Briton shot dead in Saudi suburb

[Kellanved]

The city's police chief told a news agency two British people had been shot by "unknown elements" at around 1740 (1540 BST) on Sunday.

"One was killed and the other wounded," he said.

...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/3781803.stm

[daleo]

1. Journalists, rather than oil industry

"BBC cameraman Simon Cumbers has been killed and BBC correspondent Frank Gardner injured after gunmen opened fire near the Saudi capital, Riyadh.

Cumbers, 36, was a freelance journalist and cameraman working for the BBC and other news organisations, the BBC said in a statement.

Frank Gardner, 42, is a leading expert on al-Qaeda, the statement said.

Riyadh's police chief said the attack was carried out by "unknown elements" at around 1740 (1540 BST)."

A leading expert on al-Queda is murdered in Saudi Arabia. Make of it what you will.

[muriel_volestrangler]

2. to be precise, the expert was injured, not murdered

it was the cameraman who was killed.

[AP]

3. Camera operators are journalists.

[muriel_volestrangler]

4. but my point is that Gardner

the "leading expert on al Qaeda", is still alive.

[AP]

6. I thought the point was that the other poster was concerned that

journalists were being murdered. I didn't catch his/her error, oops.

[daleo]

7. You are correct

A slip between reading and writing on my part. I guess the salient fact is that he was attacked, and may well have been targeted specifically because of his expertise. Or not - just speculating.

[DoYouEverWonder]

5. Two BBC men shot in Saudi capital

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3781803.stm

June 6, 2004

BBC cameraman Simon Cumbers has been killed and correspondent Frank Gardner injured after gunmen opened fire near the Saudi capital, Riyadh.

Cumbers, 36, was a freelance journalist and cameraman working for the BBC, the BBC said in a statement.

Frank Gardner, 42, is the BBC's security correspondent and a leading expert on al-Qaeda, the statement said.

Riyadh's police chief said the attack was carried out by "unknown elements" on Sunday afternoon.

[dArKeR]

8. U.K. Condemns Terrorist Attack on BBC Team in Saudi Capital

June 7 (Bloomberg) -- U.K. Foreign Secretary Jack Straw condemned a terrorist attack in the Saudi Arabian capital, Riyadh, that killed a cameraman and wounded a journalist with a British Broadcasting Corp. news team.

The U.K. ``will continue to do all we can to support the Saudi authorities in their fight against terrorism,'' Straw said in a statement on the Foreign Office Web site. ``I utterly condemn the attack on BBC journalists in Riyadh.''

Simon Cumbers, 36, an Irish freelance journalist working as a cameraman for the BBC and other news organizations, was killed in the shooting yesterday in the southern Riyadh district of al- Suwaydi, the BBC reported. Frank Gardner, 42, the broadcaster's security correspondent, is being treated in hospital in Riyadh.

http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000102&sid=aQAGv_lKZ_TU&refer=uk

[NNN0LHI]

9. Look at all the people running to his assistance in this photo

TV grab from the Al-Ekhbaria news channel shows an injured BBC journalist who came under fire while on a reporting assignment in the Al-Suwaidi district of Riyadh. The British embassy told AFP that BBC correspondent Frank Gardner lay in a critical but stable condition after suspected Islamic militants shot him and killed his Irish cameraman.(AFP/Al-Ekhbaria/HO)

[veggiemama]

10. An Irishman, not a Briton . . .

Cumbers was from Navan, Co. Meath, Republic of Ireland. Sorry, but I live here (in Eire) and we do care about the distinction.

[spinbaby]

11. Big news on BBC this morning

This was a huge story on BBC this morning. Reagan got a passing mention. I like the BBC news better all the time.