Nine people, including two children, were shot and injured in a shocking mass shooting in Washington, D.C. amid Independence Day celebrations, police have confirmed. The incident occurred late at night, and no arrests have been made so far.
Assistant Chief Leslie Parsons of the Metropolitan Police provided details in a video statement. Officers responded to reports of gunfire on Meade Street in northeast Washington, D.C. just before 1 a.m. on Wednesday. Upon arrival, they found multiple victims with gunshot wounds, but fortunately, all injuries were non-life-threatening.
The victims include a nine-year-old child and a 17-year-old teenager. Parsons described the shooting as “targeted,” explaining that a dark SUV drove through the area and someone inside opened fire on people celebrating the July 4 holiday outdoors.
The District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services transported some victims to hospital, while others sought medical help independently. It remains unclear whether more than one shooter was involved in the attack.
This shooting in Washington, D.C. is part of a troubling pattern of deadly mass shootings across multiple U.S. cities during the holiday weekend. Prior to July 4, shootings in Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Fort Worth, Texas, resulted in 10 deaths and 38 injuries.
In Fort Worth, three people were killed and eight wounded in a late-night shooting following a local festival. In Philadelphia, a suspect wearing body armour and armed with an automatic rifle fired randomly, killing five people and injuring two boys aged two and 13.
The United States continues to face a deepening crisis of gun violence. According to the Gun Violence Archive, over 340 mass shootings have occurred nationwide so far in 2023. This ongoing bloodshed highlights the persistent challenges the country faces in addressing gun violence.
Originally published by UKNIP.
