Published 18:33 IST, December 11th 2019
US Navy suspends flight training for Saudi students after Florida shooting
US Navy has ceased all operations and training of the Saudi Arabia military officers in the United States until further notice in the wake of Florida shooting.
The Pentagon has ceased all operations and training of the Saudi Arabia military officers in the United States until further notice. The decision was made after a student of the Saudi Arabia air force services engaged in deadly shooting killing three people at the Florida Naval Base.
Pentagon imposes restrictions
The Pentagon has further ordered an inquiry in the examination procedures for the international students who apply for the training on US military installations. Pentagon said that the procedure needs to be more strict and tough that will strengthen the overall deployment of the airforce officers. The decision will impact on 300 Saudi Arabian students who have engaged in the military aviation program. They will be kept grounded until further notice. David Norquist, deputy defense secretary signed the memo and asked for the completion of the review of the betting procedure within ten days.
In the wake of the shooting incident, the United States also imposed flight restrictions on the students which can only be lifted under the recommendation of the senior officials. There are a total of 850 students who have been enrolled in the US military program according to Pentagon. The officials have confirmed that most of the students will face some or the other kind of flight restrictions.
The Florida shooting which took place on December 6 in a classroom at the Naval Air Station Pensacola killed three people. According to the FBI investigation, the shooter was a Saudi student enrolled in the aviation training at the Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis .The shooter was identified as Lieutenant Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani, 21, who started the open shooting before he was encountered by the deputy sheriff. The shooting questioned the functioning of the US military and its relationship with Saudi Arabia. The relationship was put to question due to the on-going war in Yemen and later the death of the Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi on October 2, 2018.
Updated 20:03 IST, December 11th 2019