Venezuela Condemns Orlando Massacre, Voices Solidarity with LGBT Community
Venezuelan Foreign Minister Delcy Rodriguez denounced the killing of 50 people in an Orlando nightclub Sunday in what is being described as the deadliest mass shooting committed by an individual in US history.
Caracas, June 13, 2016 (venezuelanalysis.com) – Venezuelan Foreign Minister Delcy Rodriguez denounced the killing of 50 people in an Orlando nightclub Sunday in what is being described as the deadliest mass shooting committed by an individual in US history.
“Venezuela condemns the attack that caused the death of more than 50 people in a nightclub in Florida!,” the top diplomat stated via her official Twitter account on Sunday evening.
The attack took place in the early hours of Sunday morning, targeting the established gay nightclub Pulse Orlando.
In addition to expressing her condolences to the families of the victims as well as to the people and government of the US, Rodriguez declared her government’s solidarity with the LGBTQ community.
“We extend the US LGBT community our special solidarity in the face of this inhuman attack product of hate and intolerance,” she wrote.
The attack was perpetrated by a 29 year-old US citizen by the name of Omar Mir Seddique Mateen, who was killed during a shoot-out with police in the early hours of Sunday morning.
According to reports, Mateen had legally purchased the handgun and AR-15 assault rifle used in the attack in the week leading to the shooting.
While Mateen pledged his allegiance to the Islamic militant group ISIS in a 911 call before the attack, family members have cast doubt on religious motivations. His former wife, Sitora Yusifiy, has since described Mateen as “mentally unstable and mentally ill,” in interviews to press, detailing a history of domestic abuse and steroid use. Mateen’s father also dismissed claims that the youth carried out the shooting on religious grounds.
ISIS claimed responsibility for the massacre in a short statement on Sunday, though the Guardian has suggested that the terrorist organization likely had no prior knowledge of what appears to be a “lone wolf” attack.
US President Barak Obama repudiated the attack on Sunday, calling it “an act of terror and an act of hate”.