Hillary Clinton has criticised the National Rifle Association while offering her condolences to the victims of a mass shooting in Las Vegas this weekend that left at least 58 people dead and more than 500 people injured.
"Our grief isn't enough," the former Democratic Party presidential candidate tweeted on Monday.
"We can and must put politics aside, stand up to the NRA (National Rifle Association), and work together to try to stop this from happening again."
As with previous US mass shootings, the incident sparked anger among advocates for gun control. The Second Amendment of the US Constitution protects the right to bear arms, and gun-rights advocates staunchly defend that provision.
Clinton's statement was one of the most politically charged among prominent politicians who weighed in on social media in the hours after the attack.
She writes in her book What Happened about how the US needs to change its gun laws to prevent mass shootings.
"It's time for Congress to get off its ass and do something," said US Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut, where 26 young children and educators were killed in an attack on a school in 2012.
Former presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton also tweeted their support for the victims.
"Michelle & I are praying for the victims in Las Vegas," Obama tweeted. "Our thoughts are with their families & everyone enduring another senseless tragedy."
"Thinking of the victims and responders in Las Vegas," Bill Clinton tweeted. "This should be unimaginable in America."
According to police, 64-year-old Stephen Paddock opened fire on attendees of the Route 91 Harvest Music Festival near the Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas on Sunday evening.
The victims were apparently shot with a high-powered assault rifle from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Hotel, with police confirming shortly after midnight that Paddock had been found dead.
President Donald Trump offered his sympathy to the victims of the attack, the worst in US history.
"My warmest condolences and sympathies to the victims and families of the terrible Las Vegas shooting," Trump wrote on Twitter. "God bless you!"
Reuters
