JEDDAH, Aug 30: Shots were fired at a US diplomatic car near the consulate in Jeddah on Monday, but there were no injuries, the US embassy said. "There was a Jeddah consulate vehicle that was fired on this morning.
There was very minor damage and no one was hurt," an official said, declining to give any details on the occupants of the car or how many people it was carrying.
He added that the incident had no impact on the normal business day of the US consulate in Jeddah or the embassy in Riyadh, both of which would open to the public on Tuesday. Security sources said that an unidentified gunman opened fire at the car carrying one passenger plus the driver, both of whom escaped unhurt.
An interior ministry official said in a statement that the car - transporting an American resident - had been pulling out from a bank near the consulate when it was shot at by a small pistol, which damaged the rear window.
It was not clear who carried out the attack or what the motive was. But militants loyal to Osama bin Laden have been waging a 15-month campaign of suicide bombings and attacks against Western citizens and oil sites.
Some 90 police officers and civilians, many of them foreigners, have been killed. Crown Prince Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz, the country's de facto ruler, told cabinet on Monday the country would continue to confront terrorism and anyone thinking of harming Saudi Arabia's stability. -Reuters
