A Marine general on Wednesday praised the bravery of the service members who died in last week’s shooting at a Navy support facility in Chattanooga, Tennessee, saying some “willingly ran back into the fight” after getting fellow troops to safety.
U.S. Marine Maj. Gen. Paul W. Brier also praised the bravery of Chattanooga police, who authorities say fatally shot assailant Mohammad Abdulazeez.
“Their immediate actions that day saved lives,” Brier told reporters in Chattanooga, referring to the police officers.
Abdulazeez first shot up a military recruiting center at a Chattanooga strip mall, then drove to a local Navy operations support center and launched another attack, killing four Marines and a sailor. Abdulazeez died in a gunfight with law enforcement.
FBI special agent in charge Ed Reinhold on Wednesday said the shooter killed one service member inside the Navy support center, went through the building and exited into a gated motor pool area, where he killed four others.
Reinhold said investigators do not believe friendly fire killed anyone. All indications are that “all victims were killed with the same weapon,” he said.
