Kuwaiti police and U.S. military investigators were hunting Wednesday for the culprits behind an ambush that killed a Pentagon employee working at a U.S. base in Kuwait.
Michael Rene Pouliot, 46, a civilian contractor working for the U.S. military, was killed Tuesday morning when his vehicle was peppered with automatic rifle fire on a road near Camp Doha.
Pouliot was the co-founder of southern California software company, Tapestry Solutions, which works with the U.S. government to develop software used in military training.
Another U.S. contractor was wounded and was being treated in hospital in Kuwait City.
"The incident is currently under investigation by Kuwaiti and U.S. authorities. The embassy reminds all American citizens in Kuwait to be alert to their surroundings and continually assess their security, to include varying the times and routes of their movements," said an advisory issued after the attack.
Kuwait's Information Minister Sheikh Ahmad al-Fahd al-Sabah said a link to Iraq or al Qaeda could not be ruled out. "These are isolated incidents caused by extremist thought which takes advantage of the youth. We believe these incidents are not outside the realm of the Iraqi regime or to the ideology of the al Qaeda network," he said.
The ambassador of Kuwait to the United States, Salem Abdullah Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, strongly condemned the attack. He said in a statement "All Kuwaitis condemn this senseless and vicious act of terrorism. "We will work closely with the United States to ensure that the perpetrators are apprehended and brought to justice."
Earlier this week, Kuwaiti officials said they had detained a Kuwaiti soldier suspected of spying for Iraq. Kuwaiti newspapers have said the man had been plotting attacks on U.S. targets in Kuwait, including a possible attempt to poison U.S. troops. (Albawaba.com)
© 2003 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
