On Sunday, January 29^th, a gunman entered the Centre Culturel Islamique de Quebec and opened fire on a group of individuals practicing evening prayers. Six were killed and nineteen were injured at this Quebec City Mosque shooting.

While many news outlets have described the event as having two shooters, only one suspect has been confirmed by the police. According to law enforcement, the perpetrator was a 27-year-old social sciences student at Laval University. Identified as Alexandre Bissonette, the murderer was charged with six counts of first-degree murder and is now in police custody.

The motive behind this deadly attack has not been confirmed but some speculate that it arose from Bissonette’s political beliefs. According to Bissonette’s acquaintances, he had controversial opinions online and was a supporter of Marine Le Pen, a leader of the French far-right Front national.

According to The Guardian, Justin Trudeau condemned the attack and affirmed his solidarity with those affected by this tragedy: “Make no mistake, this was a terrorist attack. This was a group of innocents targeted for practicing their faith… To the more than 1 million Canadians who profess the Muslim faith, I want to say directly, we are with you 36 million hearts are breaking with yours.”

A funeral service will be held in Montreal for three victims of this attack. Another funeral will be held in Quebec City for the other three individuals.