Carnage at a California social services centre, possibly linked to Islamic terrorism
Washington (AsiaNews/Agencies) – A man and woman armed with assault-style rifles opened fire on a holiday party at the Inland Regional Center, in San Bernardino, California, killing 14 people and wounding 17 others. The authorities have not yet determined whether the shooting was an act of (Islamic) terrorism or not.
At around 11 am (19:00 GMT) on Wednesday, the assailants – dressed in black masks and tactical gear and carrying multiple weapons – stormed the auditorium where health department employees had gathered for their annual get-together.
The two suspects – Syed Rizwan Farook, 28, and Tashfeen Malik, 27 – were killed in a police shootout several miles from the site of the original attack. The two were either married or engaged, and had a six-month baby.
Farook had left the meeting "under some circumstances that were described as angry,"
According to police sources, the couple left their baby girl with Farook's mother early on Wednesday morning before returning with criminal intent to the Inland Regional Center, a government-funded not-for-profit agency providing services and programmes to people with developmental disabilities and their families.
Dressed in assault-style clothing, the couple opened fire on the celebration and placed several bombs at various locations, which police detonated.
After they fled the scene in a black SUV, they were chased by police and were eventually killed in a firefight. The incident was fed live on television and online.
The two seemed too well prepared for the shooting to have been set off solely by something that happened earlier that day.
A third suspect was also taken into custody, though this person does not appear to be associated with the attack.
Whilst vetting all possibilities, law enforcement has not been ruled out terrorism, but does not seem inclined to label it Jihadi.
Farook, who was born in the US from Pakistani parents (some sources said Arab), worked as a health inspector for the San Bernardino County Department of Public Health. Little is known about his female accomplice, who might have been his wife. He had travelled to Saudi Arabia last year but little is known about that trip.
Shocked by his son’s action, Syed Farook's father described his son as “very religious. He would go to work, come back, go to pray, come back. He’s Muslim.”
San Bernardino has a population of about 250,000 and is about 100 kilometres east of Los Angeles. For a few hours, the city was at a standstill, fearful residents sheltering in homes.
The shooting rampage marked the deadliest US gun violence in three years. So far this year, there have been more than 350 shootings in which four or more people were either wounded or killed.
However, the San Bernardino attack appears to differ from other recent US killing sprees in several ways, including the involvement of two people rather than a lone perpetrator.
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12/04/2023 18:18
05/11/2019 13:25
