Christchurch mosque shootings
The Christchurch mosque shootings were two consecutive terrorist attacks at mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, during Friday Prayer on 15 March 2019.[9] The attacks began at the Al Noor Mosque in the suburb of Riccarton at 1:40 pm, and continued at the Linwood Islamic Centre at about 1:55 pm. The gunman live-streamed the first attack on Facebook Live.
The attacks killed 50 people and injured 50 others. A 28-year-old Australian man, described in media reports as a white supremacist and part of the alt-right, was arrested and charged with murder. The attacks have been linked to an increase in white supremacism and alt-right extremism globally observed since the mid-2010s. Politicians and world leaders condemned the attacks, and Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern described the attacks as "one of New Zealand's darkest days". It is the deadliest mass shooting in modern New Zealand history
New Zealand has often been considered a safe country, and has a relatively low level of homicide. These attacks were the first mass shooting in the country since the Raurimu massacre in 1997. Prior to that, the deadliest public mass shooting was the 1990 Aramoana massacre, in which 13 people died. Experts have suggested that far-right extremism has been growing in New Zealand in recent years; the country has rarely been associated with the extreme right. The sociologist Paul Spoonley has called Christchurch a hotbed for white supremacists and the extreme nationalist movement, a suggestion rejected by Christchurch MP Gerry Brownlee. Australia, where the alleged gunman was from, has also seen a recent increase in xenophobia, racism and Islamophobia.
Islam is practised by over 46,000 New Zealanders (1.2 percent of the population), 3,000 of them in Christchurch and the wider Canterbury region. The Al Noor Mosque opened in 1985; it was the first mosque in the South Island. The Linwood Islamic Centre opened in early 2018.
The gunman began shooting worshippers at the Al Noor Mosque, Riccarton, at around 1:40 pm. Police received the first emergency call at 1:41 pm. Between three hundred and five hundred people may have been inside the mosque attending Friday Prayer at the time of the shooting. A neighbour of the mosque told reporters he saw the gunman flee and drop what appeared to be a firearm in the driveway. The witness said the gunman appeared to be wearing military-style clothing.
The gunman live-streamed the first 17 minutes of this attack on Facebook Live, starting with the drive to the mosque and ending with the drive away. Moments before the shooting, the gunman played several songs including a traditional marching song of the British military called "The British Grenadiers", and "Serbia Strong", a Serb nationalist song from the Bosnian War (1992–1995) celebrating Radovan Karadžić, who was found guilty of genocide against Bosnian Muslims. One witness said the gunman continued to play "military music" from a portable speaker inside the mosque. Just before the shooting, the gunman appeared to be greeted by one of the worshippers, who said "Hello, brother" and who was amongst the first people to be killed
The attacks killed 50 people and injured 50 others. A 28-year-old Australian man, described in media reports as a white supremacist and part of the alt-right, was arrested and charged with murder. The attacks have been linked to an increase in white supremacism and alt-right extremism globally observed since the mid-2010s. Politicians and world leaders condemned the attacks, and Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern described the attacks as "one of New Zealand's darkest days". It is the deadliest mass shooting in modern New Zealand history
New Zealand has often been considered a safe country, and has a relatively low level of homicide. These attacks were the first mass shooting in the country since the Raurimu massacre in 1997. Prior to that, the deadliest public mass shooting was the 1990 Aramoana massacre, in which 13 people died. Experts have suggested that far-right extremism has been growing in New Zealand in recent years; the country has rarely been associated with the extreme right. The sociologist Paul Spoonley has called Christchurch a hotbed for white supremacists and the extreme nationalist movement, a suggestion rejected by Christchurch MP Gerry Brownlee. Australia, where the alleged gunman was from, has also seen a recent increase in xenophobia, racism and Islamophobia.
Islam is practised by over 46,000 New Zealanders (1.2 percent of the population), 3,000 of them in Christchurch and the wider Canterbury region. The Al Noor Mosque opened in 1985; it was the first mosque in the South Island. The Linwood Islamic Centre opened in early 2018.
The gunman began shooting worshippers at the Al Noor Mosque, Riccarton, at around 1:40 pm. Police received the first emergency call at 1:41 pm. Between three hundred and five hundred people may have been inside the mosque attending Friday Prayer at the time of the shooting. A neighbour of the mosque told reporters he saw the gunman flee and drop what appeared to be a firearm in the driveway. The witness said the gunman appeared to be wearing military-style clothing.
The gunman live-streamed the first 17 minutes of this attack on Facebook Live, starting with the drive to the mosque and ending with the drive away. Moments before the shooting, the gunman played several songs including a traditional marching song of the British military called "The British Grenadiers", and "Serbia Strong", a Serb nationalist song from the Bosnian War (1992–1995) celebrating Radovan Karadžić, who was found guilty of genocide against Bosnian Muslims. One witness said the gunman continued to play "military music" from a portable speaker inside the mosque. Just before the shooting, the gunman appeared to be greeted by one of the worshippers, who said "Hello, brother" and who was amongst the first people to be killed
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