UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has advised the international community to ‘stand united against anti-Muslim hatred’ following a mass shooting in New Zealand on Friday targeting two Mosques, which has left at least 49 dead and many others injured, some critically.
“I’m saddened and strongly condemn the shooting of innocent people as they prayed peacefully in mosques in New Zealand”, tweeted the UN chief, explaining his “deepest condolences to the victims’ families”.
“Today and every day, we must stand united against anti-Muslim hatred, and all forms of bigotry and terror”, he worried.
Antonio Vitorino, Director General of the International Organization for Migration, applied his “sincere condolences” to victims’ families and given deep grief over “the terrible loss of life”, indicating: “It is believed that among the dead and injured were many refugees and migrants”.
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, tweeted an image of the New Zealand flag with a message stating that UNHCR stands “firmly with the people and government of New Zealand “in mourning, prayer and solidarity”.
“We grieve with children facing the profound shock that a parent is never coming home”, tweeted Henrietta Fore, Executive Director of the UN Children’s Fund. Expressing “our hearts break with news”, she named the aggression “a senseless attack on a peaceful community and the universal right to freedom of worship”.