ISIS claims responsibility for Las Vegas shooting - 'soldier converted months ago'

The group's Amaq news agency released two
statements in Arabic saying ISIS was responsible for
the worst shooting in US history.
It claimed the shooter, identified by Vegas police as
Stephen Paddock from Mesquite, Nevada, had
converted to Islam "months ago" and called him a
"soldier of Islamic State".
The terror group's claims cannot be verified.
About 50 people died and more than 400 were hurt
when the 64-year-old gunman, with an arsenal of at
least 10 rifles, fired on a country music festival on
Sunday night.
Las Vegas shooting
LIVE updates –
Shooter NAMED,
death toll, victims
Las Vegas shooting:
Killer’s brother
‘dumfounded’ by
massacre
RELATED ARTICLES
Shooting from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay
hotel and casino, he carried out the brutal attack for
several minutes before killing himself, police said.
Paddock's brother told CBS News the shooter had "no
religious affiliation, no political affiliation, he just hung
out".
Terror experts have expressed their surprise at ISIS
claiming the attack, but pointed out the two
statements were released on ISIS' official primary
news source.
Rita Katz, director of SITE Intelligence Group, said it
was a "rare event" for Amaq to release a follow-up
statement about Paddock supposedly converting to
Islam "months ago".
But, she added given what is known of Paddock, ISIS
needs evidence, otherwise it "might make ISIS appear
(more) desperate for claims".
A senior US official said security agencies are
examining ISIS's claim of responsibility but have not
yet verified it.
ISIS has claimed responsibility for the Vegas shooting
In May, ISIS released a 44-minutes propaganda video
calling for Muslims living in the West to carry a lone
wolf attack on the Vegas strip, with authorities placed
on high-alert.
The death toll, which police emphasised was
preliminary, would make the mass shooting the
deadliest in US history, eclipsing last year's massacre
of 49 people at an Orlando night club by a gunman
who pledged allegiance to Islamic State militants.
Some 22,000 people were in the crowd when Paddock
opened fire, sparking a panic in which some people
trampled on others, as law enforcement officers
scrambled to locate the gunman.
Shocked concertgoers, some with blood on their
clothing, wandered the streets afterwards.
Police said they had no information about Paddock's
motive, that he had no criminal record and was not
believed to be connected to any militant group.
Paddock killed himself before police entered the hotel
room he was firing from, Clark County Sheriff Joseph
Lombardo told reporters.
50 dead in Las Vegas mass
shooting
Mon, October 2, 2017
More than 50 people were killed and at least 406
injured when a crazed gunman opened fire on a
country music festival in Las Vegas.
PLAY
People run from the Route 91 Harvest country
music festival after gun fire was heard [Getty
Images]
GETTY IMAGES 1 of 28
Mr Lombardo, said: ”We have no idea what his belief
system was.”
A senior US government official said Paddock's name
was not on any database of suspected terrorists.
Mr Lombardo said there were more than 10 rifles in
the room where Paddock killed himself after checking
into the hotel on Thursday.
The dead included one off-duty police officer, Mr
Lombardo said.
A statement from ISIS' news agency Amaq claimed
responsibility for the Vegas shootig
Two on-duty officers were injured, including one who
was in stable condition after surgery and one who
sustained minor injuries, Lombardo said. Police warned
the death toll may rise.
As sunrise approached, police were still finding people
who had taken cover during the attack, Lombardo
said.
He added: “It's going to take time for us to get
through the evacuation phase.”
Video of the attack showed panicked crowds fleeing
as sustained rapid gunfire ripped through the area.
Hundreds of people were injured in the deadliest mass
shooting in US history
Steve Smith, a 45-year-old visitor from Phoenix,
Arizona, who had flown in for the concert, said:
“People were just dropping to the ground. It just kept
going on.” He said the gunfire went on for an extended
period of time.
He added: “Probably 100 shots at a time.
”It would sound like it was reloading and then it would
go again."
Las Vegas's casinos, nightclubs and shopping draw
some 3.5 million visitors from around the world each
year and the area was packed with visitors when the
shooting broke out shortly after 10 pm local time
(0500 BST).

Tweet