President Donald Trump raged over news that an armed man attempted to attack soldiers in Paris on Friday, but still has not publicly commented on a fatal shooting that took place Sunday at a mosque in Canada.
A soldier was slightly injured after a man shouting “Allahu Akbar” confronted security personnel outside the Louvre museum with a machete, officials said. Police disarmed and shot the suspect, who reportedly is alive but seriously wounded. Details on the suspect’s identity have not been revealed, but French Prime Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said the incident was “terrorist in nature.”
Over the weekend, six worshippers were fatally shot and several others were injured at the Centre Culturel Islamique de Québec in Quebec City, Canada. It appears the suspected shooter, Alexandre Bissonnette, 27, has been involved with online forums about far-right extremism and at least one classmate has described him as a white nationalist.
White House press secretary Sean Spicer called the mosque shooting “a terrible reminder of why we must remain vigilant and why the president is taking steps to be proactive instead of reactive when it comes to our nation’s safety and security.” His comments seem to defend Trump’s decision to sign an executive order last week banning Syrian refugees and visitors from several majority-Muslim countries.
Trump also called Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to express sympathy about the shooting, a spokesman for the PM said. However, Trump has yet to make a public comment (or tweet) about the attack.