Trudeau: "Make no mistake, this was a terrorist attack."

Record ID: 166471

  • Title: Trudeau: "Make no mistake, this was a terrorist attack."
  • Date: 30th January 2017
  • Summary: QUEBEC CITY, QUEBEC, CANADA (JANUARY 30, 2017) (REUTERS) POLICE ACTIVITY OUTSIDE QUEBEC MOSQUE
  • Embargoed: 13th February 2017 19:54
  • Keywords: Quebec City Canada Mosque shooting attack Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau
  • Location: QUEBEC CITY, QUEBEC/ OTTAWA, ONTARIO, CANADA
  • City: QUEBEC CITY, QUEBEC/ OTTAWA, ONTARIO, CANADA
  • Country: Canada
  • Topics: Crime/Law/Justice,Crime
  • Reuters ID: LVA002619XTFR
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: As officials in Canada investigate the shooting at a Quebec City mosque during Sunday evening prayers, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told the House of Commons in Ottawa: "Make no mistake, this was a terrorist attack."
    Trudeau, who has made a point of welcoming refugees and immigrants from Muslim-majority countries, added a personal message to Canada's one million Muslims: "Know that we value you. You enrich our shared country in immeasurable ways. It is your home. Last night's horrible crime against the Muslim community was an act of terror committed against Canada and against all Canadians. We will grieve with you. We will defend you. We will love you. And we will stand with you," Trudeau said on Monday (January 30).
    The suspect in custody for the attack on Sunday evening prayers was Alexandre Bissonnette, according to a source familiar with the matter. A man of Moroccan descent who had also been arrested was now considered a witness, although his nationality was not immediately known, the source said.
    The attack was out of character for Quebec City, a city of just over 500,000 which reported just two murders in all of 2015. Mass shootings are rare in Canada, where gun control laws are stricter than in the United States.
    In addition to the six killed, five people were critically injured and 12 were treated for minor injuries.
    "There are two patients that have sustained significant injury to mainly the abdomen. They also have other injuries on their arms, their legs and so on. For now, as we say in surgery, bleeding has stopped. The life is saved. However there is significant care that needs to be done in the following days and weeks," said Dr Julien Clement at the Hopital de l'Enfant-Jesus where five victims were in critical condition.
    U.S. President Donald Trump called Trudeau to express his condolences "and offered to provide any assistance as needed," said Trudeau spokesman Cameron Ahmad.
    Over the weekend, Trudeau said Canada would welcome refugees, his response to an executive order by Trump on Friday to halt the U.S. refugee program and to temporarily bar citizens from seven Muslim-majority countries from entering the United States.
    Trump's action, which the president said was "not about religion - this is about terror and keeping our country safe," was widely condemned in the United States and abroad as targeting Muslims.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2017. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
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