The president of Mexico has called on the United States to implement gun control after the mass shooting in El Paso, Texas.
Mexico’s President Andrés Manuel López Obrador on Monday took aim at the U.S. and its “indiscriminate sale of arms” which it blamed for claiming the lives of seven Mexico natives along with 15 Americans, Fox News reported.
“We are very respectful of what other governments decide but we think that these lamentable events that occurred in the United States should lead to reflection, analysis and the decision to control the indiscriminate sale of arms,” Lopez Obrador said during a press conference.
“It is not our disposition to involve ourselves in the internal affairs of any country, but this topic should be considered again because it affects many people, in this case Americans as well as Mexicans,” Lopez Obrador said.
Lopez Obrador also threatened to sue the U.S. over the deaths of the seven Mexico natives.
Mexico’s Foreign Affairs Secretary Marcelo Ebrard said the nation may possibly file terrorism charges against the perpetrator of the shooting, 21-year-old Patrick Crusius.
Crusius opened fire at the El Paso shopping center on Saturday afternoon, initially killing 20 victims and injuring 22, though two of the injured later died.
Crusius legally purchased the “AK-47-style” rifle used to carry out the attack, El Paso’s Police Chief said, according to CBS DFW on Monday.
He wrote a “hate-filled” manifesto ahead of the attack, which reportedly took aim at Hispanic immigrants.
Mexico’s stance against the mass shooting stands in stark contrast to its own toward violence in its homeland. Its murder rate has been on the rise in recent years.
Mexico’s own data showed a 33 percent increase in their 2018 murder rate, replacing the record for the second year in a row, according to Reuters in January.
The Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) issued a statement Sunday calling the El Paso shooting an “extremist” incident which is now under investigation by the agency’s Domestic Terrorism-Hate Crimes Fusion Cell, CBS News reported.
“The attack in El Paso, Texas, underscores the continued threat posed by domestic violent extremists and perpetrators of hate crimes. The FBI is supporting its state and local partners in Texas through investigative, intelligence, and technical assistance. The El Paso investigation is also being supported by the FBI’s Domestic Terrorism-Hate Crimes Fusion Cell,” the statement said.
“ The FBI remains concerned that U.S.-based domestic violent extremists could become inspired by these and previous high-profile attacks to engage in similar acts of violence. The FBI asks the American public to report to law enforcement any suspicious activity that is observed either in person or online,” the statement added.
