Shooting at U.S. Mosque: Police Probe Suspected Hate Crime
A San Diego Police Department officer, Anthony Carrasco, said there were reports of several shots fired at the scene. The incident occurred about 14 kilometres north of downtown San Diego, the city’s second most densely populated area in California. Local U.S. media footage showed dozens of police cruisers on the elevated highway near the Islamic Center, with officers surrounding the area as armed units swept the vicinity. U.S. President Donald Trump said he was monitoring the latest information on the shooting at the Islamic Center in San Diego, California, describing the situation as “horrific” and adding that officials were handling it “very seriously.”
Police: Suspected hate crime, note found
Police officials said they are treating the shooting as a hate crime pending further investigation. “Given the incident at the Islamic Center, we consider this a hate crime unless proven otherwise,” San Diego Police Chief Scott Wahl said at a press conference. He noted that at least three people were reported killed, including a security officer who played a key role in preventing further casualties. Two suspects, aged 17 and 19, were found dead, believed to have died by suicide, inside a car near the scene. A nearby Al-Rashid School, which offers Arabic language courses and Qur’anic classes for children aged five and up, was in the vicinity. During the chaos, children were seen leaving the scene and all were reported safe.
Wahl added that one of the mother of the shooting suspect discovered a note or will left by the perpetrator. “Regarding the form of the note and its contents, I will not disclose them at this time.” This was corroborated by a CNN report citing a law enforcement official who said one of the weapons used bore an inscription of hate. The same report said one of the suspects left a will referencing racial pride.
Condemnation from Mayor to Islamic groups
San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria condemned the mass shooting at the city’s largest mosque as an act of hate-based violence. “Attacks on any of our communities, on San Diegans because of their background, beliefs, or manner of worship, are attacks on all of us,” Gloria said. He added that those aiming to commit hate crimes in San Diego would face “the full force of the law” and the “full force of a city that refuses to be sowed apart.” He emphasised that the city opposes Islamophobia and “all forms of violence targeting the Muslim community in San Diego.”
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) also condemned the shooting as a “horrific act of violence” that should never be experienced by anyone at school or a house of worship. “We condemn the horrific violence at the Islamic Center of San Diego,” CAIR said in a statement. “No one should fear for their safety while attending prayers or learning at a primary school.” The Islamic Center mosque typically hosts the five daily prayers, other religious activities, and welcomes visitors from other faiths. “They always welcome guests, even non-Muslims. They invite the community to break bread during Ramadan,” said Josie-Ana Edenshaw, a local resident who has attended activities at the Islamic Center, to AP.
This article first appeared in English
Adapted by Muhammad Hanafi
Watch also the video “Shooting at San Diego Mosque in the US, 2 Perpetrators and 3 Victims Dead”