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Headline Roundup May 18th, 2020

FBI Links Pensacola Military Base Shooter to Al-Qaida

Summary from the AllSides News Team

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) announced Monday that it found a link between the al-Qaida extremist group and the rogue Saudi Air Force cadetΒ whoΒ murdered three U.S. sailors at PensacolaΒ Naval Air Station in Florida last December. Several weeks after the shooting, Attorney General William Barr said the attack wasΒ driven by "jihadist ideologies." The FBI, whichΒ has yet to call the shooting an act of terrorism,Β reportedly found the link after unlocking the shooter's cell phones. Central to many reports was Apple's involvement in the case; the tech giant originally resisted breaking with privacy protocols to unlock the shooter's phones forΒ federal investigators. Right-rated outlets were more likely to frame Apple's handling of the situation in a more negative light; some also referred to the assailant a "mass shooter."

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From the Left
FBI: Shooter at Pensacola military base link to al-Qaida
FBI: Shooter at Pensacola military base link to al-Qaida

Associated Press

News

The gunman in a deadly attack at a military base in Pensacola, Florida, last December was meticulous in his planning and had been radicalized overseas for at least five years, U.S. officials said Monday.

The FBI learned of the contacts between the gunman, Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani, and an al-Qaida operative after breaking the encryption on cellphones that had previously been locked.

Attorney General William Barr and FBI Director Chris Wray held a news conference to announce the developments in the shooting late last year at the Pensacola Naval Air Station,...

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From the Left
FBI finds al Qaeda link after breaking encryption on Pensacola attacker's iPhone
News

Washington (CNN) - The Saudi military trainee who killed three US sailors and wounded several others in a terror attack last year on a military base in Pensacola, Florida, was in touch with a suspected al Qaeda operative, according to multiple US officials briefed on the matter.

US investigators uncovered the al Qaeda connection after the FBI broke through the encryption protecting the Saudi attacker's iPhones, the officials said. Attorney General William Barr and the FBI are expected to announce the finding Monday in a news conference.
Mohammed Alshamrani, a...

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From the Right
FBI finds link between Pensacola gunman and al Qaeda, official says
FBI finds link between Pensacola gunman and al Qaeda, official says

Washington Times

News

The FBI has found a link between the gunman in a deadly attack at a military base last December and an al Qaeda operative, a U.S. official said Monday.

Attorney General William P. Barr and FBI Director Christopher A. Wray were set to hold a news conference to announce developments in the shooting late last year at the Pensacola Naval Air Station, in which a Saudi Air Force officer killed three U.S. sailors and injured eight other people.

The FBI declined to comment ahead of the news conference.

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