Fundamentalist Muslim threat grows in the US.
By Raif Karerat
WASHINGTON, DC: One security guard was wounded and two gunmen killed when a “Draw Muhammad” contest was attacked in Garland, Texas on Sunday.
The two gunmen drove up to the Curtis Culwell Center in Garland on Sunday night as the event was coming to an end and shot at the security officer, the City of Garland said in a statement. Garland police officers returned fire, killing the men.
The Daily Beast, which had a reporter who was barricaded inside with the event attendees when shooting began, disclosed the security guard, identified as Bruce Joiner, was treated at a nearby hospital and subsequently released.
Police spokesman Joe Harn told the Associated Press that it was not immediately clear whether the shooting was connected to the contest, hosted by the New York-based American Freedom Defense Initiative, that offered $10,000 for the best cartoon depicting the Prophet Muhammad.
There were no immediate clues to the identity of the attackers, reported NBC News.
The contest was described as a “free speech” event by its sponsor, the American Freedom Defense Initiative, which is listed by the Southern Poverty Law Center as an active anti-Muslim group. Aside from the marquee $10,000 cartoon contest, the event also featured a keynote address by Dutch politician Geert Wilders, who is infamous for his anti-Muslim views.
Texas Gov. Gregg Abbott issued a statement late Sunday calling the shooting “senseless.” He said Texas authorities were “actively investigating to determine the cause and scope” of the attack.
The shooting evokes memories of the January 12 attack on the Paris office of satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo, which skewered Islam and other religions and graphically depicted Muhammad. Twelve people were killed by gunmen during the incident. Yet another fatal shooting occurred the very next month at a free speech event in Copenhagen, Denmark that featured an artist who had caricatured the prophet.
Thousands of people rallied around the globe to honor the victims and defend the freedom of expression following those shootings.
The American Freedom Defense Initiative is known for mounting a campaign against the building of an Islamic center a few blocks from the World Trade Center site and for buying advertising space in cities across the U.S. to criticize Islam, revealed the Associated Press.
When a Chicago-based nonprofit held a January fundraiser in Garland designed to help Muslims combat negative depictions of their faith, Geller organized about 1,000 picketers at the event. According to the AP, one chanted, “Go back to your own countries! We don’t want you here!” Others hoisted placards with messages such as, “Insult those who behead others,” an apparent reference to the beheadings perpetrated by ISIS in the Middle East.