THE deadly shooting by a Saudi Air Force aviation student at a U.S. military base presents the latest test for a monarchy struggling to repair its image in the West following a series of crises in recent years.

Mohammed Alshamrani used a handgun to open fire in a classroom Friday morning at Naval Air Station Pensacola, officials said, killing at least three people and injuring eight. Investigators are searching for a motive in the shooting.

But some lawmakers have already called it terrorism, underscoring the challenge that Saudi Arabia faces in improving public opinion about its rulers, including Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, in the U.S. and Europe.

The kingdom’s repression in recent years of activists and dissidents, including the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in October 2018, has evoked widespread international criticism. Its war in Yemen has been condemned by U.S. Congress.

Now, the shooting has revived memories of the turbulent history between Washington and Riyadh since the Sept. 11 attacks — bringing more scrutiny to the kingdom, including its close military relationship with the U.S.

The shooting will also test the relationship between Prince Mohammed and U.S. President Donald Trump, who has continued to voice support for the Saudi ruler, saying it was not clear whether the royal was involved in the Khashoggi killing, in spite of a CIA assessment that concluded he likely ordered the killing.

The attacks resulted in pressure on Saudi Arabia to flush out religious extremism in a country where the monarchy has ruled for decades in an alliance with a hyper-conservative religious establishment.

Since 2001, the kingdom has deepened security cooperation with the U.S., fired thousands of preachers for refusing to renounce extremist views, and processed thousands of inmates through a government-sponsored deradicalization program.(SD-Agencies)