The shooter responsible for the fatal shots on children of a Catholic school in the United States had written on the magazine of a rifle before his act according to the government. In her explanation on platform X According to their information, “for the children” and “Where is your God?”.
The US federal police FBI examines whether the fatal shots as a domestic act of terrorist and hate crimes against Catholics are to be assessed, as FBI director Kash Patel announced on X. The local police chief said in the afternoon (local time) that the motive was still unclear.
Sagittarius from Minneapolis shot through church windows on students
According to police, the perpetrator had three weapons with him – a rifle, a shotgun and a pistol that he had all legally acquired. He killed two children during a school service in the north of the United States and injured more than a dozen other children and three adults. According to the police, the shooter shot through the windows of a church on the students who were sitting on pews. He later committed suicide according to police.
Advice and help
Do you have suicidal thoughts? The telephone counseling offers help. It is anonymous, free of charge and around the clock at (0800) 1110111 and (0800) 1110222. Advice via email or chat is also possible. A list of nationwide aid bodies can be found on the website of the German Society for Suicide Prevention.
Noem initially spoke of a 22-year-old perpetrator, later a 23-year-old who described himself as a transperson. Transpersons are not belonging to people who do not feel associated with the gender they were assigned to them at birth.
The police also spoke of a manifesto of the shooter on the video platform YouTube, which would show him to show him at the scene and contain “disturbing texts”. The content was removed from the network with the support of the FBI and is now being examined by experts. A connection between the shooter or his family and the church is still being examined.
The incident occurred two days after the beginning of the school year at the private elementary school Annunciation with around 395 students. The school is connected to the church of the same name and is located in a residential area in the southeast of the largest city in the state of Minnesota.
“This was a deliberate act of violence against innocent children and other worshipers,” said The chief of police from Minneapolis, Brian O’Hara. “The sheer cruelty and cowardice to shoot into a church full of children is absolutely incomprehensible.” TV pictures showed how parents led their children out of the school building.
US President Donald Trump said on social media that he had been informed about the shootout and the Federal Police FBI was on site. He called on praying for everyone involved. Trump also exchanged information with the governor of Minnesota, Tim Walz, about the act of violence, as a government official announced.
The Pope from the USA also commented “deeply sad”. The head of the Catholics speaks “everyone who is affected by this terrible tragedy, in particular the families who are now mourning the loss of a child, his sincere condolences and the certainty of his intellectual proximity,” said a letter published by the Vatican.
Firearms in the USA everyday life
Since Tuesday afternoon, there had been three other shootings in the city in the Midwest of the United States. According to the police, a total of three people were killed and seven injured. However, the attack on school is not related to the other acts, said police chief O’Hara.
In the United States, fatal firearms are part of everyday life – according to the figures of the Ministry of Health, around 46,700 people died from weapons in 2023. Pistols and weapons of larger calibers are easily accessible and in circulation.
In Minneapolis, the number of homicides in the years after the death of George Floyd in a police operation 2020 has increased significantly.
According to a database of the “Every Town for Gun Safety” initiative, which pronounces for stricter weapons laws, there were 24 fatal firearm incidents in US schools and on their premises with 29 fatalities until 22 August. In total, the initiative counted 90 incidents with shots in schools in the current year.
Particularly severe attacks always spark debates about tightening weapons law. However, concrete progress has so far failed to materialize-especially because of the resistance of the Republicans and the financially influential weapon lobby, the reforms have been blocking for years.
Note: This article has been updated and further information was added.
