Fifty people in an Orlando gay nightclub were killed by madman Omar Mateen. It was the worst attack in history. In a second incident in California, police stopped a vehicle loaded with weapons and explosives headed for the L.A. Pride festival in West Hollywood.
Worst Mass Shooting in US History
The Financial Times reports Omar Mateen Kills Fifty in Orlando Nightclub.
Fifty people were killed and 53 injured at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, in the worst mass shooting in US history. Authorities are investigating the massacre as a potential terrorist attack.
Clubgoers fled the dance floor chaos in the early hours in a rush for safety, as a local police officer moonlighting as a security guard exchanged shots with the attacker, identified as Omar Mateen, a US citizen from Port St Lucie, Florida. Mateen, whose parents are from Afghanistan, was killed as police stormed the club.
Jerry Demings, Orange County sheriff, said: “This is an incident, as I see it, that we certainly classify as a domestic terror incident.”
Mir Seddique, Mateen’s father, told NBC News that the attack “had nothing to do with religion”. He said Mateen was angered when he saw two men kissing in Miami a couple of months ago, which may be linked to the attack on the Pulse club.
As law enforcement agencies from as far away as Boston and Chicago offered their assistance, Orlando mayor Buddy Dyer asked Florida’s governor to declare a state of emergency. “We’re dealing with something we never imagined, and something that is unimaginable,” Mr Dyer said.
Worst Shootings
Act of Terrorism and Hate
President Obama says the nightclub shooting in Orlando was an “Act of Terror” and an “Act of Hate”.
Florida Governor Rick Scott said : Orlando Shooting ‘Clearly an Act of Terrorism’
Santa Monica Police Stop Armed Man Headed for Gay Pride Parade
Police in Santa Monica, California likely stopped a second huge incident earlier today. The LA Times reports Man with Weapons and Possible Explosives Arrested, was Going to L.A. Gay Pride Parade.
Authorities in Santa Monica found possible explosives as well as assault rifles and ammunition Sunday in the car of a man who told them he was in town for the L.A. Pride festival in West Hollywood, a law enforcement source said.
Early Sunday, Santa Monica police received a call of a suspected prowler near Olympic Boulevard and 11th Street. Patrol officers responded and encountered an individual who told officers he was waiting for a friend. That led officers to inspect the car and find several weapons and a lot of ammunition as well as tannerite, an ingredient that could be used to create a pipe bomb.
The car had Indiana plates. The man made comments that he was in town for the Pride event in West Hollywood this weekend. The source said authorities did not know of any connection between the gay nightclub shooting in Orlando, Fla., early Sunday morning and the Santa Monica incident.
Horrific incident in FL. Praying for all the victims & their families. When will this stop? When will we get tough, smart & vigilant?
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 12, 2016
Totally senseless act of cowardice, needlessly ruining the lives of many people and their families.
— Mike Shedlock (@MishGEA) June 12, 2016
Mike “Mish” Shedlock
