As FBI agents combed through the wreckage of three Saudi housing compounds hit by suicide bombers last week, new details about the planning and execution of the attacks emerged Saturday. A U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the estimated 19 men who hit the Al Hamra Oasis Village, the Jadawel complex and the Vinnell compound late Monday had cased the facilities for weeks or months and knew precisely how to gain entry and do the most damage. They rented villas and apartments near the compounds, where they studied the movements of those inside, he said. Before the assaults, they donned military uniforms to confuse guards at the gates. “The guards at Vinnell were Saudi national guardsmen with .50-caliber machine guns,” the official said. “The attackers knew all the multiple controls at the gate. It wasn’t like pushing a green button and the gate went up.” At Al Hamra, two lightly armed guards were gunned down by the assailants, who drove in and set off a pickup packed with explosives, leveling 25 homes. At Jadawel, guards managed to trap the attackers between two barriers. Full Story
About OODA Analyst
OODA is comprised of a unique team of international experts capable of providing advanced intelligence and analysis, strategy and planning support, risk and threat management, training, decision support, crisis response, and security services to global corporations and governments.