‘Quiet’ student shoots Al-Qarni as cleric leaves Mindanao university

The assassination try on Ayed Al-Qarni was caught on video, which showed a hooded gunman repeatedly shooting the prominent Saudi cleric and his vehicle just as he was leaving the Western Mindanao State University on Tuesday night.

A report on "24 Oras" said that the suspect was identified as Rugasan Misuari III, a 5th year engineering student at the university.

Al-Qarni suffered three gunshot wounds but a post on his Twitter account indicated that he was already safe.

Saudi religious attache Turki Assaegh was hit on the foot.

Misuari was killed by one of the security escorts.

"'Yung SOCO team nakakuha ng susi, a motorcycle key at yung ang nag-lead sa identity ng suspect natin," said Inspector Helen Galvez, the spokesperson for the Zamboanga PNP.

Attorney Eduardo Sanson, a spokesman for the WMSU, said there was nothing suspicious about the student.

"There was nothing out of the ordinary from him because he was just a regular student, silent type.... Nothing suspicious at all," Sanson said.

Al-Qarni spoke before student at an Islamic forum at the WMSU on Tuesday.

According to a report by Reuters, he is on hit list of the extremist group ISIS.

Before the shooting, Saudi officials advised its embassy in Manila to beef up security for Al-Qarni. -NB, GMA News