Orlando Pulse nightclub shooting
Just after 2am on 12 June 2016, Omar Mir Seddique Mateen opened fire on staff and patrons at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida, where about 300 people were present. According to the FBI, an active-shooter situation became a hostage situation when he barricaded himself and victims in a bathroom, and officers killed him at about 5am. Forty-nine people were murdered and 58 wounded. In three 911 calls during the attack, he claimed allegiance to the leader of the so-called Islamic State, among others. The FBI states: "The FBI concluded the attack was an act of terrorism—the worst on U.S. soil since September 11, 2001." It also says the club building was demolished in March 2026, with a permanent memorial planned for 2027.
Mateen's widow, Noor Salman, was charged with providing material support to a terrorist organisation and with obstruction. A federal jury acquitted her of both on 30 March 2018. AP reported that the FBI's own receipts and cellphone data showed the couple were not near the Pulse on the day she said they had scouted it.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said: "This was a murderous attack on gay people in this nightclub" (SMH).
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