MIAMI — The Pentagon has suspended operational training for all Saudi military students in the United States, indefinitely halting flight instruction, firing range training and all other operations outside the classroom in the wake of a shooting last week at Naval Air Station Pensacola in Florida by a member of the Saudi Royal Air Force. The suspension will affect nearly 900 Saudi students across the country, the Defense Department said on Tuesday. Classroom teaching, including language courses, will continue while Pentagon leaders review vetting procedures for all foreign military trainees. An estimated 5,200 international students in the United States will be covered by the security review. The suspension of operational training for hundreds of Saudi military students is an extraordinary rebuke by the Pentagon, especially at a time when President Trump has tamped down suggestions that the Saudi government must be held to account on an array of recent issues.

Source: International New York Times December 10, 2019 21:19 UTC