U.S. investigation reportedly to result in expulsion of some Saudi military students

Naval Air Station Pensacola.
(Image credit: Josh Brasted/Getty Images)

The United States is planning to expel more than a dozen members of Saudi Arabia's military who are training at U.S. military installations, multiple sources told CNN.

The decision was reportedly reached after an FBI investigation following a shooting last month at Naval Air Station Pensacola in Pensacola, Florida, in which a member of the Saudi Royal Air Force killed three U.S. service members on the base. The FBI and Justice Department declined to comment.

The Saudis who are expected to be expelled aren't accused of aiding in the shooting, which has been treated by law enforcement as a terrorist incident, but some are reportedly believed to have connections to extremist movements, per CNN. Others were reportedly found to possess child pornography, a defense official said.

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The Saudi government has reportedly been cooperative and even helped U.S. investigators link particular social media accounts to individuals. One of the major findings of the investigations appears to be a social media conversation, in which some military members expressed support for extremism. Read more at CNN and The Washington Post.

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Tim O'Donnell

Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.