Canada Prime Minister Labels Quebec Mosque Shooting 'Terrorist Attack'
- by Carmen Reese
- in Science
- — Feb 2, 2017
An exterior view of the The Quebec Mosque where two gunmen opened fire during evening prayers, on Jan. 30, 2017, killing six people and injuring eight others, at the Quebec Islamic Cultural Centre in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada, Jan. 29, 2017. He said the shooting happened in the men's section of the mosque.
More than 50 people were at the Quebec Islamic Cultural Centre when the shooting erupted. Police indicated to reporters early Monday they would avoid "discussing motives" but said the attacker (s) clearly wanted to "instill fear".
Shortly after the horrific massacre took place, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, 45, took to social media to mourn the innocent lives stolen in this senseless raid.
"We condemn this terrorist attack on Muslims in a center of worship and refuge", the Prime Minister wrote in a statement.
"While authorities are still investigating and details continue to be confirmed, it is heart-wrenching to see such senseless violence".
"Last night this community experienced something that no community should ever have to know: unspeakable cruelty and violence perpetrated on those who came together in friendship and in faith", Mr Trudeau said.
Police said only two people were involved in the attack.
She said some of the wounded were gravely injured and said the dead were approximately 35 to 70 years of age.
Francois Deschamps, a member of Bienvenue aux Réfugiés, an organization that works with refugees and immigrants in Quebec City, told Le Soleil he "jumped" when he saw the photo the newspaper published of Bissonnette on Monday.
Oudghiri said he had lived in Quebec for 42 years but was now "very worried" and thinking of moving back to Morocco.
Local authorities initially were looking for two suspects, but another man arrested at the mosque was determined to be just a witness to the shooting, which occurred Sunday evening.
On Tuesday, the White House spokesman Sean Spicer said that the Quebec attack reinforced the legitimacy of the recent ban on refugees and seven Muslim-majority states.
We're learning more about the French-Canadian university student accused of opening fire inside a Quebec mosque.
Mr Bissonette, the sole suspect in the attack, also faces five counts of attempted murder.
In June, someone left a bloody pig's head wrapped in cellophane and ribbon on the doorstep of the mosque, along with a note reading "Bonne appétit", as The Washington Post reported at the time.