Gunshots reported outside US consulate in Toronto; police probing incident
Gunshots were fired outside the US Consulate in Canada's Toronto on Tuesday (local time), The Guardian reported.
CANADIAN police on Tuesday (local time) launched an investigation after gunshots were reported at the US consulate in Toronto. Authorities said they found evidence indicating that a firearm had been discharged, but no injuries were reported, The Guardian reported.
In a social media post, the Toronto police said that they responded to the reported shots at 5.29 a.m. (0929 GMT).
Second attack in two days
The incident comes days after an explosion of an improvised device was reported at the US embassy in Oslo, Norway, on 8 March. Reports suggested that the Norwegian police were still on the lookout for a suspect, with a possible link to the Iran war being examined as part of the investigation.
On Monday, the Norwegian police released two photographs of the suspect, whom they believed was responsible for the attack that led to minor damage.
The suspect's face was not clearly visible from the grainy surveillance footage. However, the authorities said that the individual was wearing dark coloured clothes, a hood, and was carrying a backpack.
The Norwegian police said they believe the person planted an improvised explosive device (IED) near the entrance of the embassy. “The individual has not yet been identified, and we currently have no specific suspects,” police said in a statement.
New York City Mayor's official residence targeted
In a separate incident, the New York City mayor's official residence, Gracie Mansion, was targeted on Saturday, after two groups were holding counterprotests. Two men have been charged with terrorism after throwing a homemade bomb at anti-Islam protesters over the weekend.
On 7 March, two groups staged protests close to Mamdani's official residence. A conservative influencer, Jake Lang, organised the anti-Islam protest "Stop the Islamic Takeover of New York City, Stop New York City Public Muslim Prayer."
One of the protestors used pepper spray on the members of the counter demonstrations, titled "Run the Nazis out of New York City, Stand Against Hate."
After a member of Lang's group used the pepper spray, another group ignited two suspicious devices, throwing them in the direction of the area where Lang's group was staging demonstrations.
One of these suspicious devices was dropped on East End Avenue, closer to Mamdani's residence, who was inside the residence at the time of the incident. However, New York Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said that no injuries were reported, and both Mamdani and his wife, Rama Duwaji, were safe.
