‘An act of terror and an act of hate’
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POLICE revealed new details of the agonizing three-hour stand-off and brutal end to the Orlando gay club massacre yesterday as America grappled with the implications of the worst terror attack on its soil since 9/11.
The Islamic State group claimed slain shooter Omar Mateen was acting as “one of the soldiers of the caliphate in America” when he attacked the Pulse nightclub in the central Florida city, a siege that ended when police stormed the venue.
But investigators are probing whether he was a jihadist on a mission or a vicious “lone wolf” inspired by the group’s propaganda to carry out what President Barack Obama dubbed “an act of terror and an act of hate.”
Forty-nine people were killed and 53 others wounded in the attack, which was also the deadliest mass shooting in US history.
The slaughter triggered worldwide shock and outrage, but has also raised questions about US counter-terror strategy and gun laws. The suspect was allowed to legally buy a rifle and handgun despite raising red flags.
Mateen, a 29-year-old American of Afghan descent, called police in the midst of his rampage to pledge allegiance to the Islamic State group, and the FBI admitted it had previously investigated him but cleared him of extremist ties.
According to CNN, citing an unnamed US official, the New York-born security guard made a religious pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia and visited the United Arab Emirates in 2011 and 2012. But no evidence has yet emerged linking him to a foreign extremist group before the attacks, and relatives and acquaintances painted a picture of a violent and unstable young man who had beat his ex-wife and expressed homophobic views.
The relatives of the dead and wounded — clubgoers celebrating at one of Orlando’s most prominent gay venues at the start of Gay Pride month — were informed early yesterday that police had identified 48 of the 49 victims.
Another 53 were wounded, but city mayor Buddy Dyer said many more were saved by police action, including when they crashed an armored car through a wall to allow patrons to escape as the gunman barricaded himself in a bathroom with hostages.
“We will not be defined by the act of a cowardly hater. We will be defined by how we respond, how we treat each other,” Dyer declared, before police recounted how a gunbattle at the entrance to the club became a bloody hostage drama.
As the club was closing around 2am, Mateen began a gun battle with an off-duty officer working at the club. More officers responded to the scene, and the gunman fell back to the bathroom, where he apparently seized hostages.
“At that time, we were able to save dozens and dozens of people,” Orlando police chief John Mina told reporters.
Witness Janiel Gonzalez described scenes of mayhem as the gunman sprayed revelers with bullets. “It was like complete chaos,” he said. “It was like a scene out of a movie. People were screaming ‘Help me, help me, I’m trapped!’”
Mina said he made the difficult decision to burst into the club after Mateen talked about “bomb vests, about explosives.”
“We believed that further loss of life was imminent,” Mina told reporters at a morning press conference.
“We knew that was the right thing to do and believe we prevented a future loss of life and saved many, many lives.”
Police used explosives and a BearCat armored car to punch a hole in the wall of the club. Dozens more survivors surged out of the breach, but Mateen opened fire and was cut down by police.
Officials in Orlando, a resort city famous worldwide as the home of Walt Disney World and other amusement parks, were stunned by the tragedy but vowed that the community would pull together.
“This is not a war zone that we are living in. This is a civilized society and we had to deal with something unthinkable,” Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings said.
The attacks triggered solidarity vigils by gay and lesbian groups — and their supporters — across the country and abroad. More than 100,000 marched in Los Angeles at an already planned pride parade.
In New York, the Tony Awards for musical theater went ahead as planned but were dedicated to the victims of the massacre.
The Empire State building went dark, while the spire of One World Trade Center was lit in the rainbow colors of the gay pride flag.
The father of the gunman behind the Florida massacre voiced sadness that his son took it upon himself to attack the gay community, saying it was “up to God to punish homosexuals.”
In a video posted on Facebook early yesterday, Seddique Mateen said he was grieved by the rampage, calling the killer a “good and educated son.”
“I am deeply saddened and have announced this to the people of America,” Seddique said in the three-minute video in the Dari language, voicing disbelief that his son carried out the killings during the holy month of Ramadan.
“It is up to God to punish homosexuals. It is not up to servants,” he father added.
Seddique is a minor celebrity in Afghan political circles in the US, hosting an occasional TV show in which he expresses hardline views.
Officials in Afghanistan sought to distance themselves from the family, saying they did not know when exactly Seddique had left the country.
The FBI has admitted that his son had previously been investigated, but cleared, for ties to a US suicide bomber.
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