Minneapolis church shooting kills 2 children, injures 17; 'nuke India' written on gun

A shooter opened fire with a rifle through the windows of a Catholic church in Minneapolis and struck children celebrating Mass during the first week of school, killing two and wounding 17 people in an act of violence the police chief called “absolutely incomprehensible.”

Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara said the shooter - armed with a rifle, shotgun, and pistol - approached the side of the church and shot dozens of rounds through the windows toward the children sitting in the pews during Mass at the Annunciation Catholic School just before 8.30 am. Police believe the shooter then died by suicide.

The children who died were 8 and 10, and 14 other kids were among the wounded, the chief said. Dozens of youngsters were inside.

In a post on X, FBI Director Kash Patel said the shooting is being investigated as an act of domestic terrorism and hate crime targeting Catholics.

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Fifth-grader Weston Halsne told reporters he ducked for the pews, covering his head, shielded by a friend who was lying on top of him. His friend was hit, he said.

“I was super-scared for him, but I think now he's okay,” the 10-year-old said, adding that he was praying for the other hospitalised children and adults.

Halsne's grandfather, Michael Simpson, said the violence during Mass on the third day of school left him wondering whether God was watching over.

“I don't know where He is,” Simpson said.

Official identifies shooter

The police chief said the shooter was in their early 20s, did not have an extensive known criminal history, and is believed to have acted alone, but did not release the name or information on possible connections to the school.

A law enforcement official told The Associated Press that authorities have identified the shooter as Robin Westman. That official was not authorised to discuss the ongoing investigation and spoke on condition of anonymity.

The police chief said a wooden plank was placed to barricade some of the side doors, and that authorities found a smoke bomb but no explosives at the scene.

‘Absolutely incomprehensible’

“The sheer cruelty and cowardice of firing into a church full of children is absolutely incomprehensible,” O'Hara said at a news conference as church bells rang out.

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey lamented that the violence had forever changed the students' families and the city along with them.

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“Don't just say this is about thoughts and prayers right now,” Frey said. “These kids were literally praying."

Bill Bienemann, who lives a couple of blocks away and has long attended Mass at Annunciation Church, said he heard as many as 50 shots over as long as four minutes.

Officers rescued children who hid

The police chief said officers immediately responded to reports of the shooting, entered the church, rendered first aid, and rescued some of the children hiding throughout the building as other emergency responders arrived.

Amid a heavy uniformed law enforcement presence later Wednesday morning, children in dark green uniforms trickled out of the school with adults, giving lingering hugs and wiping away tears.

Aubrey Pannhoff, a 16-year-old student at a different Catholic school, rushed to Annunciation after her own school's lockdown and prayer service, and she said she was asking God: “Why?”

“It's little kids,” she said through tears. “It's just really hard for me to take in.”

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Minnesota Governor Tim Walz called the violence “horrific” and said his state is heartbroken in posts on X. He and President Donald Trump ordered flags to be lowered to half-staff on state and federal buildings, respectively, and the White House said the two men spoke.

The governor was the Democratic vice-presidential nominee in last year's election against Trump's running mate, now Vice President JD Vance, a Republican.

Pope offers condolences

From the Vatican, Pope Leo XIV sent a telegram of condolences. The Chicago-born Leo, history's first American pope, said he was praying for relatives of the dead.

Democratic officials from around the country were meeting in Minneapolis, and Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin told the gathering what was happening and said it was “a tragic day." US Rep. Ilhan Omar, a Democrat who represents the area around the school, visited the scene.

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Hennepin Healthcare, the main trauma hospital in Minneapolis, said it received 10 patients, including eight children — aged 6 through 14 — and two adults. Seven were considered to be in critical condition. Children's Minnesota, a pediatric trauma hospital, said it admitted seven children, ages 9 through 16.

YouTube channel

A video from a now-deleted YouTube channel that seemed to have been set up by the shooter and titled “Robin W” showed the slogans “kill Donald Trump” and “nuke India” written on his guns.

There were reportedly at least two videos that were posted before site administrators took down the channel.

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Other slogans apparently written on the gun magazines were “Israel must fall”, “Burn Israel”, “Where is your God?”, and “for the children”.

US Homeland secretary Kristi Noem, confirming the authenticity of the video, said in a post on X, “This deranged monster targeted our most vulnerable: young children praying in their first morning Mass of the school year…. This level of violence is unthinkable.”

Fatal shootings in Minneapolis

Monday had been the first day of the school year at Annunciation, a 102-year-old school in a leafy residential and commercial neighbourhood about 5 miles (8 kilometers) south of downtown Minneapolis.

Karin Cebulla, who said she had worked as a learning specialist at Annunciation and sent her two now-college-aged daughters there, described the school as an accepting, caring community.

“Everyone felt safe here, and I just pray that it continues to be a place where people feel safe,” she said.

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The gunfire was the latest in a series of fatal shootings in the city in less than 24 hours. One person was killed and six others were hurt in a shooting Tuesday afternoon outside a high school in Minneapolis. Hours later, two people died in two other shootings in the city.

O'Hara, the police chief, said the Annunciation shooting does not appear to be related to other recent violence.

Wednesday's school shooting also followed a spate of hoax calls about purported shootings on at least a dozen US college campuses. The bogus warnings, sometimes featuring gunshot sounds in the background, prompted universities to issue texts to “run, hide, fight” and frightened students around the nation as the school year begins.

(With agency inputs)