Turkiye condoles with US over deadly mass shooting

By Ali Murat Alhas

ANKARA (AA) – Turkiye on Sunday expressed sympathies with the US government and people after a gunman opened fire at a supermarket in Buffalo city in the state of New York on Saturday afternoon, killing at least 10 people and injuring several others.

“We convey our condolences to the people of the US, and wish a speedy recovery to those injured,” the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a written statement.

The FBI is investigating the shooting as a hate crime and as an act of racially-motivated violent extremism.

The shooter, identified as Payton Gendron, now under custody, was "very heavily" armed and was wearing tactical gear and a tactical helmet, according to Buffalo Police Commissioner Joseph Gramaglia.

"He had a camera that was live streaming what he was doing," he added.

Gramaglia said 11 of the shooting victims were Black, while two others were white.

US President Joe Biden also condemned what he described as an "abhorrent" act.

According to a CBS news report, the attacker shouted racial slurs during the shooting and suggested that he had a racial slur written on his weapon. He also apparently posted a manifesto online which included racist language and ideas.

Gendron, 18, has been arraigned in court and charged with first-degree murder, according to media reports.