-Investigation ignores threats from right-wing, emerges as more Islamophobic
-Ardern apologizes for the govt’s shortcomings
Foreign Desk Report
CHRISTCHURCH: New Zealand has released an almost 800-page report into the March 2019 killing of 51 Muslim worshippers at two mosques in the city of Christchurch.
The Royal Commission of Inquiry report concluded that, while intelligence services had directed their efforts away from investigating right-wing threats and instead focused heavily on the “threat of Islamist extremist” activity, they could not have been alerted of an imminent attack.
The report, released Tuesday, took issue with Christchurch authorities for deploying “an inappropriate concentration of resources” on “other terrorism threats” in the country, distracting them from threats such as that posed by white supremacists.
However, the report said, “No single aspect of it [information available to authorities] could have alerted public sector agencies to an impending terrorist attack.”
In hindsight, while there were circumstances that could be linked to the Australian attacker’s plan, the signs were too “fragmentary” and it was difficult to put together to establish evidence that merit immediate action, it said.
The inquiry was formed to look into the authorities’ response and to determine whether the attack could have been prevented.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern apologised for the government’s shortcomings, saying: “While the commission made no findings that these issues would have stopped the attack, these were failings nonetheless and, for that, on behalf of the government I apologise.
“Ultimately, this roughly 800-page report can be distilled into one simple premise: Muslim New Zealanders should be safe. “Muslim New Zealanders should be safe. Anyone who calls New Zealand home, regardless of race, religion, sex or sexual orientation should be safe,” Ardern said following the release of the report.
Brenton Tarrant, who had expressed white supremacist and anti-Muslim views before the killings, carried out the attack in 2019 and live-streamed it on social media.
He was sentenced to life imprisonment without parole earlier this year.
