Two people were murdered in a gunfight outside the US consulate in Saudi Arabia.
The gunman and a security guard were killed when an armed individual exchanged fire with Saudi Arabian security agents near the US consulate building in Jeddah, according to the US State Department late Wednesday.
According to a State Department official, no Americans were injured in the event.
“A person in a car stopped near the American Consulate building in Jeddah Governorate and got out carrying a firearm in his hand, so security authorities took the initiative to deal with him as required, and the exchange of fire resulted in his death,” said a Makkah Region police spokesperson.
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According to the state news agency SPA, a Nepalese worker with the consulate’s private security guards was injured and later died.
The shootings are under investigation.
“The United States Embassy and Consulate in Saudi Arabia remain in contact with Saudi authorities as they investigate the incident,” said a State Department official.
In recent years, the consulate has been targeted multiple times. A suicide bomber was killed and two persons were injured in a bombing near the facility in 2016.
And in 2004, five people stormed the U.S. consulate with bombs and guns, killing four Saudi security personnel outside and five local staff within. Three of the attackers were killed in the assault and two were captured.
The 2004 attack in Jeddah followed other deadly bombings and shootings against expatriate compounds, Westerners working in the kingdom and other targets that were part of an al Qaeda campaign aimed at ousting the ruling Al Saud family.
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