Several dead, others injured after Tel Aviv gay center shooting

From the BNO Newsroom.

TEL AVIV (BNO NEWS) -- Up to 17 people were shot at a gay community center in Tel Aviv on Saturday evening. A manhunt for the shooter has been launched.

At least three fatalities were among the victims, according to the Haaretz newspaper, and at least six of them were in critical condition, a source told BNO News. The Jerusalem Post put the total toll of wounded at 15.

The shooting occurred at a gay and lesbian center where youth get together every Saturday night, a volunteer at the lesbian and gay community hotline in Tel Aviv told BNO News. At the end of the evening, a gunman dressed in black walked into the center and opened fire.

The Haaretz newspaper quoted the public security minister as saying that it appeared to be a criminally motivated attack. "We didn't have prior information about the shooting," he said.

All gay clubs in Tel Aviv have been closed as police have launched a manhunt for the shooter. Police patrols were seen across the city in the aftermath of the mass shooting.

An LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender) activist told Ynet that it appeared to be a "deliberate act against the gay community."

One report indicated that one of the two fatalities was a 17-year-old girl.

Further details were not immediately available.

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