PARIS (AFP) – US President Barack Obama, Pope Francis and Queen Elizabeth II on Sunday led global condemnation after a gunman went on the rampage at a gay nightclub in Florida leaving at least 50 people dead.
The pontiff condemned the killings as ‘‘homicidal folly and senseless hatred’’ while Obama described them as ‘‘an act of terror and an act of hate.’’
According to a tweet from the British royal family’s official account, the queen was ‘‘shocked’’ by the attack, adding that the monarch and her husband’s ‘‘thoughts & prayers are with all those who have been affected.’’
The attack in which a gunman opened fire at a packed nightclub in Orlando, Florida, is the worst mass shooting in US history.
Leaders from countries shaken by recent jihadist attacks, including France and Belgium, were among the first to express solidarity with the US. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani sent his condolences to the families of the victims as authorities identified the alleged gunman as 29-year-old Omar Mateen, a US citizen of Afghan descent.