Gunman killed after opening fire
at base used by U.S. military in Qatar
By Lisa Burgess,
Washington bureau
ARLINGTON, Va. — A Qatari gunman was shot and killed Wednesday after opening fire
on a U.S. military facility in Qatar, Pentagon officials said.
"An individual approached outside the gates and started firing," Pentagon
spokeswoman Victoria Clarke said. "There was return fire, and the individual was
killed."
According to The Associated Press, the official Qatar News Agency quoted an Interior
Ministry official who said the shooting at Al-Adid Air Base took place at 10:30 a.m. local
time.
The Qatari agency identified the gunman as Abdullah Mubarak al-Hajiri. It said
al-Hajiri fired several bullets at the air base and that security guards shot back,
killing al-Hajiri instantly.
Two of the security personnel who returned fire were U.S. servicemembers, and the other
was a local national, said Marine Lt. Col. David LaPan, a Pentagon spokesman.
"None of the security personnel were injured," he said. "The security of
the air base was never compromised."
The incident is under investigation by the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM). Located at
MacDill Air Force Base, Fla., CENTCOM is responsible for U.S. military actions in most of
the Middle East.
Al-Adid is located about 60 miles south of Doha, Qatar’s capital. The United
States has an agreement with the government of Qatar for U.S. military aircraft to use the
base, which cost more than $1 billion dollars to build. Al-Adid boasts the longest runway
in the Gulf, at 15,000 feet — and the facility’s shelters can accommodate nearly
100 aircraft.
Last month, an Air Force master sergeant was killed in a forklift accident while
building an airstrip in Qatar, becoming the first U.S. casualty linked to the five
week-old campaign in Afghanistan.
Qatar is strategically significant for the U.S. military because of the willingness of
its government to work with the United States and because of its location.
Situated halfway along the west coast of the Persian Gulf, on the eastern side of the
Arabian peninsula, Qatar boasts major deep-water ports: Doha, Umm Sa’id, and Ras
Laffan. Doha is the country’s main commercial port, while Umm Sa’id is the
primary petroleum-export port.
In addition to forging the Al-Adid agreement to facilitate Air Force access to the
Middle East, the Pentagon also negotiated with Qatar after Operation Desert Storm to
locate a significant amount of Army pre-position stock for use in future contingencies in
the region.
Most of that stock — enough tanks, Bradley Fighting Vehicles, ammunition and
supplies to equip an Army heavy-armor brigade — is located at "Camp
Snoopy," at Qatar’s International Airport in Doha, home of Army Forces Central
Command-Qatar.
Wednesday’s violence erupted just days before Qatar is to host the World Trade
Organization meetings, scheduled to begin Friday.
Some WTO members had been wary of coming to Qatar because of heightened tension in the
region linked to U.S. strikes on Afghanistan.
White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said the Qatar shooting did not appear connected to
the WTO meeting there.
"From all early appearances, there are no indications of such a connection,"
Fleischer said. "That can change, of course."
Back to November stories
Page Two news roundup
Stories from October, 2001
Stories from September, 2001
Stories from August, 2001
Stories from July, 2001
Stories from June, 2001
Stories from May, 2001
Stories from April, 2001
Stories from March, 2001
Stories from February,2001
Stories from January, 2001
Stories from December, 2000
Stories from November, 2000
Stories from October, 2000
Stories from August and September, 2000
Stories from June and July, 2000
Home |
