PENSACOLA SHOOTING FOUND TO BE TERRORISM: Attorney General William Barr announced Monday the December shooting at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Fla., that left three dead was an "act of terrorism" and that the shooter was motivated by "jihadist ideology."
Barr made the comments while delivering the results from a monthlong investigation into the attack, which was carried out by Royal Saudi Air Force Lt. Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani. Alshamrani, who was shot and killed by police during the attack, was enrolled in a program to train allied pilots.
"The evidence shows that the shooter was motivated by jihadist ideology," Barr said. "During the course of the investigation, we learned that the shooter posted a message on social media on Sept. 11 of last year that said: 'the countdown has begun.' Over Thanksgiving weekend, he visited the 9/11 Memorial in New York City. He also posted other anti-American, anti-Israeli, and jihadi messages on social media, and did so two hours before his attack at the naval base."
21 Saudis kicked out: The investigation found no evidence that other members of the Saudi military had knowledge of Alshamrani's intentions. But Barr said Saudi Arabia determined that 21 military members training in the U.S. would be unenrolled and returned home over other revelations produced by the probe.
Barr said that 17 of those individuals had social media accounts that included jihadi or anti-American sentiments. He added that 15 also had "some kind of contact" with child pornography and that Saudi Arabia found these discoveries "unbecoming" of an officer in its military.
Independent U.S. attorney's offices determined that none of the cases involving other Saudi military members would warrant federal prosecution, he added.
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