Orlando mass shooter Omar Mateen. (MySpace via AP) (MySpace via AP)
Omar Mateen

The Islamic State (ISIS) terror organization has called the Orlando terrorist who murdered 49 club-goers in cold blood “one of the soldiers of the caliphate in America.”

Al-Bayan Radio, a media outlet for the Islamic terror group, on Monday hailed the attack that left 49 people dead, saying it targeted a gathering of Christians and gays and that it’s the worst attack on US soil since the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Authorities say Omar Mateen opened fire with an AR-15 rifle at a gay nightclub early Sunday before being killed in a shootout with police. Another 53 people were wounded in the shooting.

Earlier on, a news agency affiliated with ISIS announced that ISIS has claimed responsibility for the attack.

The al-Amaq agency stated that “the attack that targeted a nightclub for homosexuals in Orlando, Florida and that left more than 100 dead and wounded was carried out by an Islamic State fighter.”

ISIS has recently called on its followers to carry out terrorist attacks throughout the Western world in “honor” of the Muslim month Ramadan, which began last week.

According to police sources, Mateen called 911 minutes before committing the massacre and told the operator he has pledged allegiance to ISIS.

An FBI spokesman later confirmed that a call to police in which a “general allegiance to the Islamic State” had been made.

By: AP and United with Israel Staff

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