A security officer was shot dead and another wounded by gunmen who opened fire on their patrol yesterday at Shoaib Al-Haysa near the entrance of Wadi Al-Hanifa on the outskirts of Al-Uyaynah town, 45 kilometers northwest of Riyadh, security sources said. The patrol, carrying members of the âAl-Mujahedeenâ, a unit affiliated to the internal security forces, came under fire from gunmen in a white Mitsubishi pickup at around 2 p.m., the sources said. One security man â Naif Al-Otaibi â was killed and another â Bujaid Al-Otaibi â was injured. Security forces cordoned off the site and prevented anyone from entering. The incident followed the killing of five policemen and a suspected terrorist in a series of clashes in and north of Riyadh on Monday and Tuesday, culminating in the discovery of two explosive-laden vehicles.
A police helicopter hovered over the rugged, mountainous region in the evening while on the ground, Mujahedeen forces and local patrol units scoured the area for suspected terrorists. The Mujahedeen unit was earlier alerted by a tribesman at a checkpoint. A two-man unit was dispatched to apprehend the suspected terrorists after the man reported noticing five men in the pickup, three at the back and two inside. On being approached by the Mujahedeen unit, one of the suspected terrorists came out of the vehicle and opened fire, killing one instantly and injuring the other in his left leg. They took the dead man with them in their vehicle and drove off, only to abandon the Mitsubishi some distance away and setting off on foot.
| Presumably they left the corpse behind... |
In the meantime, the injured Mujahedeen member managed to climb into his patrol car and returned to the checkpoint. Security reinforcements were immediately rushed to the spot to hunt for the suspects. Security men tracked the tire marks and found the Mitsubishi abandoned with Naif Al-Otaibi inside. The injured security man was admitted to Hurainila Hospital in Al-Uyaynah. An investigation has revealed that the suspects had stolen the Mistsubishi pickup from Buraidah three days ago. According to local tribesmen, the scene of the encounter is full of caves, mountains and valleys, inaccessible by motor vehicles.
On Tuesday, four policemen were killed in a series of clashes with suspected terrorists on the Riyadh-Qasim Highway as security officers defused two truck bombs that were primed to be used in attacks in the capital. A third car containing arms was also seized. According to the Interior Ministry, the attacks were carried out by âmembers of a deviant minorityâ, a veiled reference to Al-Qaeda sympathizers. Tuesdayâs incidents were described as an extension of Mondayâs shootout in the Al-Faiha neighborhood.
| So Prince Nayef's got his own "Mujaheddin" outfit going? I haven't heard of it before. A new thing? |
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