Christchurch mosque shootings live: The gift of a safer future
March 21, 2019 in News by RBN Staff
Source: Stuff
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Christchurch shooting tragedy and response
WHAT WE KNOW ON FRIDAY
* It’s been one week since New Zealand’s deadliest terror attack took place.
* 50 people died when a gunman opened fire last Friday afternoon, and another 29 are still in hospital with injuries.
* Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has announced a ban on military style semi-automatic and assault rifles in NZ.
* Ardern said a national memorial will take place today. A two-minute silence will be observed at 1.32pm.
* Some $10m has been raised to support the families of victims.
* Here are some more events and ways to help, as well as etiquette for mosque visits and prayers.
* All victims have now been formally identified, and burials have begun.
* One murder charge has been laid.
Do you know more? Email us at newstips@stuff.co.nz
Police interviewed alleged shooter at his home
Police said today that they had made extensive enquiries, and concluded that the correct process was followed when granting a firearms license to the accused gunman.
The accused filed an application for a firearms licence in September 2017 in Dunedin.
The vetting process was undertaken by a Police Firearms Vetting Officer in Dunedin, where the accused resided.
The accused initially listed a family member as one of his referees but that person did not reside in New Zealand, so new referees were requested.
He then provided two further referees who met the requirements of the process and were interviewed face to face by a Police Firearms Vetting Officer.
The accused shooter was interview at his home in October 2017, and a security inspection took place at the same time.
A long-serving contracted vetter for Dunedin Police was approached for comment on Friday morning.
The man, who is understood to live in a similar part of the city to the alleged gunman, undertakes firearms’ vetting for police for that specific area of Dunedin.
He told Stuff he was not in a position to comment, and nor was he allowed to comment.
The alleged gunman had notified his landlord about his weapons, and had a secure storage.
Reporting by Hamish McNeilly
Woman who was mistakenly identified as dead forgives police
Mongrel Mob ditches ‘sieg heil’ rallying cry
The world’s biggest Mongrel Mob organisation, the Mongrel Mob Kingdom, which has over 400 members in New Zealand, has moved to sever its association with Nazi Germany.
In the wake of Friday’s mosque massacre in Christchurch, The organisation’s president, Paito Fatu, confirmed to Te Ao that it no longer uses the term “sieg heil”.
It has been the rallying cry of the gang for 50 years but Fatu says it’s time for another way.
Fatu says the kingdom has a new rallying cry: “I like our brothers and sisters to acknowledge each other by saying ‘Mongrel Mob’.”
The German phrase “sieg heil” translates as “hail victory”.
The Mongrel Mob adopted symbols that were associated with Nazi Germany in the early 1960s, drawing widespread condemnation. Fatu says that was the goal.
Facebook has criticised media organisations for playing a role in the widespread distribution of footage from the Christchurch terrorist attack while defending live video streaming functions on its platform.
In a 1900 word post uploaded onto Facebook on Thursday evening, Facebook Vice president of integrity Guy Rosen blamed a combination of “bad actors”, media channels broadcasting the footage and individuals sharing clips for the rapid circulation of the alleged shooter’s bodycam footage that originated as a livestream on its platform.
Stuff made the decision not to show any video or photos or use information from the livestreamed video.
Sky New Zealand briefly blocked the Australian Sky News from showing after they repeatedly showed footage from the video.
In the following minutes, he was sent more links — this time to messaging boards — where he watched an anonymous community begin to spread the video, along with the man’s manifesto, as far and as wide as possible.
“As soon as it was posted there was a group of people who got to work making sure this material went viral,” says James, who asked that we didn’t publish his surname. “No matter what Facebook or Twitter did, they were never going to be able to get rid of it.”
Police and contractors raced to prepare the mosques in time for Islam’s sacred day of worship, which will include a memorial for the dead.
Two minutes of silence will follow the 1.30pm Call to Prayer, which will be broadcast on television and radio.
“We appreciate the support that the people of New Zealand have given to us at this time, and the opportunity to do this,” community leader and head of the Federation of Islamic Associations of New Zealand, Mustafa Farouk, said.
The attacks in Birmingham are being treated as linked. No motive has been established.
British Home Secretary Sajid Javid says that the attacks are “deeply concerning.”
Interior Ministry spokesman Christoph Poelzl said an investigation by the BVT domestic intelligence agency is continuing but “a first result from this is that it can now be confirmed the person in question spent time in Austria.”
Earlier this week Hungarian authorities said the suspect visited Hungary as a tourist last November by train from Romania.
Austria’s far-right Identitarian Movement is close to parts of the nationalist Freedom Party, which controls the country’s Interior Ministry.
The resilience of my brothers is amazing. We will all return to our maker one day ❤️ Alhumdulliah. Peace & blessings family
— Sonny Bill Williams on Twitter (@sonnybwilliams) https://twitter.com/SonnyBWilliams/status/1108657999701139457
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The resilience of my brothers is amazing. We will all return to our maker one day
Alhumdulliah. Peace & blessings family
Erdogan broadcast the video at an election rally Thursday in Eskisehir, central Turkey, to criticise the Turkish opposition, which he claimed “did not see the big picture'” and threats against Turkey.
