ORLANDO: A week before the first anniversary of Pulse nightclub massacre (the deadliest mass shooting in US history, claiming 50 lives) an incident of shooting causing multiple fatalities has been reported this morning.
RELEVANT PIECES PUBLISHED EARLIER
Multiple fatalities feared in Orlando shooting: Police
ORLANDO: Police in Florida has said there have been “multiple fatalities” in a shooting at an Orlando industrial estate.
The shooting happened early on Monday morning in the east of the city, a police official was quoted as saying by the local newspaper.
It comes a week before the first anniversary of the Pulse nightclub shooting in the city, in which 49 people died.
Reports in Florida said the deaths occurred at a business making camping awnings, and that the FBI was now on the scene.
In a statement on Monday, Florida Governor Rick Scott condemned a “senseless act of violence”.
“Over the past year, the Orlando community has been challenged like never before,” he said.
In last June’s attack, the deadliest mass shooting in modern US history, gunman Omar Mateen killed 49 people and injured dozens more at a gay nightclub before being shot dead by police.
Orlando nightclub attacker Omar Mir Mateen Siddique shot dead after he killed 50 & injured 53
M. M. ALAM
ORLANDO: Police here have confirmed that the worst mass shooting slaughter in American history that occurred at Pulse (Gay) Night Club here on Sunday morning has resulted in death of at-least 50 people.
ATTACKER OMAR MIR SIDDIQUE MATEEN:
The 29-year-old attacker identified as Omar Mir Siddique Mateen, [an American citizen (of Afghan descend) born in New York living in Port St. Lucie, Fla. He worked as a security guard] has been shot dead in what police called ‘a hostage-situation’.
FBI spokesperson has stated that the suspected man had leaning towards jihadi ideology. 24-hours after the deadliest mass shooting in the history of America, people have started asking as to how a man who had been investigated twice by FBI for suspected leaning towards jihadi organisations, managed to purchase an assault rifle and handgun?
PULSE, which calls itself Orlando’s Latin Hotspot, was holding its weekly Upscale Latin Saturdays party with a midnight show. Club had engaged three disc-jockeys for the event.
Reportedly Omar Mateen had called 911 and told about his allegiance to ISIS and its ‘Caliph’ Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. However, so far IS did not claim responsibility of the attack.
SWAT team used an armored vehicle and stun grenades to enter the building and kill the attacker
Addressing a Press Conference the Chief of Orlando Police John Mina informed about the attack.
Orlando Police Chief John Mina while addressing a Press Conference informed that Omar Mateen entered the Pulse nightclub at 2 am armed with an AR-15-style assault rifle and a handgun. Mina told that at that time over three hundred people were dancing and drinking inside.
Attacker held dozens hostage and hold inside. Some survivors managed of escaped under the cover of ‘discretionary’ or controlled explosions.
Earlier sources claimed that the shooter had traveled to Orlando from his home in St Petersburg, Florida, about two hours’ drive away, with the intention of carrying out the crime. This piece of news is still to be confirmed.
Omar Mateen’s ex-wife Sitora Yusufiy, 27 has claimed that he was insane and used to torture her: “Anger, emotionally violent and that later evolved into abuse and beating”. She said that though she was shocked by the attack, she had recognized, “something deeply wrong with him years ago. This was a sick person that was really confused and went crazy!”
A police officer seen stopping family members from going towards the Club in search of their relatives.Orlando spokesperson terming the shooting as a terrorist attack, had stated that it had resulted in a “mass casualty situation”. Police added that a controlled explosion took place at the venue. Police had surrounded the area after shots were fired killing 50 and injuring 53 people.
According to sources the shooter had barricaded himself with hostages. Club staff had prompted to post on the Facebook: “Everyone get out of Pulse and keep running”.
Paramedics snapped at the Orlando Medical Center.
A man claiming that he was inside the Pulse, reported of screams: “People are dead”. He further said : “They are just pulling people out in stretchers loading them up”. Injured were removed in a number of ambulances to a nearby hospital.
Urging people to stay away from the locale, police had confirmed that the shooting had resulted in multiple injuries. LEOs have further said that they have undertaken a controlled explosion inside the club.
FILE
According to a witness who ran out of the Club as soon as the firing stopped (after some fifteen to twenty minutes), a gunman entered and resorted to shooting using an automatic weapon. He said over one hundred people were inside the Club to celebrate the Latin night.
Barbara Poma who owns PULSE Night Club
FILE
Christina Grimmie was incidentally shot dead just a day before in Orlando
Twenty-two-year-old singing star Christina Grimmie was incidentally shot dead just a day before in Orlando while she was signing autographs. The shooter died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The culprit in this case too traveled to Orlando to carry out the crime.
Orlando gunman posted about attack on Facebook!
WASHINGTON: Omar Mateen, the gunman behind the worst mass shooting in Orlando state, referenced the terrorist organization ISIS in a Facebook post moments before the attack.
“You kill innocent women and children by doing US airstrikes..now taste the Islamic state vengeance [sic],” Omar Mateen wrote in his post. “In the next few days, you will see attacks from the Islamic State [ISIS] in the USA.”
Mateen, 29, killed 49 people on Sunday night in Orlando’s [gay] night club ‘Pulse’. According to media reports, he also searched for “Pulse Orlando” and “shooting” online on the morning of the carnage.
Orlando State police said that the terrorist declared allegiance to ISIS in 911 calls he made during the attack. On the other side, ISIS also claimed responsibility for the shooting on the group’s official radio station, al-Bayan.
In a series of Facebook posts, Mateen wrote: “America and Russia stop bombing the Islamic state.”
“The real Muslims will never accept the filthy ways of the west.”
However, Facebook deleted Omar Mateen’s account for violating its community standards.
Soon after it was revealed that Mateen took to Facebook to announce about the attack, the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee wrote a letter to the CEO of Facebook Mark Zuckerberg, asking the company to produce information on Mateen’s online activity and to provide a briefing to the panel.
