San Diego(US), May 19: Two teenage shooters opened fire at a San Diego mosque on Monday and killed three men before killing themselves a few blocks away, police said.

The attack at the Islamic Centre of San Diego is being investigated as a hate crime, San Diego Police Chief Scott Wahl said at a news conference at a neighbourhood park across from the mosque.

He said the “circumstances that led up to this” would come out in the days ahead.

Wahl said later that officers had been talking to one of the teenagers’ mothers earlier in the day after she had contacted police around 9:40 am to say her son was missing along with multiple weapons and her vehicle.

“She was beginning to develop a bigger picture as to what she was dealing with and was conveying that to our folks, and we were trying to put that together and get out in front of this as quickly as we could,” Wahl said.

The mother also found a note, Wahl said. He did not disclose its contents but said of the case, “There was definitely hate rhetoric that was involved,” though there was no specific threat against the Islamic Center of San Diego, Wahl said.

Wahl said the teenager whose mom contacted police was a student at Madison High School, about a mile away from the Islamic Centre. Police have not released the names of the teenagers.

Among those killed was a mosque security guard, who police believe “played a pivotal role” in keeping the attack from being “much worse,” Wahl said.

Later he said authorities continued to review the security guard’s response, but “it’s fair to say his actions were heroic.”

“Undoubtedly he saved lives today,” Wahl said.

The center is the largest mosque in San Diego County and includes the Al Rashid School that offers courses in Arabic language, Islamic studies and the Quran for students ages 5 and up, according to its website.

“All of the kids are safe,” Wahl said, appearing emotional. “Our hearts go out to the families that are in this moment being notified of what has happened to their loved ones.”

Police responded within four minutes of being called, Wahl said. As they arrived, gunshots rang out a few blocks away where a landscaper was shot at but uninjured. The shooters were found dead in a vehicle stopped in the middle of a road nearby, he said.

Aerial TV footage showed more than a dozen children holding hands and being walked out of the parking lot of the center as it was surrounded by scores of police vehicles. The white mosque is in a neighbourhood of homes, apartments and strip malls with Middle Eastern restaurants and markets.

Parents were directed to a nearby area to retrieve their children.

The mosque’s director, Imam Taha Hassane called it “extremely outrageous to target a place of worship.”

“All the places of worship in our beautiful city should always be protected,” he said.

He added that the centre focused on interfaith relations and community building, and that a group of non-Muslims had been touring the mosque earlier Monday to learn about Islam.

The Islamic Center’s website says its mission is to not only serve the Muslim population but also “work with the larger community to serve the less fortunate, to educate, and to better our nation.” Five daily prayers are held there, and the mosque works with other organisations and people of all faiths on social causes.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations, one of the largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy groups in the U.S., condemned the shooting.

“No one should ever fear for their safety while attending prayers or studying at an elementary school,” said CAIR-San Diego Executive Director Tazheen Nizam in a statement. “We are working to learn more about this incident and we encourage everyone to keep this community in your prayers.”

Gov Gavin Newsom’s office said he was being briefed.

“We are grateful to the first responders on the scene working to protect the community and urge everyone to follow guidance from local authorities,” his office posted on the social platform X.

Washington, May 19: US President Donald Trump has said he halted fresh strikes on Iran at the request of Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, asserting that serious discussions were underway with Tehran that could lead to an acceptable deal.

Trump made the announcement on Truth Social on Monday late afternoon, without any reference to Pakistan, the mediator in the US-Iran war.

“I have been asked by the Emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, and the President of the United Arab Emirates, Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, to hold off on our planned Military attack of the Islamic Republic of Iran, which was scheduled for tomorrow (Tuesday),” Trump said.

“We were getting ready to do a very major attack tomorrow. I’ve put it off for a little while, hopefully, maybe forever, but possibly for a little while, because we’ve had very big discussions with Iran and we’ll see what they amount to,” Trump told reporters at the White House.

Trump said he was asked by Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE and some others if the US could put it off for 2 or 3 days, a short period of time, because they think that they are getting very close to making a deal. 

“And if we can do that where there’s no nuclear weapon going into the hands of Iran, I think, and if they’re satisfied, we will be probably satisfied,” he said.

The US President said that serious negotiations are now taking place, and that, in their opinion, as Great Leaders and Allies, a Deal will be made, which will be very acceptable to the United States of America, as well as all countries in West Asia and beyond. 

Trump asserted that the deal will include ” no nuclear weapons for Iran”.

“I have instructed Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, The Chairman of The Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Daniel Caine, and The United States Military, that we will NOT be doing the scheduled attack of Iran tomorrow, but have further instructed them to be prepared to go forward with a full, large scale assault of Iran, on a moment’s notice, in the event that an acceptable Deal is not reached,”  he said.

Trump was expected to convene his top national security team in the Situation Room on Tuesday to discuss military options, two US officials told Axios.

Before his announcement, Trump spoke on the phone with the leaders of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE, two sources with knowledge said, according to Axios. 

Trump has been threatening for weeks that the ceasefire reached in mid-April could end if Iran did not make a deal, with shifting parameters for striking such an agreement. 

“For Iran, the Clock is Ticking, and they better get moving, FAST, or there won’t be anything left of them,” the US President said over the weekend.

Trump said the current pause for negotiations was a “very positive development,” while acknowledging there were times in the past when a deal seemed close but nothing came of it. “But this is a little bit different,” he said.

  The US and Israel launched the war with Iran on February 28, with Trump claiming that it would end in four to six weeks. The US and Iran agreed to a ceasefire on April 8 and have been negotiating a peace deal since then.