A man accused of deadly attacks on mosques in the New Zealand city of Christchurch a year ago has pleaded guilty to 51 charges of murder.<\/p>\n
Brenton Tarrant, 29, also admitted the attempted murder of another 40 people, and one terrorism charge.<\/p>\n
He had previously denied the charges and was due to go on trial in June.<\/p>\n
The gun attacks at two mosques sent shockwaves around the world. In the wake of the killings, New Zealand brought in stricter gun laws.<\/p>\n
New Zealand is in a state of lockdown due to the coronavirus outbreak and the plea was made at a scaled-down court hearing in Christchurch High Court on Thursday.<\/p>\n
No members of the public were allowed in to the hearing and Tarrant, from New South Wales, Australia, and his lawyers appeared via video link.<\/p>\n
A representative of the two mosques that were attacked was allowed to attend the hearing to represent the victims and their families.<\/p>\n
Judge Justice Mander said: “It is regrettable that the Covid-19 restrictions that presently apply do not permit victims and their families to travel to be present in the courtroom when the defendant entered his pleas of guilty.”<\/p>\n
Sentencing on the 92 charges will take place at a date yet to be set. Tarrant was remanded in custody until 1 May.<\/p>\n
Farid Ahmed, who lost his wife Husna in the attack on Al Noor Mosque (Masjid An-Nur), told TVNZ that many would be relieved they did not have to go through the trial, but others would feel very sad, still thinking about their loved ones.<\/p>\n
Speaking of the gunman, he said: “I have been praying for him and he has taken the right direction. I am pleased he is feeling guilty, it is a good start.”<\/p>\n
The shootings on 15 March 2019 began when the gunman drove to the Al Noor mosque in Christchurch, entered the building and began shooting.<\/p>\n
Less than 30 seconds later, he returned to his car, picked up another weapon, then re-entered the mosque and resumed his attack.<\/p>\n
Footage from a headcam he was wearing showed him pass from room to room, killing as he went. The shootings were broadcast on Facebook Live.<\/p>\n
He then drove to the Linwood mosque where he shot two people outside and then shot at the windows.<\/p>\n
A man from inside the mosque came outside, picked up one of the attacker’s shotguns, and chased him away.<\/p>\n
Two police officers then chased and arrested the suspect.<\/p>\n
Speaking on the first anniversary of the massacre, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said New Zealand had “fundamentally changed” because of the attacks.<\/p>\n
She acknowledged that “much more” needed to be done to stop radicalisation in the country.<\/p>\n
“The challenge for us will be ensuring in our everyday actions, and every opportunity where we see bullying, harassment, racism, discrimination, calling it out as a nation,” she said.<\/p>\n
“That is when we’ll show we each individually have a role to play in making sure that New Zealand has changed fundamentally for the better.”<\/p>\n
Immediately after the attacks, Ms Ardern said the government would bring in laws to make it harder for New Zealanders to access firearms.<\/p>\n
In April, less than a month after the shootings, parliament voted by 119 to 1 to change the gun laws.<\/p>\n
Military-style semi-automatic weapons were banned, as were parts that could be used to build prohibited firearms.<\/p>\n
In June, a buy-back scheme began, where the government would compensate owners of newly-illegal weapons.<\/p>\n
Source: bbc.co.uk<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"