Gunman, security guard killed at US consulate shooting

KABUL (Pajhwok): A gunman and a security guard have been killed in an exchange of fire outside the US consulate in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, according to a media report on Thursday.

“At 6:45 pm (1545 GMT), a man stopped in a car in front of the consulate building and got out with a weapon in his hand,” the official Saudi Press Agency quoted a police spokesman as saying.

“Security forces reacted… resulting in an exchange of fire that killed the assailant,” it said, adding that the Nepalese guard later died of his wounds.

The shooting coincided with the final day of the Haj at nearby Makkah. More than 1.6 million foreign pilgrims arriving on planes and boats have streamed through coastal Jeddah en route to the rituals.

“Security investigations are still underway to ascertain the circumstances” of the incident, the police spokesman said.

Nh