Trump Avoids Talk Of Gun Curbs After Florida School Shooting

President Donald Trump vowed Thursday to make mental health a priority after a "disturbed" teenager with a firearms obsession sowed carnage at a Florida high school, while avoiding any mention of gun curbs to stem America's scourge of mass shootings

Parkland, United States, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 16th Feb, 2018 ) :President Donald Trump vowed Thursday to make mental health a priority after a "disturbed" teenager with a firearms obsession sowed carnage at a Florida high school, while avoiding any mention of gun curbs to stem America's scourge of mass shootings.

Former student named Nikolas Cruz, 19, was to appear before a magistrate later Thursday charged with the premeditated murder of 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland. Announcing plans to travel to Florida to meet members of the shocked community, Trump delivered a somber televised address in response to the 18th school shooting to hit the country this year -- a terrifying pattern that US authorities have appeared powerless to stop.

"My fellow Americans, today I speak to a nation in grief," said Trump, calling on his fellow citizens to "come together as one nation" and "answer hate with love, answer cruelty with kindness." But the president avoided all mention of the politically fraught issue of gun control, vowing instead to "tackle the difficult issue of mental health." Trump had weighed in on the tragedy earlier Thursday by pointing to "so many signs" the shooter was "mentally disturbed.

" "Neighbors and classmates knew he was a big problem.

Must always report such instances to authorities, again and again!" he tweeted. But US authorities were themselves under scrutiny as the FBI confirmed reports it was alerted last year to a message posted on YouTube by a user with Cruz's name, in which he vowed: "I'm going to be a professional school shooter." In a statement, the FBI said it had investigated, but was unable to confirm the identity of the poster.

Wednesday's harrowing shooting spree saw terrified students hiding in closets and under desks as they texted for help, while the gunman stalked the school with a semi-automatic AR-15 rifle. Fifteen people were killed at the school itself, and two later died in hospital.

One of those killed was Aaron Feis, a well-loved football coach in Parkland, a city of about 30,000 people located north of Miami. Of the people wounded in the attack, two remained hospitalized in critical but stable condition, while six others were on the way to a full recovery, officials told a news conference.