SAUDI ARABIA

Saudis United: Florida shooter does not represent us

December 07, 2019
A general view of the atmosphere at the Pensacola Naval Air Station main gate following a shooting on Friday in Pensacola, Florida. The second shooting on a US Naval Base in a week has left three dead plus the suspect and seven people wounded. — AFP
A general view of the atmosphere at the Pensacola Naval Air Station main gate following a shooting on Friday in Pensacola, Florida. The second shooting on a US Naval Base in a week has left three dead plus the suspect and seven people wounded. — AFP

RIYADH — Twitter users in Saudi Arabia have put out a hashtag that translates to ‘The criminal in Florida does not represent us’— after news emerged of the shooting in the US by a Saudi aviation student in Pensacola, Florida.

The shooting on Friday at Naval Air Station Pensacola, a US Navy base in Florida, left four people including the shooter dead. Others were taken to hospitals with injuries following the incident, according to authorities.

President Donald Trump said he had spoken to Saudi Arabia’s Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman, who offered his condolences to the victims of the Florida naval base attack.

Saudi officials as well as citizens have joined together on social media platforms to offer condolences to the families of the victims and the American people.

The family of the shooter, identified as Mohammed Al-Shamrani, echoed the same sentiment. The Okaz newspaper quoted one of his uncles, Saad Al-Shamrani, as saying that his actions do not reflect the "humanity and loyalty of his family" to the Kingdom's leadership.

A Saudi social media user tweeted: Saudis are denouncing the heinous barbaric act of #Florida attack. “Florida’s criminal does not represent us” is trending in Saudi Arabia. “Our condolences to our American friends”.

Another wrote: “Killers anywhere in the world represent themselves only. We remind friendly American people in the last year two Brave #Saudi students Theeb Alyami and Jaser Daham Alrakah lost their lives helping drowning children in Chicopee river of Massachusetts, #USA.

@LabeebHub wrote: Not so long ago, these two #Saudi students died while trying to save American kids from drowning in the Chicopee River in Massachusetts. They were honored by the US and Saudi governments for being a true example of bravery and selfless courage.

@ahmed_wdc wrote: As an American who has spent many years in #SaudiArabia and knows the #Saudi people very well I assure everyone that the act of this criminal in no way represents the country and its people.

@Naser_Thewar wrote: One year ago, two brave #Saudi students died while saving the lives of drowning children in Boston, Massachusett’s Chicopee river in the US. Those who represent us.


December 07, 2019
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