Editor's Note: This is a breaking news story. We will update and add audio as soon as it is available. A gunman has killed at least 50 people at a nightclub in Orlando, Florida. It was the worst mass shooting in U.S. history. The gunman used an assault rifle and a handgun. He shot inside the crowded nightclub before dying in a gunfight with police. More than 50 people are being treated for wounds at local hospitals. Police have identified the shooter as Omar Siddiqui Mateen. They say he is a U.S. citizen of Afghan descent. The nightclub, Pulse, is an LGBT club. Police are investigating the attack as an act of terrorism. The month of June is also gay pride month in the U.S. The suspect exchanged gunfire with an officer working at the club around 2 o’clock in the morning. About 300 people were inside. The gunman then went inside and took hostages, Orlando police chief John Mina said. About three hours later, officials sent in a special police team to rescue the hostages. It's appears he was organized and well prepared," the chief said. He also said the shooter had an assault-type weapon, a handgun and "some type of (other) device on him." Officials are looking into whether the attack was an act of domestic or international terror, and if the shooter acted alone, according to Danny Banks, an agent with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. Mina Justice was outside the dance club early Sunday trying to contact her 30-year-old son, Eddie. He texted her when the shooting happened and asked her to call police. He told her he ran into a bathroom with other club visitor to hide. He then texted her: "He's coming." "The next text said: 'He has us, and he's in here with us,'" Justice said. "That was the last conversation." President Barack Obama was briefed on the attack and has asked for regular updates on the investigation, the White House said. Caty Weaver wrote this story based on VOA News and the Associated Press news report. Hai Do was the editor.
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