Criminal investigation

Orlando gunman said he carried out attack to get ‘Americans to stop bombing his country,’ witness says

The gunman who opened fire inside a nightclub here said he carried out the attack because he wanted “Americans to stop bombing his country,” according to a witness who survived the rampage.

This account from Patience Carter, a 20-year-old who was inside the club during a three-hour hostage standoff, offers the first glimpse at what the shooter said spurred him to carry out the deadliest mass shooting in American history. Carter said the gunman made his claims about his motivation during the same 911 call in which he pledged allegiance to the Islamic State.

At one point, while about two dozen hostages were in the bathrooms inside Pulse, Carter said the gunman asked if there were any black people in the room. When one man said yes, the shooter said, “‘You know I don’t have a problem with black people,'” Carter recalled during a news conference. She said he added: “‘This is about my country. You guys suffered enough.'”