The official news organization for ISIS claims responsibility for the Orlando shooting. Islamic State’s Amaq News Agency is the source, posting the claim about 2 p.m.
Reuters quotes Amaq as saying, “The armed attacked that targeted a gay night club in the city of Orlando in the American state of Florida which left over 100 people dead or injured was carried out by an Islamic State fighter.”
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A correspondent for The New York Times, Rukmini Callimachi, reports the alert posted to Amaq’s Telegram channel less than 12 hours after the attack, noting that much sooner than the two days it took ISIS to claim the killings in San Bernardino, California.
A U.S. official told CNN gunman Omar Mateen called 911 around the time of the attack to pledge allegiance to ISIS and mention the Boston bombers. CNN also reports ISIS sympathizers reacted by praising the attack on pro-Islamic State forums, even prior to the Amaq announcement Sunday afternoon.