Saudi Arabia denounces attack on Pensacola Naval base

Saudi King Salman calls President Trump to express his condolences and forceful rejection of the violence at the Pensacola Naval; base by a Saudi Arabian national. An array of Saudi officials also joined in forcefully condemn Florida shooting which took the lives of three Americans, the life of the shooter and injured at least eight others

Reacting to the tragic shooting incident that took place today at the U.S. Naval Air Station in Pensacola, Florida, senior officials from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia have forcefully condemned the crime, in addition to pledging full cooperation to determine the cause behind it.

In a phone call with President Donald Trump, His Majesty King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud expressed his deep sorrow and grief, affirming that the perpetrator of this heinous crime does not represent the Saudi people, who count the American people as friends and allies.

HH Prince Faisal bin Farhan, Saudi Foreign Minister described today’s tragic shooting at Pensacola, Florida as a heinous crime. “The Kingdom expresses its deepest condolences to the families of victims, and to the American people. We salute the bravery of those who neutralized the threat and saved lives,” he added.

HRH Prince Khalid bin Salman, Vice Minister of Defense, extended his “sincerest condolences to the families of victims of today’s tragic shooting at the U.S. Naval Air Station Pensacola in Florida. “My thoughts are with our American friends at this difficult time.” He said.

“Like many other Saudi military personnel, I was trained in a U.S military base, and we used that valuable training to fight side by side with our American allies against terrorism and other threats. A large number of Saudi graduates of the Naval Air Station in Pensacola moved on to serve with their U.S counterparts in battlefronts around the world, helping to safeguard the regional and global security. Today’s tragic event is strongly condemned by everyone in Saudi Arabia”, he added.

HRH Ambassador Reema bint Bandar, Saudi Ambassador to the United States, extended her “sincere condolences to the American people on the tragedy that unfolded at Pensacola, Flordia. My thoughts are with the families of those impacted by this horrific attack.”

“As a daughter of a former U.S military trained pilot, this tragedy is especially painful. The Saudi people are united in their condemnation of this crime. We stand in solidarity with our American friends during these difficult times.” She said.

Joining in expressions of condolences was officials of the Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs expresses its deep distress regarding the incident in which a Saudi student in Florida opened fire, killing 3 people and injuring multiple American residents.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs offers its sincere condolences to the victims’ families, and wishes the injured a speedy recovery.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs affirms that the perpetrator of this horrific attack does not represent the Saudi people whatsoever. The American people are held in the highest regard by the Saudi people.

Building upon the strong ties between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United States of America, and in continuation of the ongoing cooperation between the two countries’ security agencies, the Saudi security agencies will provide full support to the US authorities to investigate the circumstances of this crime.

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Op-Ed writer, author, radio host, podcaster at The Arab Daily News

Ray Hanania is an award-winning columnist, author & former Chicago City Hall reporter (1977-1992). A veteran who served during the Vietnam War and the recipient of four SPJ Peter Lisagor Awards for column writing, Hanania writes weekly opinion columns on mainstream American & Chicagoland topics for the Southwest News-Herald, Des Plaines Valley News, the Regional News, The Reporter Newspapers, and Suburban Chicagoland.

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