A 75-year-old woman is the 6th victim in the wake of Nordine Amrani’s December 13 rampage in the Belgium city of Liege as the death toll continues to rise, but many questions still remain unclear. According to Reuthers, the dead include the two teenagers, ages 15 and 17, a 17-month-old toddler, a 20-year-old man, a two-year-old girl, a cleaning woman and the gunman, Nordine Amrani, 33.

There were also 120 people who were injured and approximately 40 treated for shock. His apparent motive to attack unarmed citizens milling about the town’s annual Christmas market remains unclear. ”I saw a man wave his arm and throw something at the bus shelter. I heard an explosion.

He turned around, picked something else up, pulled the pin. I started to run. He was alone and seemed very much in control” Journalist Nicolas Gilenne reported to AFP after the occurrence. The methodic and careful process of the perpetrator’s pre-holiday spree in Saint Lambert square, the center of Liege, leaves many questions unanswered as officials continue to try and paint a clear picture of the gunman, a Belgium citizen of Moroccan origin.

“It’s very difficult to determine the reasons for the attack, but we’re investigating all avenues,” Benoit Ramacker said via AFP. However, no apparent religious reason has been determined, especially with the debate of Muslim diaspora being significant in Western Europe.

“He was not being identified as a Belgium when he was a Belgian citizen,” Glyn Ford, a former Member of the European Parliament, told Russia Today. “Because of his Moroccan origins, people are talking about killing the Muslims.” Ford continues to cite this crime to be seen as an average gun crime.

“They should take the right reactions and not overreact, as far as we can tell at the moment, there is no evidence [of a racial motive] from the assassin’s side,” he said. Amrani was a known criminal with several drug and gun conviction therefore, the Belgian government is focusing on stricter gun laws.

“New Prime Minister Elio Di Rupo will detail government proposals before the parliament later Thursday after calls for a tightening of laws on weapons trafficking and an examination of whether to re-examine rules on repeat offenders,” The Hindustan Times reports.

The truth may never be fully understood on suspect or his reasons for such carnage, but his defense lawyer, Jean-Francois Dister, told CNN, ”He was someone that was integrated into society. He felt Belgian. I’m not sure if he was a practicing Muslim but he knew about his culture and his roots.”

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About the author

Gina Gerhart
Based in Ohio, but fascinated with the world and the people in it.