‘STAND-DOWN’

Navy Issues ‘Safety Stand-Down’ Order Grounding Saudi Military Trainees After Pensacola Shooting

The suspension follows a shooting last week by a member of the Saudi Royal Air Force that left three sailors dead and eight wounded.

The U.S. Navy has issued a “safety stand-down” order grounding Saudi military students in Florida after a shooting by a Saudi military trainee at Naval Air Station Pensacola left three young sailors dead and eight others wounded. Saudi students at three naval bases in the state will be affected by the indefinite suspension of their flight classes. The victims of the attack last week, Kaleb Watson, 23, Mohammed Haitham, 19, and Cameron Walters, 21, were at the very beginning of their naval careers when 21-year-old Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani opened fire at the flight school, according to law enforcement officials. Alshamrani, a member of the Saudi Royal Air Force, was shot and killed by a sheriff’s deputy. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis previously told reporters that Saudi Arabia is “going to owe a debt here given that it was one of their individuals.” Alshamrani used a legally purchased Glock 9mm handgun in the shooting, according to the F.B.I.