AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar
Eleven people were killed and six others were injured when a gunman armed with an AR-15 and handguns stormed the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh on Saturday.
When police rushed the synagogue in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood, they were met with gunfire.
The suspect, Robert Bowers, was eventually taken into custody and reportedly told one police officer: “All these Jews need to die.”
The shooting is believed to be the deadliest attack on Jewish people in US history, according to a statement the Anti-Defamation League.
Here’s how the shooting unfolded:
Saturday, October 27, 9:49 a.m.: An anti-Semitic comment was posted on a social media account for suspected gunman Robert Bowers.
AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar
Just before the attack on Saturday morning, a post was shared on social media connected to Robert Bowers.
Bowers, the suspected shooter, was reportedly a frequent poster on Gab, a relatively new social network that has attracted many far-right supporters.
“HIAS likes to bring invaders in that kill our people,” Bowers wrote just before the shooting, according to an archive of his Gab posts. “I can’t sit by and watch my people get slaughtered. Screw your optics, I’m going in.”
9:54 a.m.: Allegheny County Emergency Operations Center received a 911 call about an active shooter.
AP
The call into the Allegheny County Emergency Operations Center came just five minutes after Bowers’ social media post on Gab.
9:55 a.m.: Two police cars were dispatched to the Tree of Life synagogue.
AP Photo/Matt Rourke
The police officers were told that one 911 caller had reported 20-30 shots heard from the lobby, according to radio traffic posted by Broadcastify.
Several other nearby officers said they were also responding, CNN reported.
See the rest of the story at Business Insider
See Also:
- 15 photos from the candlelight vigil for the victims of the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting
- What we know about the victims of the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting
- At least 11 people are dead after a gunman opened fire at a Pittsburgh synagogue while shouting anti-Semitic slurs