Erdogan has sparked outrage abroad by showing the videos at election rallies. He also triggered tensions with Australia for comments suggesting that Australians and New Zealanders with anti-Muslim views could return home in coffins.
A spokesman for Erdogan said the president’s words earlier this week were “taken out of context.”
More than $169,000 has also been donated to a fundraiser on Everyday Hero, which was set up after the volume of donations caused problems on the Givealittle site.
Both pages were set up by the NZ Council of Victim Support Groups, the government’s primary provider of support services for people affected by homicide.
Another fundraiser on LaunchGood has raised more than $2.4m. The money will be distributed to families by the New Zealand Islamic Information Centre (NZIIC).
A senior executive at the social media giant responded in a blog post to criticism that it didn’t act quickly enough to take down the gunman’s livestream video of his attack in Christchurch that left 50 people dead, allowing it to spread rapidly online.
Facebook’s vice president of integrity, Guy Rosen, said “this particular video did not trigger our automatic detection systems.”
One reason is because artificial intelligence systems are trained with large volumes of similar content, but in this case there was not enough because such attacks are rare.
Rosen said another challenge is in getting artificial intelligence to tell the difference between this and “visually similar, innocuous content,” such as live- streamed video games.
Professor Alexander Gillespie, professor of international law at the University of Waikato, said the gun law changes announced today “will start to address some of the loopholes in the law. It sounds like it’s a very strong step forward”.
He said: “It will be good to see what additional steps are being considered with regards to other measures, such as registration of all remaining firearms.
“I think the vast majority of firearms owners will want to be fully compliant with the law, but there will be a small, tiny percentage of people who will hope to avoid the law.
“To encourage compliance, the compensation scheme needs to be fair and market-based. Lawful firearms owners have done nothing wrong and their compensation should be fair. It’s going to be very expensive.
“There’s a question on whether the Government will be trying to soak up some other firearms that are not covered by the ban, like old rifles. Best practice overseas would be to provide compensation for those firearms too. The Government should take the chance to soak up those things that are out there in the community. If you put on a financial incentive they will come back.
“You’ve got to be seeing this not just in terms of the reaction within New Zealand but the international reaction. A lot of countries are watching New Zealand right now, especially those, like the US, that are concerned with their own firearms issues. The stronger the action, the more serious Jacinda Ardern shows the Government is taking it, and she has shown she is taking it very seriously. This kind of response you only see once in a generation, if you’re lucky.”
Imam Gamal Fouda told the Associated Press that he is expecting 3000 to 4000 people at the prayer service, including many who have come from abroad.
Workers at the Al Noor mosque have been trying feverishly to repair the destruction, Fouda said.
“They will bury the carpet,” he said. “Because it is full of blood, and it’s contaminated.”
Fouda said that he expects the mosque to be ready to open again by next week and that some skilled workers had offered their services for free.
For her 9 month birthday today we received the gift of crawling. While her mum got her the gift of having a safer country to grow up in.
— Clarke Gayford on Twitter (@nzclarke) https://twitter.com/NZClarke/status/1108632466800009216
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For her 9 month birthday today we received the gift of crawling.
While her mum got her the gift of having a safer country to grow up in.
WHAT WE KNOW ON FRIDAY
* 50 people have died with another 29 still in hospital with injuries. One murder charge has been laid.
* Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has announced a ban on military style semi-automatic and assault rifles in NZ.
* Ardern said a national memorial will take place. A two-minute silence will be observed at 1.32pm on Friday.
* All victims have now been formally identified, teen Muhammed Haziq Mohd-Tarmizi was named the 50th victim.
* Events and ways to help. Etiquette for mosque visits and prayers.
* Those who watched the live stream are advised not to suppress the trauma.
* Human Rights Commissioner says it was “pointless” to adopt the view the “coward killer” wasn’t from NZ.
Do you know more? Email us at newstips@stuff.co.nz
Here’s what people here and across the globe have been saying online in regards to NZ’s gun law changes:
New Zealand took more action on gun control during the 24 hours after its first mass shooting than the US has during the 20 years after Columbine.
— Adam Best on Twitter (@adamcbest) https://twitter.com/adamcbest/status/1107081271426142208
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New Zealand took more action on gun control during the 24 hours after its first mass shooting than the US has during the 20 years after Columbine.
So bummed that it took less than a week, and we didn’t debate this for fifteen years before realizing we should ban these stupid weapons. https://t.co/e7m0n0Ypz2
— Taika Waititi on Twitter (@taikawaititi) https://twitter.com/TaikaWaititi/status/1108635111535185921
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So bummed that it took less than a week, and we didn’t debate this for fifteen years before realizing we should ban these stupid weapons.
David Farrier
✔@davidfarrier
well, it’s official: new zealand has banned military-style semi-automatics & assault rifles, as well as all high-capacity magazines.
so, so proud of this.
