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BBC: French killed in Saudi shooting ~ Three French tourists ...machinegunned .......
BBC ^ | Monday, 26 February 2007, 18:23 GMT | BBC Staff

Posted on 02/26/2007 11:55:34 AM PST by Ernest_at_the_Beach

French killed in Saudi shooting

map

Three French nationals have been shot dead in Saudi Arabia, the Saudi and French governments say.

Saudi sources told the BBC that police were treating the incident as a "terrorist attack".

The shooting happened near the ruins of Madain Saleh, in north-western Saudi Arabia, which is popular with tourists.

Saudi TV said the victims were part of a group of French nationals, some of whom were Muslims heading to the holy city of Mecca on a pilgrimage.

Major General Mansour al-Turki, an interior ministry spokesman, said two men were killed instantly as they rested at the side of the road and came under fire from gunmen.

Another died later in hospital and a fourth was in serious condition, he said.

Some women and children were also part of the group, but were not hurt, he added.

A French diplomatic source, quoted by the French news agency AFP, said an unknown number of attackers "machine-gunned them while they got out [of their vehicle] to go for a walk".

Violent campaign

French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy said in a statement that "several of our compatriots residing in Riyadh were the victims of an armed attack".

SAUDI ATTACKS ON FOREIGNERS

May 2003: Suicide bombers in Riyadh kill 35 people

May 2004: 22 civilians die in Khobar compound shootout

June 2004: Gunmen kill BBC cameraman Simon Cumbers and seriously injure correspondent Frank Gardner

June 2004: US contractor Paul Johnson beheaded

No fatal attacks since 2004

"I condemn with the utmost strength this horrible act," he said, promising to lend all support to the Saudi authorities in bringing the perpetrators to justice.

BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner says the attack will come as a blow to the Saudi government, which has been fighting a successful campaign against Islamist militants since they launched a triple truck bombing in 2003.

A number of foreigners have been killed - including Frenchman Laurent Barbot, who was shot dead in the Red Sea port city of Jeddah by suspected al-Qaeda militants in September 2004.

But there have been no foreigners killed since late 2004.




TOPICS: Extended News; Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events; War on Terror
KEYWORDS: islam; saudiarabia
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1 posted on 02/26/2007 11:55:36 AM PST by Ernest_at_the_Beach
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach

There are no terrorists in Saudi Arabia............


2 posted on 02/26/2007 11:58:53 AM PST by Red Badger (Britney Spears shaved her head............Well, that's one way of getting rid of headlice.........)
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach

If only we would be like France the terrorists would leave us alone....


3 posted on 02/26/2007 11:59:14 AM PST by icwhatudo (The rino borg...is resistance futile?)
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach
...police were treating the incident as a "terrorist attack".

Really? Well it didn't exactly sound like an after dinner mint attack on first reading.
4 posted on 02/26/2007 12:01:27 PM PST by starbase (Understanding Written Propaganda (click "starbase" to learn 22 manipulating tricks!!))
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach
Tourists to Saudi Arabia must be genetically pre-selected for extermination..

Semper Fi
5 posted on 02/26/2007 12:04:53 PM PST by river rat (You may turn the other cheek, but I prefer to look into my enemy's vacant dead eyes.)
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach
Saudi TV said the victims were part of a group of French nationals, some of whom were Muslims heading to the holy city of Mecca on a pilgrimage.

Hmmm...

6 posted on 02/26/2007 12:05:29 PM PST by 2banana (My common ground with terrorists - they want to die for islam and we want to kill them)
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To: All
Report from the AP:

3 French Travelers Slain in Saudi Desert

************************************************

February 26, 2007 at 10:25:2 PST

3 French Travelers Slain in Saudi Desert


ASSOCIATED PRESS

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) - Three French travelers were killed by gunmen Monday in the Saudi Arabian desert when they stopped their car to rest on the side of a road leading to the holy city of Medina in an area restricted to Muslims only.

A fourth traveler was seriously wounded in the attack.

Interior Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Mansour al-Turki said it was too early to determine whether the attacks were terror-related. Saudi Arabia has been waging an intense campaign against al-Qaida militants since a wave of suicide attacks on foreigners in the kingdom in 2003.

