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Israeli Leaders Express Condolences After Deadliest Shooting in U.S. History

by TheTower.org Staff |

Israeli leaders condemned the deadliest shooting in U.S. history after a gunman opened fire in Las Vegas killing at least 58 people and wounding hundreds more The Jerusalem Post reported Monday.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netyanhu expressed his condolences on Twitter, “On this terrible day, the people of Israel stand shoulder to shoulder with the American people in mourning and sorrow.” He added: “Our hearts go out to the victims’ families and we wish a speedy recovery to the wounded. We grieve with you.”

In a letter to U.S President Donald Trump, Israeli President Reuven Rivlin wrote, “the people of Israel join me in sending our deepest sympathy to you, to the participants in the festival, the people of Las Vegas and to all the people of the United States following this shocking attack which took the lives of so many innocent people and injured so very many more.”

The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it has yet to make contact with seven Israelis in Las Vegas and sent a search team overnight to try to locate them.

Tzipi Hotovely, Israel’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, tweeted, “Israel grieves with the American people over the senseless loss of innocent life in the horrific massacre in Las Vegas.” A spokesman for the ministry added, “Terrible massacre in #LasVegas . My heart goes to the victims and their families. Love and solidarity from #Jerusalem.”

The speaker of the Knesset, Yuli Edelstein, also extended his “deepest condolences” to his U.S. counterpart, Paul Ryan, saying “We stand with you and the American people at this difficult hour.”

As a gesture of support and solidarity, the Tel Aviv city hall lit up with the colors of the American flag Monday evening.

Crowds were enjoying the Route 91 Harvest country music festival when the shooter started spraying bullets from a hotel balcony on the 32nd floor of a Las Vegas Strip casino.

During the attack, which lasted about five minutes, the gunman carried out the deadliest mass shooting on U.S. soil, surpassing the massacre in the Pulse LGBT night club in Orlando last year, which claimed the lives of 49 people.

Police described the suspect as being a local Las Vegas man who acted alone. They later identified the gunman as 64-year-old Stephen Paddock from Mesquite, Nevada.

According to Las Vegas police, Paddock killed himself before officials entered his hotel room. A woman, believed to be his roommate, was later arrested by police but is no longer considered a person of interest.

In his first response to the shooting, Donald Trump tweeted, “My warmest condolences and sympathies to the victims and families of the terrible Las Vegas shooting. God bless you!”

The terrorist organization ISIS claimed responsibility for the Las Vegas attack in a statement released by its official agency Amaq. They claimed “a soldier of the caliphate” was behind the massacre and, in a subsequent statement, said Paddock had converted to Islam months ago.

The organization offered no proof for their claim and senior U.S. officials have questioned the accuracy of the statement. According to the police, the gunman had no known links to any militant group.

[Photo: Fox Business / YouTube]

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