Saudi gunmen kill American

Gunmen shot dead an American who worked for a US contracting firm in the Saudi capital Riyadh yesterday, the fifth assault on Westerners in the world's leading oil exporter in five weeks.

The latest killing in the kingdom, battling militants loyal to Saudi-born Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda network, heightened fears among tens of thousands of expatriates, many of whom work in the oil industry.

In Washington, a US State Department official confirmed that an American man was killed in Riyadh but said he could not provide details, pending notification of the family.

"I can confirm that an American was killed," said the US official, who asked not to be identified. "We don't yet have any details... to say who did this."

Police said an American was killed after gunshots were fired at his house in eastern Riyadh.

Other security sources quoted witnesses as saying the American was leaving a clinic when gunmen in a car followed him to his home and opened fire at him, killing him instantly.

The American had worked for US contracting company Vinnell, a unit of Northrop Grumman Corp which helps train the Saudi National Guard, an elite force for the pro-US monarchy.

Yesterday's shooting came after suspected al Qaeda militants shot dead on Sunday Irish cameraman Simon Cumbers, 36, and critically wounded BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner, 42, in a Riyadh area known as a militant stronghold.

Al Qaeda militants also killed 22 people, 19 of them expatriates, in a shooting and hostage-taking spree in the oil city of Khobar last month. The assault helped push oil prices to record highs on fears of instability in the kingdom.

A purported statement by al Qaeda in Saudi Arabia warned of new attacks on US and Western airlines and asked Muslims to keep away from Westerners to avoid falling victim to an attack.