"Undoubtedly this is a criminal act, but it's too early to determine their motives and whether it is terrorism," al-Turki said.

The travelers were resting on the side of a road about 10 miles north of Medina when gunmen fired at their car, instantly killing two of the men. The third man died later after he was taken to a hospital, and the fourth Frenchman was in serious condition at an area hospital, al-Turki said.

Women and children also were with the group but they were uninjured.

The area the group was traveling in is restricted for Muslims only. Non-Muslims are barred from the area around Medina and neighboring Mecca, the holiest cities in Islam. The Prophet Muhammad was born in Mecca, where he began spreading the message of Islam, until he fled to Medina. From Medina, he spread Islam until he died and was buried in the city. Muslims perform the annual hajj pilgrimage to Mecca and usually visit Medina as well.

Al-Turki said the French travelers were probably Muslim pilgrims. But it was possible they were traveling to another ancient site north of Medina where the Saudi government recently started allowing non-Muslims to visit.

In France, Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy said the French ambassador to Saudi Arabia and counsel general plan to visit the site of the attack and talk with Saudi authorities.

"I condemn this horrible act. I express my profound sympathy to the family and friends of the victims," Douste-Blazy said in a statement. "French authorities are mobilized along with the Saudi authorities, so that light be shed and that those responsible be detained and punished."

--


7 posted on 02/26/2007 12:06:15 PM PST by Ernest_at_the_Beach (The DemonicRATS believe ....that the best decisions are always made after the fact.)
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To: 2banana

Right...See the AP report....


8 posted on 02/26/2007 12:06:55 PM PST by Ernest_at_the_Beach (The DemonicRATS believe ....that the best decisions are always made after the fact.)
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach

But, but, the French didn't go to Iraq.


9 posted on 02/26/2007 12:08:42 PM PST by HenpeckedCon (Can I please freep just a little while longer Dear?)
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach

Yeah, the Saudi government condemns this barbaric act -- while continuing to lavishly reward and finance palestinian suicide bombers, fanatical hate-mongering mullahs and islamic terrorists worldwide.


10 posted on 02/26/2007 12:12:07 PM PST by Bonaparte
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach

When is Chirac going to go to Saudi Arabia for to sign the official document that says France surrenders unconditionally?


11 posted on 02/26/2007 12:46:21 PM PST by Quick or Dead
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach

Merde sainte nous sommes soumis aux attaques ! ! ! Nous devons nous rendre immédiatement ! ! ! !


12 posted on 02/26/2007 12:47:12 PM PST by lakeman (when a marine kills the only thing he feels is the recoil of his rifle)
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach
Madain Saleh
13 posted on 02/26/2007 12:54:33 PM PST by wideminded
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach

Very sad news.


14 posted on 02/26/2007 12:57:29 PM PST by Gene Eric
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach
The area the group was traveling in is restricted for Muslims only. Non-Muslims are barred from the area around Medina and neighboring Mecca, the holiest cities in Islam.

They were in an area restricted to Muslims only. And I do believe the punishment for this in Saudi Arabia is death. Whoever shot the tourists actually saved the government some paperwork by taking care of the infidels themselves.

15 posted on 02/26/2007 1:18:19 PM PST by faq
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To: Gene Eric

the French now travel to Mecca?

good grief.


16 posted on 02/26/2007 1:19:33 PM PST by BurbankKarl
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To: starbase
...police were treating the incident as a "terrorist attack".

To me, this is actually a bigger deal than what we may think. How many mall shootings, vehicular assaults, airline ticket shootings, etc go on in the U.S. where the FBI can find "no link to terrorism". Even though these perpetrators are all muslims who were heard shouting praises to Allah during the attack.

Props to the Saudis for calling a terrorist attack a "terrorist attack".
17 posted on 02/26/2007 1:19:51 PM PST by mmichaels1970
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To: Red Badger
There is no terrorist threat...
18 posted on 02/26/2007 1:56:55 PM PST by Earthdweller (All reality is based on faith in something.)
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To: mmichaels1970
Here's an incomplete list of Sudden Jihad Syndrome terrorists, almost all of whom were described as acting alone by the cops and/or FBI.  Their acts -- murder, attempted murder, battery and destruction of property -- were almost universally described as, "not terrorism."

In almost every case, the fact that they were members of the Religion of Peace was the last piece of information revealed by the media -- if revealed at all.  Robert Spencer comments on this phenomenon
in this video.

Once identified as Muslims, a chorus of bleeding heart apologists always rises, to provide  defenses, causes and excuses for the horrific acts of these terrorists.

Ali Abu Kamal
Palestinian English teacher Ali Abu Kamal went to the 86th floor observation deck of the Empire State Building, pulled out a gun, and opened fire, killing one person and wounding six others before killing himself.

Ali R. Warrayat
An Arizona Home Depot employee jumped out of the car’s path. To drown out the man’s yells, Warrayat reached over to his car radio and blasted Arabic music before crashing through the front doors.

Charles Bishop (Bishra)
A note written by the 15-year-old boy who crashed a Cessna into a Tampa office building indicated he supported Osama bin Laden and that the act was deliberate, authorities say.

Haider Mohammed
Contacted by Palm Springs Police, FBI investigators described Muslim who was arrested after threatening to 'Kill All Jews' as "not a person of interest."

Hesham Mohamed Ali Hadayet
The suspect, Egyptian-born Hesham Mohamed Ali Hadayet, left two people dead and five injured at the El Al airlines ticket counter at Los Angeles International Airport before being fatally shot by a security guard.

Ibrihim Ahmed
Cab driver, Ibrihim Ahmed, tried to run over two customers and was arrested and charged with assault, attempted homicide and theft.  One of the passengers, Andrew Nelson, managed to outrun the cab but Jeremy Invus was taken to the Vanderbilt University Medical Center with serious injuries.

John Muhammad
Federal prosecutors filed a criminal complaint, charging Beltway Sniper John Muhammad with 20 felony counts, including extortion and intent to commit murder.

Marc Lepine (Gamal Gharbhi)
For 45 minutes on Dec. 6, 1989 an enraged gunman roamed the corridors of Montreal's École Polytechnique and killed 14 women.

Mohammed Ali Alayed
After apparently undergoing a religious awakening, a Saudi Arabian student in Houston killed his Jewish friend by slashing his throat.

Mohammed Reza Taheri-azar
Just-graduated student named Mohammed Reza Taheri-azar, 22, and an Iranian immigrant, drove a sport utility vehicle into a crowded pedestrian zone at University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill. He struck nine people.

Naveed Afzal Haq
Eyewitnesses told the Seattle News that Mr. Haq announced, "I'm a Muslim American; I'm angry at Israel," and then began shooting. He killed one woman and wounded five others.

Omeed Aziz Popal
Up to 14 hurt in San Francisco hit-and-run spree. Seven are critical. The driver believed to have struck and killed a man in Fremont earlier.

Sayed Khaled El-Waraky
The Virginia college student drove his Jaguar into a crowd outside the Glen Cove Golf Club, injuring four young men, two critically. "He accelerated up the center lane of the parking lot and into the crowd. Bodies were tossed in the air," said a bystander.

Sulejman Talovic
Police Tuesday identified the gunman accused in Monday night's Trolley Square shooting as Sulejman Talovic, an 18-year-old Bosnian refugee who lived in Salt Lake City.  In a video recording  of the event, Sulejman is heard yelling "Allah Akbar, Allah Akbar," -- followed by gunfire.

When you have victims of Sudden Jihad Syndrome piling up all over the country, the reasonable person would conclude -- that's terrorism.

Whether the root cause of these savage attacks is in the genes of these maniacs, their religion or the result of a conspiracy is completely irrelevant.



19 posted on 02/26/2007 2:02:03 PM PST by Beckwith (The dhimmicrats and liberal media have chosen sides and they've sided with the Jihadists.)
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach

20 posted on 02/26/2007 3:44:07 PM PST by Alouette (Learned Mother of Zion)
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