At least 12 people were killed and several others wounded after a
gunman went on a shooting rampage at a US Navy administrative center in
Washington on Monday, officials said, in an attack that sparked panic in the American capital.
The suspected gunman was among the confirmed dead in the morning
assault at the Washington Navy Yard about 3.5 miles (5.6 km) from the
White House, Washington police chief Cathy Lanier told reporters at a
news conference Monday afternoon.Lanier said at an earlier news conference that two potential shooters were still at large, but officials later said one of the men had been
found and cleared of any involvement in the attack. Authorities were
still looking for another potential shooter, whom Lanier described as
wearing a “military-style” uniform, as of Monday afternoon.US President Barack Obama on Monday said that he had been briefed
about the attack, and he alluded to the numerous mass shootings that
have been carried out in US schools, workplaces and entertainment venues in recent decades.“We still don’t know all the facts, but we do know that several
people have been shot and some have been killed,” Obama said. “We are
confronting yet another mass shooting and today it happened on a
military installation in our nation’s capital.” Authorities have identified the suspected gunman as 34-year-old Aaron Alexis, a civilian contractor from Fort Worth, Texas, NBC News reported, though a motive for the attack was not immediately clear. Washington Mayor Vincent Gray said authorities have no reason to
believe the shooting was an act of terrorism, but added that he could
not rule out this possibility, The Washington Post reported.The Navy said on its Twitter feed that three shots were fired at 8:20 a.m. (1220 GMT) inside its Naval Sea Systems Command headquarters,
which is responsible for building, purchasing and maintaining submarines and ships in America’s naval fleet. Around 3,000 people work in the
building, the Navy said.Alexis’ identification was recovered next to his body in the command headquarters, NBC News said.Helicopters patrolled the skies of Washington on Monday morning as
hundreds of police and rescue teams converged on the Navy Yard in
southeastern Washington after reports of the attack began to surface.Washington, meanwhile, scrambled to lockdown schools and government
offices, including the US Senate buildings, though Capitol Hill security officials said the Senate lockdown was a precautionary measure and that there is no “information to suggest the Senate, its members or staff
are in any danger,” the Post reported. The Washington Nationals, a professional baseball team that plays at a stadium near the Navy Yard, postponed their Monday night game following the shooting, USA Today reported. Monday’s assault was the second shooting rampage on a US domestic
military installation over the past four years. On Nov. 5, 2009, Maj.
Nidal Hasan opened fire in a crowded waiting room at a medical
processing center filled with troops at the Fort Hood military base in
Texas.That attack left 13 people dead and more than 30 wounded. A US
military jury last month sentenced Hasan to death after he admitted he
was the gunman.Hasan, a US-born Muslim, indicated in media leaks and statements to
the judge in the case that he believed the attack was justified in order to protect Muslim and Taliban leaders from US forces operating in
Afghanistan and Iraq.
NAVY NEWS
16 September 2013 - 20:05
12 Dead in Gun Rampage at US Navy Center
At least 12 people were killed and several others wounded after a gunman went on a shooting rampage at a US Navy administrative center in Washington on Monday, officials said, in an attack that sparked panic in the American capital.
NAVY NEWS
16 September 2013 - 20:05
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