Agencies
Washington, June 12: The presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton today said she was “devastated” by America’s worst mass shooting incident at a gay nightclub in Orlando while her Republican rival Donald Trump said it was an act of “possible terrorism.”Hillary Clinton, the former US secretary of state, offered a tweet signed “-H” to indicate it was from her personally. “Woke up to hear the devastating news from FL (Florida). As we wait for more information, my thoughts are with those affected by this horrific act,” Clinton wrote. Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, referred to the shooting as “possible terrorism.”
In a tweet, Trump said: “Really bad shooting in Orlando. Police investigating possible terrorism. Many people dead and wounded.” He was one of the first politicians to react amid reports that federal and state law enforcement officials were investigating the mass shooting as an act of terrorism. His reference to “possible terrorism” was a much more measured reaction than Trump issued a month ago after the EgyptAir flight crash, which he tweeted “looks like yet another terrorist attack” before authorities had addressed possible causes, CNN noted. Meanwhile, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders called it “horrific” and “unthinkable” and said it underscores the need for gun control measures.
“Oh, it’s horrific, it’s unthinkable. And just hopes go out to all those who were shot that they can recover,” the Democratic presidential contender said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.””And I’ve got to tell you, 25 years ago, I believe that in this country, we should not be selling automatic weapons which are designed to kill people,” Sanders said. “We have got to do everything that we can on top of that to make sure that guns do not fall into the hands of people who should not have them, criminals, people who are mentally ill. So that struggles continues,” Sanders, who is yet to quit the race for the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination race against Hillary, said. At least 50 people died and another 53 were injured early today when a heavily-armed gunman opened fire and seized hostages at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, police said in the worst mass shooting in US history.
Pulsating music, strobe lights and then gunfire
Orlando: It was a Saturday night at the Pulse nightclub, which could mean only one thing: a raucous, high-spirited celebration that would not end until well after daybreak. Strobe lights were flashing and music blaring at the popular lounge, home to one of the hottest party scenes in Florida — and where 50 people were killed and 53 injured in a mass shooting today. Just a few days earlier, Orlando’s vibrant LGBT community had marked the annual Gay Days celebration, one of the biggest events anywhere in the US dedicated to gay pride. The partying was to go on at Pulse, a popular dance club and bar known for its drag shows. “Tonight 21 and up is FREEEEEEEE before 11pm,” Kenya Michaels, a well-known Puerto Rican drag queen who was slated to perform at the club, posted on Facebook earlier yesterday. “Come see me show time at 12 am at Pulse Orlando Doors open at 9 pm. My sister Jasmine international is performing with me,” posted Michaels — who escaped the shooting unharmed. Scores of people turned out for the show: A contest of dancing, lip-synching drag queens took the floor one by one, showing their best dance moves, sashaying in high heels, as patrons laughed, nursed their cocktails, tossed dollar bills onto the stage. One dancer with swiveling hips and a Beyonce-like mane slinked around the stage, as video footage posted online on Periscope captured the revelry. Crowd of patrons thronged the area just off-stage, raised bottles of alcohols and drank shots, amid a crescendo of laughter.
Then, barely discernible under the cheers and the throbbing music, were the sounds of what one reveler said sounded like drumbeats punctuating the soundtrack. Patron Christopher Hanson said at first he thought the loud, rhythmic sounds were part of the music “until you heard too many shots. It was like, bang, bang, bang, bang.” At some point, it dawned on him that the “loud banging noises” were actually “gunshots going off,” Hanson said. “I didn’t see any of the actual shooters,” he told CNN. “I just saw bodies going down and I was ordering a drink at the bar. I fell down. I crawled out. People were trying to escape out the back. “I just know that when I hit the ground, I was crawling and I hit my elbows and my knees. When I got across the street, there were people — blood everywhere.”
Omar Mateen was on tracking radar of FBI
Washington: Omar Mateen, the lone gun man, who killed 50 people at a gay nightclub in Orlando today was under the radar of US law enforcement agencies in the past, media reports said. “He (Mateen) is a known quantity. He’s been on the radar before,” a law enforcement source was quoted as saying by The Daily Beast. According to the media report, Mateen became a person of interest in 2013 and again in 2014. At some point, the FBI also opened an investigation into Mateen but subsequently closed the case when it produced nothing that appeared to warrant further investigation, the source said. Meanwhile, the Florida Governor Rock Scott described this as an act of terror. “This is an act of terror,” Scott told reporters at a news conference in Orlando. Mateen’s father Mir Siddique has issued an apology for the mass shooting. “We are saying we are apologising for the whole incident. We weren’t aware of any action he is taking. We are in shock like the whole country,” he told NBC news channel.
Ex-wife of shooter says ‘he beat me’
Washington: The ex-wife of the 29-year-old man suspected of killing 50 people in a Orlando nightclub early on Sunday said he was violent and mentally unstable and beat her repeatedly while they were married. The ex-wife said she met Omar Mateen online about eight years ago and decided to move to Florida and marry him, Independent.co.uk reported. At first, the marriage was normal, she said, but then he became abusive. “He was not a stable person,” said the ex-wife, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because she feared for her safety in the wake of the mass shooting.He beat me. He would just come home and start beating me up because the laundry was not finished or something like that.”
US gun control policy slammed on social media
Washington: An outpouring of anger toward the lax US gun control policy was witnessed on social media after a shooting spree in an Orlando nightclub left 50 dead and 53 wounded on Sunday. “When will the USA learn & introduce tighter gun control? How many more have to needlessly die?” A twitter user named Dave Nelson lashed out, Xinhua news agency reported.
The sentiment was shared by fellow twitter user Tevin Wooten, who asked on his account: “Does anyone want to admit to a gun violence problem now?” According to local police, the shooter, identified as a 29-year-old US citizen of Afghan descent, had an assault-type weapon and a handgun as he stormed the gay club at around 2:00 a.m. local time (0600 GMT). Furious gun control supporters are questioning why laws are still permitting people with radical thinking or mental illness to acquire assault weapons.
Since the attack, social media have been buzzing with discussions on the massacre, with over 700,000 tweets using the hashtag of “Orlando.”
Shooter identified as US citizen of Afghan descent
Orlando (US): The gunman behind a mass shooting at a gay club in Orlando, Florida has been identified as an citizen of Afghan descent, US television networks reported today. Quoting law enforcement sources, CBS News named the shooter as Omar Mateen, who was born to Afghan parents in 1986 and lives in Port St Lucie, Florida. The network reported that Mateen – who died in a shootout with police after the hostage siege – has no apparent criminal history and that authorities are investigating whether he had ties to Islamic extremism. Police have yet to officially identify the gunman.
