Shock and bafflement at San Diego mosque where three were killed

SAN DIEGO – Outside the San Diego mosque where his father was gunned down by heavily armed teenagers who had been radicalised online, Mr Ramzy sat and stared blankly.

Like many people AFP spoke to in the community, he was having trouble processing what the police are treating as an Islamophobic attack that killed three people.

“Everyone’s really shocked,” Mr Ramzy said. “It’s hard to believe this is real. We’re just all still figuring it out.”

His father, identified by officials as Mr Nader Awad, was one of three people being hailed as heroes on May 19 for actions that saved scores of lives.

San Diego police chief Scott Wahl said the two teenage attackers had stormed into the Islamic Center of San Diego complex on May 18, intent on doing harm, but were engaged by security guard Amin Abdullah, who began firing at them as he raised the alarm on his radio.

“His actions, without a doubt, delayed, distracted and ultimately deterred these two individuals from gaining access to the greater areas of the mosque, where as many as 140 kids were within 4.5m of these suspects,” Mr Wahl told a press conference.

Mr Awad and another man – named as Mr Mansour Kaziha – drew the gunmen back into the parking lot.

“He heard the gunshots and ran to help,” Mr Ramzy told AFP. “Unfortunately, they got him when they got out of the building.”

All three men died at the scene.

The bodies of suspected attackers Cain Clark, 17, and Caleb Vazquez, 18, were found in a vehicle a short distance away.

Investigators believe they shot themselves.

A Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) search of their homes recovered dozens of guns, as well as ammunition, tactical gear and electronic equipment, along with extremist writings outlining what the agency said were “religious and racial beliefs of how the world they envisioned should look”.

‘We used to feel safe here’

There was bafflement on the faces of members of the Muslim community who arrived at the mosque bearing flowers on May 19.

Many were too shocked to speak, uttering few words before breaking down in tears or retreating into silence.

With its palm trees standing alongside the minaret and its nondescript suburban homes lining the street, the suburb presented the image of a peaceful, multicultural America.

The mosque served as a polling station and drew worshippers from the Middle East, Asia, Africa and Europe.

Its imam regularly participated in interfaith prayers alongside the pastor of a local Protestant church.

“This Muslim community, they’re really good people, you know,” said Ms Katelynn Fisk, a neighbour who was out walking her dog.

“They never treat anybody like they’re different, even if they don’t follow their beliefs.”

The mosque, one of the largest Muslim centres in the city of 1.4 million people, has always been a refuge.

“We used to feel safe here,” said Ms Imani Khatib. “I don’t understand why we were targeted.”

The 31-year-old teaching assistant, who wears a headscarf, burst into tears in front of the security guard’s booth – the very spot where Mr Abdullah gave his life to prevent a massacre.

“If he didn’t do what he did, and sacrifice his life, the two suspects would have had easy access to every single classroom,” said Mr Taha Hassane, the mosque’s imam.

“We’re so proud of him... I see messages about him, literally from all over the world, talking about his heroism.”

‘White supremacy’

Like many places of worship across the US, the mosque complex had been subjected to sporadic acts of Islamophobia, Mr Hassane said.

Such incidents intensified following the September 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center in New York.

More recently, the conflicts in Gaza and Iran have sparked a fresh wave of hostility.

“We received some mail and e-mails and phone messages, you know, blaming us for everything going wrong in the world,” Mr Hassane told AFP.

“But having shooters, I mean, it never came to our mind.”

He placed the blame for the deadly attack on a “rise of white supremacy” as well as on “our elected officials (and) some of the media just dehumanising Muslims and dehumanising every single minority, the blacks, (and) the Latinos.”

“When young people who are brainwashed, they hear this rhetoric from the media, from the elected officials,” he said. “This gives them the excuse, the green light to go and commit a crime.” AFP