Orlando police said the event is unrelated to the murder of Christina Grimmie, the popular Voice singer who was killed while signing autographs after her Orlando show. “As we wait for more information, my thoughts are with those affected by this horrific act.” Orlando shooting of 2016, also called Pulse nightclub shooting, mass shooting that took place at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida, in the early. “Woke up to hear the devastating news from FL,” Clinton wrote. before adding, “Appreciate the congrats for being right on radical Islamic terrorism, I don’t want congrats, I want toughness & vigilance. When will this stop? When will we get tough, smart & vigilant?,” Trump tweeted. Praying for all the victims & their families. The shooter didn’t target LGBTQ people he didn’t even realize Pulse was a gay-oriented nightclub, asking a security guard at the club where all the women were just before he started shooting. A homophobic ISIS sympathizer killed at least 50. “This is an incident, as I see it, that we certainly classify as domestic terror incident,” said Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings, according to the Washington Post.ĭonald Trump and Hillary Clinton both reacted to news of the shooting. People react after a gunman went on a shooting rampage at Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida on Sunday, June 12, 2016. On June 24, 1973, a flash fire tore through a gay bar in New Orleans' French Quarter, killing 32 people. Agents said that the suspect “may have leanings toward extreme ideologies.” Police said that the suspect was not from the Orlando area and was “organized and well-prepared,” the Times reports. It was the largest massacre at a gay bar until the Orlando shooting. The Federal Bureau of Investigation is assisting local authorities handling the incident, the Orlando Sentinel reports. “We weren’t aware of any action he is taking. “We are saying we are apologizing for the whole incident,” he said. Mateen’s father apologized on behalf of his family. NBC News reports that Mateen called 911 before entering the club and “pledged allegiance to ISIS,” though authorities have not found any direct link between Mateen and the terrorist group. In front of my son they are doing that.’ And then we were in the men’s bathroom and men were kissing each other.” A shooting and hostage situation early Sunday at a Florida nightclub - which describes itself as 'Orlando's hottest gay bar' - left an estimated 50 people dead, including the. “They were kissing each other and touching each other and he said, ‘Look at that. And he saw two men kissing each other in front of his wife and kid and he got very angry,” Mir Seddique, told NBC News.
Mateen’s motive remains unclear, but his father says it may have been triggered by anti-gay sentiments. “We were in Downtown Miami, Bayside, people were playing music.