Attack on Saudi palace in Jeddah kills two royal guards

Associated Press

Updated 7 October 2017 at 5:30 pm

A handout picture provided by the Saudi Royal Palace on September 20, 2017 shows King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud speaking during a ceremony welcoming the Saudi national football team at the Royal Palace in Jeddah - AFP

A gunman opened fire outside a Saudi royal palace on Saturday, killing two members of the Saudi Royal Guard, an official Saudi news agency reported.

The Saudi Press Agency quoted the security spokesman for the Interior Ministry as saying that the attacker exited a vehicle and opened fire on the western gate of Al-Salam Palace in Jeddah early Saturday morning, killing two Guard members and wounding three others.

The gunman was shot dead on the spot, according to the SPA report.

The ministry identified the attacker as Mansour bin Hassan bin Ali bin Al Fahid al-Amri, a 28-year-old Saudi national, the report said, adding that he was carrying Kalashnikov rifles and three Molotov cocktails. It said the investigation is ongoing.