DoD: Saudi passed rigorous vetting

The Saudi military officer who killed three and wounded eight in a shooting rampage Dec. 6 aboard Naval Air Station Pensacola, Fla., had passed rigorous vetting processes without setting off alarms, according to Defense Department officials speaking on background Dec. 13. The officials said the Saudi Royal Air Force 2nd Lt. Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani and all foreign military trainees are cleared initially by their countries, and subjected to three levels of screenings by U.S. Embassies in those countries. Training applicants are run through the departments of Defense, State and Homeland Security databases to check for criminal activity or substance abuse, officials said in a conference call with defense reporters. Would-be trainees also have to submit to a physical and psychological exam by doctors approved by the U.S. Embassy; and then pass requirements for a visa. In Alshamrani case, the screening failed to turn up his exposure to “extremist thoughts” of four radical clerics before coming to America, according to a Saudi government analysis obtained by the Washington Post, which showed a Twitter account thought to have been used by Alshamrani. Since the shootings, 152 Saudis have been restricted to base classroom training only; 12 have been confined to quarters under monitoring by the FBI. Esper has ordered a review of the vetting processes for more than 5,000 foreign military students currently training in the U.S. The defense officials, speaking on background, said new vetting procedures could be outlined as early as next week. (Source: Military.com 12/16/19) https://www.military.com/daily-news/2019/12/16/saudi-officer-who-killed-3-pensacola-had-passed-rigorous-vetting-dod-says.html