Middle East
Two persons were killed when a 'disgruntled employee' opened fire at Kingdom School at Riyadh in Saudi Arabia. The victims were two teachers, a Saudi national and a Palestinian national, who was also a US citizen.
A security guard was also reportedly wounded in the shootout, but no children were present on the premises at the time of the shooting.
The gunman was a former Iraqi teacher, who was sacked from his job at the school four years back. "There has been a shooting at Kingdom School in Riyadh, shooter still at school. The school closed, no children present. Please avoid the area," the US embassy tweeted.
There has been a shooting at Kingdom School in Riyadh, shooter still at school. School closed, no children present. Please avoid area.
— ACS Saudi Arabia (@KSA_ACS) May 31, 2017
Ongoing security incident at Kingdom School as of 3:00pm local time. Please avoid area due to heavy police presence. pic.twitter.com/Tc5Yq8tVY4
— ACS Saudi Arabia (@KSA_ACS) May 31, 2017
The Kingdom School is run by Gems Global Network, owned by Kerala businessman Sunny Varkey, reports Asianetnews Online. The school authorities described the incident as a case of 'disgruntled employee'.
“It is with regret that the administration building of Kingdom Schools witnessed this morning a shooting incident by an Arab national who was dismissed from the school four years ago on the basis of anger issues and an unstable personality,” Talal al-Maiman, the chairman of Kingdom Schools told Reuters.
The school had been closed for a week for summer holidays ahead of Ramadan.