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US President Joe Biden (April 1 photo)
Photo Credit: IMAGO/BONNIE CASH / IMAGO/UPI Photo
After the death of six people in a gun incident in Sacramento, California, US President Joe Biden has reiterated his call for stricter gun laws.
America once again mourns the victims of gun violence, Biden said Sunday night.
But more needs to be done than mourning.
"We must act," the President demanded.
He called on Congress to pass stricter gun laws.
Six people were killed in a gunshot in California's capital Sacramento on Sunday.
According to the police, the background was still unclear in the evening.
The shots rang out at 2 a.m. in downtown Sacramento, which is lined with bars and restaurants.
According to police chief Kathy Lester, there had previously been a “major fight”.
Investigations are ongoing
The shots were fired by several shooters.
A "stolen handgun" was later found at the crime scene.
The police have now received several videos and tips about the incident, but are urgently looking for more information, said Lester.
According to her, three women and three men were among the six fatalities.
Twelve other people were taken to the hospital with gunshot wounds, Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg said.
Some of them were "severely to life-threateningly injured".
A video published on the Internet on Sunday shows a scuffle between several people on a street.
When shots are heard, the crowd breaks up and people flee in panic.
The authenticity of the recordings could not initially be checked.
The police initially only said that they were aware of the video.
Around 45,000 dead from gun violence
Mayor Steinberg said it was difficult for him to put the tragedy into words.
He also does not yet know the exact background, but the increasing armed violence is "the scourge of our city, our state and our nation".
"I support all measures to reduce them," he said.
"We can no longer allow gun violence to become the new normal," California Gov. Gavin Newsom wrote on Twitter.
Firearm attacks with multiple deaths occur again and again in the United States.
According to a count by the Gun Violence Archive portal, around 45,000 people were killed by gun violence nationwide last year.
Suicides were also counted.
Since the beginning of the year, the website has already recorded 10,700 deaths.
At the same time, the number of pistols, revolvers and other firearms sold continues to increase.
The right to bear a gun is an extremely controversial issue in the United States.
Attempts to tighten the lax gun laws repeatedly fail due to resistance from conservative Republicans and the influential gun lobby.
bam/AFP