Jeddah Embassy Attack Details

Armed militants who burst into the grounds of the US consulate in the western Saudi city of Jeddah had identified the most vulnerable entrance and overcome intense intelligence efforts to thwart such attacks, Saudi officials said on Monday.

According to a senior Saudi security official, the attackers drove a car to within a short distance of the consulate, but were prevented from getting close to the heavily guarded compound by road blocks and security checks.

“The attackers were not able to get through the external security cordon in their car, so they walked to the consulate and on foot approached the entrance that gives access to the mail room of the complex,” the official said. It was unclear whether the attackers tried to hide the weapons and grenades that were used to break into the compound and attack staff, he added.

“It was when they reached the perimeter that they used grenades to bomb their way through the mail entrance, and into the garden of the consulate. As soon as they got in, there was a fire-fight between the attackers and the National Guard contingent that was guarding the complex within the perimeter wall,” the official said.

A US official said some of the attackers also got into the compound through the main gate, though it is unclear how many used this entrance or whether they detonated grenades to force their way in. “It is not clear whether it was a bomb or they just sort of fired their way in,” he said.

The Saudi security official said the National Guard contingent inside the compound was rapidly reinforced by a unit from the Saudi Special Security Force. According to eyewitnesses, the attackers were able to pull down and burn the US flag flying in the grounds of the consulate, during exchanges of gunfire. Two of the attackers were wounded and arrested, a Saudi interior ministry official said.

Another senior Saudi official, close to the interior ministry, said as many as 13 people might have been involved in the attack, though it is unclear where those not arrested or killed escaped to. Nor is it clear whether the car used was wired to explode.