[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 201 (Wednesday, December 6, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Page S5812]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  SENATE RESOLUTION 490--REMEMBERING THE DECEMBER 6, 2019, TERRORIST 
ATTACK AT NAVAL AIR STATION PENSACOLA AND COMMEMORATING THOSE WHO LOST 
      THEIR LIVES, AND THOSE WHO WERE INJURED, IN THE LINE OF DUTY

  Mr. SCOTT of Florida (for himself, Mr. Rubio, Mr. Warnock, Mr. 
Ossoff, Mr. Tuberville, and Mrs. Britt) submitted the following 
resolution; which was considered and agreed to:

                              S. Res. 490

       Whereas December 6, 2023, the 4-year anniversary of the 
     terrorist attack at Naval Air Station Pensacola (referred to 
     in this preamble as the ``terrorist attack''), is a day of 
     commemoration for those who lost their lives, and those who 
     were injured, during the terrorist attack, including--
       (1) Ensign Joshua Kaleb Watson of Enterprise, Alabama;
       (2) Petty Officer Third Class Mohammed Sameh Haitham of St. 
     Petersburg, Florida; and
       (3) Petty Officer Third Class Cameron Scott Walters of 
     Richmond Hill, Georgia;
       Whereas the 3 servicemembers who died in the terrorist 
     attack were posthumously awarded the Navy and Marine Corps 
     Medal and the Purple Heart;
       Whereas the terrorist who committed the terrorist attack 
     was a Saudi Arabian foreign military student who had been 
     radicalized and established contacts with Al Qaeda operatives 
     prior to attending flight training at Naval Air Station 
     Pensacola;
       Whereas Naval Air Station Pensacola security forces and 
     Escambia County, Florida, law enforcement officers took 
     decisive action to end the terrorist attack and have rightly 
     earned the praises and awards bestowed upon them;
       Whereas 2 civilians were awarded the Department of the Navy 
     Superior Civilian Medal for Valor for their heroic actions 
     during the terrorist attack;
       Whereas 8 individuals were awarded the Purple Heart, or the 
     law enforcement equivalent, for injuries sustained during the 
     terrorist attack;
       Whereas 9 military personnel were awarded the Navy and 
     Marine Corps Medal for their heroic actions during the 
     terrorist attack;
       Whereas 8 military personnel were awarded the Navy and 
     Marine Corps Commendation Medal for their heroic actions 
     during the terrorist attack;
       Whereas 8 law enforcement officers were awarded the Medal 
     of Valor for their actions taken during the terrorist attack; 
     and
       Whereas December 6, 2023, marks 4 years since the lives of 
     3 military personnel were tragically cut short by the 
     egregious act of terrorism at Naval Air Station Pensacola: 
     Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) condemns the December 6, 2019, terrorist attack at 
     Naval Air Station Pensacola (referred to in this resolution 
     as the ``terrorist attack'');
       (2) commemorates in sorrow the servicemembers and civilians 
     who lost their lives, or who were injured, and the harm 
     caused to the surrounding community, as a result of the 
     terrorist attack;
       (3) remembers Ensign Joshua Kaleb Watson, Petty Officer 
     Third Class Mohammed Sameh Haitham, and Petty Officer Third 
     Class Cameron Scott Walters, who were killed in the terrorist 
     attack;
       (4) expresses gratitude for the heroic actions that the 
     civilians, uniformed personnel, and law enforcement performed 
     during and in the aftermath of the terrorist attack;
       (5) lauds the decision to give medals and awards to the law 
     enforcement officers, uniformed servicemembers, and civilians 
     who responded heroically on the morning of December 6, 2019; 
     and
       (6) commends the efforts undertaken by the Department of 
     Defense to enhance security at military installations to 
     ensure that the tragedy represented by the terrorist attack 
     is never repeated.

                          ____________________