America in shock from the massacre at the elementary school in
Uvalde
,
Texas
.
Nineteen children and two adults, including a teacher, were killed in cold blood
in class by an 18-year-old boy,
Salvador Ramos
.
A massacre that extends the blood streak in the United States where there have been more than 200 mass shootings since the beginning of the year.
The children and the two teachers killed in the shooting were all in the same class, a fourth (usually attended by
9-10 year olds
): CNN reports.
Evidently shaken and with tears in his eyes,
Joe Biden
turns to the Americans and Congress and calls for action on weapons.
"We can and must do more. It's time to turn pain into action" and tackle the gun lobby, says Biden just back from his trip to Asia and alongside First Lady
Jill Biden
dressed all in black.
Speaking of yet another "massacre", the president defines himself as "tired and angry" and addresses the Americans directly: "Why do we want to live with this carnage? Why do we continue to allow this to happen? For heaven's sake where is ours? spine?".
Hence the appeal to common sense rules on weapons so that tragedies like this can be avoided.
"Don't tell me we can't have an impact on these carnage," he adds.
Vice President Kamala Harris
echoes him
: "When it's too much is too much, now we need to act."
Heavy words also come from
Barack Obama
, president during the Sandy Hook massacre of 2012. "Michelle and I are alongside the families of Uvalde. But we are also angry": ten years have passed since Newtown and "our country is paralyzed not by fear, but by a lobby of arms and a political party that has shown no willingness to act to prevent these tragedies. The time to act, for any kind of action, has run out, "Obama says bluntly.
ANSA agency
Shooting in Texas: witnesses: "The killer shot everything and everyone" - World
The eighteen-year-old perpetrator of the Texas elementary school massacre "shot anyone and anything in front of him. As soon as he entered the building he started shooting children, teachers and anyone in his way", witnesses report (ANSA)
THE DYNAMICS
- The anger of the Democrats is vented while there is not much clarity on what has happened yet.
The killer first shot his grandmother and then had a car accident near Robb Elementary School.
Having got out of the car with a rifle and a bulletproof vest, he tried to enter the school overcoming the blockade of some agents: once in the building he opened fire in some classrooms.
The boy was then stopped by the police who killed him on the spot.
WHO IS THE KILLER
- Little is known about Ramos: he was a student of a high school in the area and shortly before the massacre he contacted a stranger on Instagram telling her that he had a secret that he wanted to share: "I'm about ...".
To the girl, however, she did not confess what the crazy gesture she had in mind was and that she completed a few hours later.
On his Instagram account, the killer posted a selfie and photos of weapons, including one with two rifles next to each other.
It is not clear whether these are the weapons used for the massacre.
What is known is that the boy bought two rifles for his 18th birthday.
ANSA agency
School Shootout: LeBron James Vent, Endanger Our Children Now Enough - World
Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James on Twitter: "They are our children and we continue to endanger them at school. Seriously," AT SCHOOL "where they should be safer" (ANSA)
The massacre took place two days before the end of the school year in an area with a prevalence of Hispanics, and preceded by a few days the annual convention of the National Rifle Association, the powerful arms lobby.
The appointment is in fact for Friday in Houston, Texas, which is now mourning the killed children, and there will be speeches by Donald Trump and state governor Greg Abbott.
Right now Abbott is being criticized for having recently softened gun laws.
A tweet of his from 2015 has also reappeared in which he invited Texans to run and buy weapons.
"It's embarrassing. Texas is only second behind California in new gun purchases. Hurry up," he tweeted.
The massacre has already rekindled the debate on weapons in the midst of the primary election campaign ahead of the mid-term elections.
However, it is not taken for granted that the momentum will translate into action, given that the massacres that have taken place over the years have not managed to overcome the impasse in Congress.
ANSA agency
The long trail of blood in American schools - World
From Columbine to Sandy Hook, the massacre of firearms (ANSA)
PENDING FAMILIES
- Authorities have not yet notified all parents of the deaths of their children in the Texas elementary school shooting because DNA tests are underway.
CNN reports it citing some sources, according to which some children injured in the shooting in Texas have not yet been reunited with their families.
THE POPE'S CONGRET -
"My heart is broken by the massacre in the elementary school in Texas. I pray for the children, for the adults killed and for their families. It is time to say enough to indiscriminate arms trafficking! Let's all commit ourselves because tragedies so they can no longer happen ".
Pope Francis said this in an appeal at the end of the general audience.
ANSA agency
Massacre in a school in Texas: who is Salvador Ramos, the killer of the Robb elementary - Mondo
The Texas elementary school killer worked at Wendy's, an American restaurant chain with a store not far from the scene of the massacre.
Yes, Instagram had published a selfie with two rifles (ANSA)
WEAPON REFORM -
Democrats push gun reform after elementary school shooting in Texas.
Senate Democrat leader Chuck Schumer intends to force a vote in the coming days on measures that tighten controls on those who buy weapons, dusting off measures that Republicans have already blocked in the past.
The House has already approved the two measures last year but the Senate has not yet acted.
The hope of the liberals now is that in the light of the new massacre and the growing consensus of the Americans for more stringent controls, the measures can be approved in a bipartisan way.
The latest polls show that a majority of Americans are in favor of tougher background checks for gun buyers.
