A deadly shooting shattered the peace at Annunciation Catholic Church and its adjoining school in south Minneapolis on Wednesday morning, turning the first week of classes into a nightmare for families and faculty.Two children — aged eight and 10 — were killed and up to 17 wounded.Of the 17 wounded, 14 are children, with two in critical condition.The shooter has been identified as Robin Westman, 23.Westman, who indentified as transgender, was formerly known as Robert.KARE 11 reported Westman's mother was an employee at the school and that he changed his name to Robin in 2020, when he was 17.A 10-minute manifesto by Westman was found on YouTube..The nightmare unfolded just after 8:15 a.m., when students attending Wednesday Mass — from pre-kindergarten through eighth grade — were caught in a hail of gunfire.Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara said the gunman approached the church and opened fire through the windows.O'Hara said the gunman — dressed in black — was armed with a rifle, a shotgun and a pistol.He said "dozens" of shots were fired."The sheer cruelty and cowardice of firing into a church full of children is incomphrensible," said O'Hara.He described the dead children as "being shot as they sat in the pews."Witnesses described what sounded like roofing work at first, only to realise it was semiautomatic fire tearing through stained-glass windows into the church—“50 to 100 shots,” one parent estimated.Police, paramedics and state-level responders — including ATF, BCA and the Minnesota State Patrol — swarmed the scene within minutes..Gov. Tim Walz called the attack “a horrific act of violence.” He confirmed he had been briefed on the situation and offered prayers for “our kids and teachers whose first week of school was marred” in such a tragic way.Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey activated the city’s emergency response team and urged residents to give officers space to do their work — adding that the situation remained under control."Don't tell me this is about thoughts and prayers — these kids were literally praying," Frey said at a press conference.Police set up a reunification zone at the school for parents frantic to locate their children. Within hours, officials reported that all known victims had been triaged and transported to hospitals.This atrocity comes amid a wave of gun violence in the city, marking the fourth shooting in Minneapolis in just 24 hours, including another fatal attack near a high school the previous day.
