establishing a CODE for UAVs to fly together

Russia Develops Two New Drones, Ready for Testing

Raytheon acquires remote sensing, UAS tech company

Drone entrepreneur settles US 'reckless flying' case

TERROR WARS
U.S. EA-18G Growlers getting new electronic warfare system

Third MUOS Satellite Launched And Responding To Commands

USAF orders addditional Boeing rescue radios

MUOS-3 satellite ready for launch

TERROR WARS
DRS touts new laser targeting gimbal

BAE Systems gets support contract for British Army vehicles

Prototype weapons launcher fitted onto B-52 bomber

Army opens THAAD training school

TERROR WARS
Airbus DS sells Belgian electronics factory

Brazil Hopes to Ink Pantsir-S1 Air Defense Deal With Russia by Mid-2015

Iran expects Russia to deliver S-300 missile systems

Germany halts arms exports to Saudi Arabia: report

TERROR WARS
China to hold military parade to 'frighten Japan': report

Ukrainian forces face drones, electronic jamming: US

Obama to request hike in US military budget

India sends foreign minister to China after Obama visit

TERROR WARS
Nanoshuttle wear and tear: It's the mileage, not the age

ORNL researchers tune friction in ionic solids at the nanoscale

Silver nanowires demonstrate unexpected self-healing mechanism

Nano-beaker offers insight into the condensation of atoms




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2014 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement All images and articles appearing on Space Media Network have been edited or digitally altered in some way. Any requests to remove copyright material will be acted upon in a timely and appropriate manner. Any attempt to extort money from Space Media Network will be ignored and reported to Australian Law Enforcement Agencies as a potential case of financial fraud involving the use of a telephonic carriage device or postal service.