New Zealand mosques' attack suspect praised Trump in manifestoA suspected gunman behind the Christchurch attacks has dubbed the US president as 'a symbol of renewed white identity'.
People stand across the road from a mosque in central Christchurch, New Zealand [Mark Baker/AP]
The Australian-born suspect who shot dead dozens of Muslim worshippers in Christchurch, New Zealand, has published a manifesto citing US President Donald Trump and Anders Breivik, the Norwegian white supremacist who murdered 77 people in Norway in 2011.
The 74-page dossier by Brenton Tarrant, which has been described by Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison as a "work of hate", praised Trump as "a symbol of renewed white identity and common purpose".
The 28-year-old, who is now in police custody, also claimed that he had "brief contact" with Breivik and had received a "blessing" for his actions from the mass murderer's acquaintances.
The dossier stated objections to immigration and multiculturalism, and decries the "decaying" culture of the white, European Western world.
 | | A bulletproof vest and protective gear is seen in this undated photo posted on Twitter on March 12 apparently by one of the gunmen who attacked a mosque in Christchurch [Twitter/Reuters] |
Earlier on Friday, at least 49 people were killed and 20 others seriously wounded in shootings at two mosques in Christchurch in the worst attack in the Pacific country's history.
The majority of the victims were shot at the Al Noor Mosque, while the rest were killed at another mosque in suburban Linwood.
The Muslim worshippers had congregated for Friday prayers, Islam's holy day of the week.
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has described the shootings as a "well-planned terrorist attack", and said this is one of the country's "darkest days".
In addition to Tarrant, three other suspects, including a woman, have been arrested, New Zealand Police Commissioner Mike Bush said.
Livestreaming the attackTarrant also live broadcasted his rampage on social media.
The New Zealand government said it could be illegal to share the video, which showed the gunman repeatedly shooting at worshippers from close range.
The Facebook Live video, taken with a camera that appeared to be mounted on the gunman's body, shows a clean-shaven, Caucasian man with short hair driving to the Masjid al Noor mosque.
He enters the building and fires repeatedly at worshippers as he moves from room to room.
AFP determined the video was genuine through a digital investigation that included matching screenshots of the mosque taken from the gunman's footage with images available online showing the same areas.
In the video, the shooter parks his car next to the mosque and gets out of the vehicle with a rifle. He slowly goes to the boot of his car and retrieves another firearm.
He then walks into the compound of the mosque and fires at a person standing near the doorway before dropping the rifle and shooting repeatedly with the second weapon as he moves inside.
The gunman fires dozens of bullets at people trying to run away or lying down in huddled groups in corners of the rooms.
The framing of the video, which shows only the gunman's hands holding the gun as he shoots and reloads, is eerily similar to the style of a first-person shooter video game.
The Facebook account that posted the video was no longer available shortly after the shooting. The Twitter account of the same name was quickly suspended.
"Police alerted us to a video on Facebook shortly after the livestream commenced and we quickly removed both the shooter's Facebook and Instagram accounts and the video," Facebook said in a tweet.
[ Facebook censoring "conservative" content again. /sarc ]
"We're also removing any praise or support for the crime and the shooter or shooters as soon as we're aware."
A spokesman for New Zealand's interior ministry said the video is likely to be classified as objectionable content under local law, and could be illegal to share.
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aljazeera.com |
