TENNESSEE – Five people were killed on Thursday, July 16, including suspected gunman Muhammad Youssef Abdulazeez, who opened fire at two
military-related facilities in Chattanooga, Tennessee in an attack local
officials described as brazen, brutal and an act of domestic terrorism.

No motive has yet been given. 

24-year-old Abdulazeez is
believed to have lived in the area and acted alone, local police said.
 Abdulazeez is a naturalized U.S. citizen originally from Kuwait,
according to numerous reports.

He Graduated From the University of
Tennessee-Chattanooga in 2012. 

Abdulazeez has had run-ins with the law. According to reports, he was arrested in April for driving under the influence in Hamilton County, Tennessee.

The other four killed were Marines at a Naval
Reserve Center, a military official said in Washington, DC. 

“We are treating this as an act of domestic
terrorism,” said Bill Killian, the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District
of Tennessee, adding that no official determination of the nature of the crime
had yet been made. 

The suspect, seen driving in an open-top Mustang,
is believed to have first gone to a joint military recruiting center in a strip
mall, and peppered the facility with gunfire. No one was injured in the attack.

“Everybody was at a standstill and as soon as
he pulled away everyone scrabbled trying to make sure everyone was OK,”
said Erica Wright, who works two doors down from the center.

The gunman then drove off to a Naval Reserve Center
about 6 miles (10 km) away, fatally shooting the four Marines before being
fatally shot himself in a firefight with police.

Abdulazeez

Three others were wounded in the attacks, including
a police officer and a Marine. The shootings began at about 10:45 a.m. local
time and ended about 30 minutes later.

“There were numerous Chattanooga and Hamilton
County officers who responded. They arrived on the scene extremely quickly.
They actively and enthusiastically engaged this brazen criminal, and one of
those officers was injured by gunfire from this criminal,” Chattanooga
Police Chief Fred Fletcher told a news conference.

A White House spokesman said President Barack Obama
had been told about the shooting. 

“The president has been briefed by his national
security staff on the Chattanooga shooting and will continue to get updates as
warranted,” said Spokesman Eric Schultz.

Lockdowns were placed at local businesses, a
college and other facilities near the shooting sites.

The city along the Tennessee River is in the
southeastern section of the state just north of the Georgia border. Just over
173,000 people live there, according to a 2013 estimate from the U.S. Census
Bureau.

Speculation arose on whether Abdulazeez was in any
way linked to ISIS.

An ISIS-related account tweeted just before
the incident “O American dogs soon YOU will see the wonders,” and used
#Chattanooga, at 10:34 a.m., just about the same time police say the shooting
began. 

The tweet is similar to one sent out moments before two ISIS-inspired
gunmen opened fire outside the “Draw Muhammad” event in Garland,
Texas, in May.