California mosque shooting: Three victims killed, suspects die by self-inflicted gunshot wounds

A shooting at a mosque complex in California left three people dead on Monday, before two suspected teenage gunmen were later found dead in a car from self-inflicted gunshot wounds, police said.

Emergency response teams arrived at the Islamic Center of San Diego after reports of an active shooter. Authorities placed the area under a short lockdown and told residents to stay indoors before later saying the threat had been “neutralised.”





San Diego Police Chief Scott Wahl said, “We received a call of an active shooter at the Islamic center. Within four minutes, officers arrived on scene and observed immediately three deceased victims out in front,”

He added, “We immediately began to deploy with an active shooter response into the mosque and adjacent school,” and said police also received reports of gunfire nearby, where a landscaper working at the location was shot at but not hit.

Dozens of patrol cars surrounded the Islamic Center, which is described on its website as the largest mosque in San Diego County in southern California. TV footage from a helicopter showed armed response teams gathered outside a building, with one unidentified person lying on the ground.

Outside the Islamic center, police later found a vehicle in the middle of the street with the suspected shooters, aged 19 and 17, dead inside.

“The suspects at this point appear to have died from self-inflicted gunshot wounds. There were no officers involved in firing their weapons,” Wahl said.

Police said a security guard at the Islamic center was among the three people killed. The identity of the other two victims was not immediately clear.

Imam Taha Hassane said that all the staff, teachers and children at the mosque were safe.

“We have never experienced tragedy like this before. And at this moment all that I can say is, sending our prayers and standing in solidarity with all the families in our community here,” he said.

“It is extremely outrageous to target a place of worship,” the imam added.

President Donald Trump described the shooting as a “terrible situation.”

“I've been given some early updates but we're going to be going back and looking at it very strongly,” he told reporters.

State Governor Gavin Newsom was briefed on the apparent attack, his press office said.

“We are grateful to the first responders on the scene working to protect the community and urge everyone to follow guidance from local authorities,” it said in a post on X.