09 July,2016 08:58 AM IST | | Agencies
Ambush kills five cops; it follows police brutality against African-Americans
A cop tries to calm protestors after the sniper shooting in Dallas. Pic/AFP
Houston: Snipers shot dead five police officers and injured seven in "ambush style" firing in Dallas yesterday during a demonstration against the fatal police shootings of African-American men this week. It's one of the deadliest attacks on cops in US history.
A cop tries to calm protestors after the sniper shooting in Dallas. Pic/AFP
Dallas police chief David Brown said two snipers fired "ambush style" from an elevated position. Police negotiated and exchanged gunfire with one of the suspects for hours at a parking garage in downtown. "That suspect is dead," a law enforcement official said. The official did not say how the suspect died.
Brown said one of the suspects told negotiators "the end is coming and he's going to kill more law enforcement officers and that there are bombs all over the place in the garage and downtown". The dead gunman has been identified as 25-year-old Micah Xavier Johnson, who served in the US Army Reserve, according to two US officials.
The firing in Dallas broke out when hundreds of people had gathered to protest the fatal police shootings this week. The protesters had gathered after a Minnesota officer on Wednesday shot Philando Castile while he was in a car with a woman and a child. The aftermath of the shooting was livestreamed. A day earlier, Alton Sterling was shot in Louisiana after being pinned to the pavement by two white officers.
Meanwhile, the US Capitol building was put on lockdown for about an hour after some unusual activity by a person possibly carrying firearms was reported.
US is horrified: Barack Obama
US President Barack Obama yesterday said that America is "horrified" by the attack on cops in Dallas. He said the investigation into the shooting is on, but "what we do know is there has been a vicious, calculated and despicable attack on law enforcement". He called the shooters' motives "twisted" and vowed they would be brought to justice. "There's no possible justification for these kinds of attacks or any violence against law enforcement," he said.
Jay Z, Chris Brown drop protest songs
Rapper Jay Z has released a new song, addressing police brutality against African-Americans, following the deaths of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile. He said the song was made a year ago. Chris Brown also unveiled a new song âMy Friend' after the shootings. Brown shared the song's link saying: "This song I released for free for anybody dealing with injustice or struggle in their lives."
