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Gunman opens fire at U.S. Maryland factory, killing three
Updated 10:55, 10-Jun-2022
CGTN
Law enforcement officials gather outside the entrance to Columbia Machine Inc, near Smithsburg in Maryland, U.S., June 9, 2022. /CFP

Law enforcement officials gather outside the entrance to Columbia Machine Inc, near Smithsburg in Maryland, U.S., June 9, 2022. /CFP

A gunman opened fire at a manufacturing facility in northern Maryland, U.S., on Thursday, killing at least three people and critically wounding a fourth before being taken into custody.

The 23-year-old assailant, who was not identified by police, was wounded in an exchange of gunfire with a Maryland state trooper, a Washington County Sheriff's spokesperson said. Both the suspect and trooper were taken to a local hospital for treatment of gunshot wounds.

The shooting occurred at a plant operated by Columbia Machine in Smithsburg, northern Maryland, and the gunman and all of his victims were employees there, the spokesperson said, without elaborating on the circumstances or possible motives behind the attack.

This was the latest in a series of mass shootings in the United States in recent weeks. Late last month, an 18-year-old man opened fire at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, killing 19 students and two teachers. Ten days earlier, a mass shooting at a grocery store in Buffalo, New York, left 10 people dead. 

These attacks have prompted new efforts in U.S. Congress to enact stricter federal gun control laws.

On Wednesday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed new gun-control legislation that includes raising the minimum age for buying semi automatic rifles from 18 to 21 and banning high-capacity ammunition magazines. But the bill is expected to stall in the Senate because of strong opposition from Republicans. 

According to a recent Reuters/Ipsos poll, most Americans support tighter gun restrictions. In the poll, 84 percent of respondents said they support background checks for all firearms sales, while 70 percent backed "red flag" laws allowing authorities to confiscate guns from people deemed to be a threat to public safety.

(With input from Reuters)

Read more:

Partisan divide on guns grows even as most Americans prefer tight laws

New gun legislation passed in U.S. House, expected to die in Senate

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