Synagogue of Squirrel Hill: A shooting in Pittsburgh killed several and wounded officers

An armed man attacked a Pittsburgh synagogue during services rendered Saturday morning, killing several people and wounding three policemen.

The suspect, who was in custody at noon, opened fire inside the Tree of Life synagogue in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood, according to the Associated Press.

The dispatchers mentioned several deaths during the incident, as the police warned residents of the area to stay inside and take shelter on the spot. The police later confirmed that there had been several deaths in the building.

"We had services in the chapel when we heard a loud noise in the hall," 60-year-old Stephen Weiss told the Tribune-Review.

Acknowledging the sounds like shots, Weiss said that he was able to escape by the shrine.

The KDKA reported that officers had clashed with the suspect outside the synagogue and that three officers had been injured during a shootout. One of the officers was hit in the hand, according to a dispatcher, but at least one was reportedly seriously injured.

During a deadlock, the suspect repeatedly spoke of the killing of Jews, radio dispatchers told police.

He went to the police around 11 am Dispatchers stated that he had a gun in his ankle and another in his belt and that he had been injured. KDKA reported that he came out by crawling.

The Tree of Life synagogue is located in a lush residential enclave near Carnegie Mellon University which has a large Jewish population. Its "traditional, progressive and egalitarian" congregation, established in 1864, is the oldest Jewish congregation in Pittsburgh.

It is unknown how many people were in the synagogue at the time of the shooting. According to an online calendar, a Shabbat service would have been scheduled for Saturday at 9:45.

The main sanctuary of the synagogue, a cavernous space with large stained glass windows illustrating the history of Creation, can accommodate up to 1,250 guests, according to the Tree of Life website.

"It's an absolute tragedy," Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf (D) wrote on Twitter. "These senseless acts of violence are not what we are as Americans."

The New York Police Department announced that it was deploying teams to places of worship after the Pittsburgh shootings as a precautionary measure.

S addressing reporters later to the Andrews Common Base, President Trump said the shooting was "far more devastating than anyone originally thought," without providing details. "It's a terrible, terrible thing, what happens with hatred in our country, frankly and around the world and something has to be done," he said.

He said the death penalty should go into "fashion" and suggested that armed security would have made the difference. When asked if all the churches and synagogues should have had armed security, Trump said, "It's definitely an option."

When asked if he should review the gun laws, Trump said, "This has nothing to do with that, if you take a look at it." . If they had had protection inside, the results would have been much better. "

Trump has often suggested that more armed people could deter mass shootings, he commented after the shootings in Parkland, Florida and Orlando in recent years. Members of the armed forces were present during the large – scale and other shootings that occurred again.

It is not known if the synagogue had security measures in place. In an article published in July on the synagogue blog "We Deserve Better", Rabbi Jeffrey Myers criticized elected leaders for inaction in enacting gun control legislation in the wake of the US gunfire. Parkland School.

"Unless there's a dramatic turnaround in the midterm elections, I'm afraid the status quo will not be changed and the school shootings will not resume," Myers wrote.

"I should not be forced to include in my daily morning prayers that God watches over and protects my wife and wife, the two teachers. Where are our leaders? "

The faithful of Tree of Life practice conservative Judaism, a Jewish denomination that does not indicate their political affiliation.

Mark Berman, Mike Rosenwald and Katie Zezima contributed to this story in development.