Amongst all the tragedy – I’ve never been more proud to be a New Zealander. 💛 https://t.co/I6jIBGtb3a
— Rose McIver on Twitter (@imrosemciver) https://twitter.com/imrosemciver/status/1108601640171569153
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Amongst all the tragedy – I’ve never been more proud to be a New Zealander.
David Farrier
✔@davidfarrier
well, it’s official: new zealand has banned military-style semi-automatics & assault rifles, as well as all high-capacity magazines.
so, so proud of this.
This is what real action to stop gun violence looks like. We must follow New Zealand’s lead, take on the NRA and ban the sale and distribution of assault weapons in the United States. https://t.co/lSAisDG9Ur
— Bernie Sanders on Twitter (@berniesanders) https://twitter.com/BernieSanders/status/1108562224514326528
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This is what real action to stop gun violence looks like. We must follow New Zealand’s lead, take on the NRA and ban the sale and distribution of assault weapons in the United States.
The Washington Post
✔@washingtonpost
New Zealand bans military-style rifles, prime minister says just six days after 50 killed in mosque attacks https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/first-victims-of-christchurch-shootings-laid-to-rest-as-police-say-gunman-had-planned-another-attack/2019/03/20/fa76af1e-4ad6-11e9-b871-978e5c757325_story.html …
This is how you do it. https://t.co/VzdCg6IGxe
— Jimmy Kimmel on Twitter (@jimmykimmel) https://twitter.com/jimmykimmel/status/1108574077201989632
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This is how you do it. https://www.cnn.com/2019/03/20/asia/new-zealand-christchurch-gun-ban-intl/index.html …
New Zealand’s Prime Minister announces ban on all assault rifles following massacre
New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said that all military-style semi-automatic weapons, assault rifles and high-capacity magazines will be banned in the country following the mass shootings…
cnn.com
This is what a leader does. #NewZealandStrong https://t.co/NeOjtEXNX4
— Julianne Moore on Twitter (@_juliannemoore) https://twitter.com/_juliannemoore/status/1108571546380058625
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This is what a leader does. #NewZealandStrong
Shannon Watts
✔@shannonrwatts
BREAKING: Less than a week after a horrific mass shooting that killed 50 Muslim worshippers in Christchurch, New Zealand, the country has banned semiautomatic rifles and established a nationwide buyback program. The ban will take place immediately to prevent stockpiling. https://twitter.com/reuters/status/1108550411194167296 …
Respect @jacindaardern 🙏🏻🙌✊❤️ #ardernup https://t.co/tPykEHnfPM
— Magda Szubanski AO on Twitter (@magdaszubanski) https://twitter.com/MagdaSzubanski/status/1108615728607965184
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Respect @jacindaardern #ardernup
Magda Szubanski AO
✔@MagdaSzubanski
I believe I’ve coined a new term : to “Ardern Up” – meaning to show strength, decency, compassion and true leadership. Aus politicians, you really need to “Ardern Up” #Auspol #AusVotes2019
Rosen said many people have asked why artificial intelligence (AI) didn’t detect the video from last week’s attack automatically. Although AI has made massive progress over the years, it wasn’t perfect. AI systems are based on “training data”, which means you need many thousands of examples of content in order to train a system that can detect certain types of text, imagery or video.
Air New Zealand puts on extra flights to Christchurch
The Linwood Ave mosque is expected to be released back to the community tonight, in time for Friday prayers.
— New Zealand Police on Twitter (@nzpolice) https://twitter.com/nzpolice/status/1108621683902955521
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The Linwood Ave mosque is expected to be released back to the community tonight, in time for Friday prayers.
— New Zealand Police on Twitter (@nzpolice) https://twitter.com/nzpolice/status/1108621683902955521
Police also said: they have finished their work at the site, however will continue to have a presence there as reassurance in coming days.
Here’s what The Washington Post writers think of Jacinda Ardern and today’s gun law announcement
Nitro Circus’ Christchurch show will go ahead on Saturday
WHAT WE KNOW ON THURSDAY
* 50 people have died with another 29 still in hospital with injuries. One murder charge has been laid.
* Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has announced a ban on military style semi-automatics and assault rifles in NZ.
* Ardern said a national memorial will take place. A two-minute silence will be observed at 1.32pm on Friday.
* All victims have now been formally identified, teen Muhammed Haziq Mohd-Tarmizi was named the 50th victim.
* Events and ways to help. Etiquette for mosque visits and prayers.
* Those who watched the live stream are advised not to suppress the trauma.
* Human Rights Commissioner says it was “pointless” to adopt the view the “coward killer” wasn’t from NZ.
Do you know more? Email us at newstips@stuff.co.nz
Here are some key points from Police Commissioner Mike Bush’s last update:
Police Commissioner Mike Bush said in relation to the gun laws the prime minister has announced today, those New Zealanders who own these types of firearms are no longer lawfully in possession of those firearms.
National supports firearms reform
- There are 245,000 firearms licences
- Of these, 7,500 are E-Category licences; and 485 are dealer licences
- There are 13,500 firearms which require the owner to have an E-Cat licence, this is effectively the known number of MSSAs before today’s changes
- The total number of firearms in New Zealand is estimated to be 1.2-1.5 million