Reuters | November 07, 2001 | By Rawhi Abeidoh
DOHA - Security guards gunned down a Qatari on Wednesday after he shot and wounded Americans in an attack on an airbase used by U.S. warplanes two days before major international trade talks in the Gulf state, diplomats said.
The number of wounded was not immediately available.
"Some Americans were injured but we cannot give any further information because the Qataris are issuing a statement," a U.S. embassy official said.
The shooting alarmed senior trade officials arriving in the tiny country from around the world for the five-day gathering of the 142-nation World Trade Organization, which starts on Friday.
"That is shocking news," said Stuart Harbinson, chairman of the WTO General Council and the WTO's Hong Kong ambassador.
"This is a very, very sad incident, but it is unrelated to the conference," WTO chief Mike Moore told Reuters. He said he did not believe it would attack the WTO event.
There has been concern among some member countries about security in Qatar due to the Gulf's proximity to U.S. military action in Afghanistan.
A Qatari security source said the man, identified as Abdullah Mubarak Tashal al-Hajiri, had fired on the Udeid airstrip on Wednesday morning.
A diplomat said the man was a member of the air force who worked in anti-aircraft defense. That report could not immediately be confirmed.
U.S. WARPLANES
The airstrip, about 25 miles south of Doha, is being used by U.S. military aircraft under a military cooperation agreement signed last year.
The agreement provides for use of the base by U.S. warplanes in unspecified "times of need." It was not immediately known if U.S. aircraft using the base are involved in Afghanistan.
The incident happened amid heightened tensions in the region after a month of U.S. strikes in Afghanistan to flush out Saudi-born militant Osama bin Laden, prime suspect in the September 11 attacks on U.S. cities.
Qatar had to fight to keep the November 9-13 meeting. The tiny gas-rich state, which sticks out like a thumb into the Gulf and has a population of less than 600,000, had touted itself to the WTO as a haven of security.
Ministers from WTO member states will try in Doha to agree on an agenda for a new round of trade liberalization talks.
The last WTO ministerial meeting in Seattle two years ago faced huge demonstrations against globalization. A meeting of the world's leading industrialized nations in Genoa, Italy, last summer was also marred by violence, leaving one protester dead.
Qatar has said it will allow peaceful demonstrations but not disruption of the conference. It has limited the number of non-governmental participants to 600.
An Asian WTO ambassador told Reuters of the shooting: "Many of us have been very worried about security. It could even make some ministers stay away but I hope not."
Qatar successfully hosted other international events, including the 1997 Middle East and North Africa conference and 56-nation Organization of the Islamic Conference summit in 2000.Reuters:
