At least three people have been shot near a Ramadan event in West Philadelphia, prompting a significant police response, according to local media reports.
The incident occurred at around 2:30 p.m. ET to mark the end of Ramadan near Wyalusing Ave., officials told local news outlets.
Police said three people were shot. One of the wounded was shot by a police officer. It is unclear how many shooters there were.
Officials told CNN that authorities believe two groups fired at each other. A police officer also fired shots at a 15-year-old shooter, according to Philadelphia Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel, Fox29 reported.
The officer shot the teen in his left arm and leg when he did not drop the gun, according to police. The officer then put the teen into her patrol vehicle and rushed him to an area hospital where he was stabilized.
Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) responded to the shooting in a Twitter post: “My office has been in touch with local officials on the shooting at a Eid al-Fitr event in Philadelphia. As we gather more details, I urge everyone to stay safe and listen to law enforcement.”
Tanya Little, a spokeswoman for the Philadelphia Police Department, wrote on X that a zone has been set up in the area for “parents seeking to reunite with their children.”
Witnesses told a local Fox affiliate that he heard multiple gunshots being fired, with one saying that 10 to 30 children came into his store seeking shelter.
“Everybody was running,” Abdallah Legh, the manager of Girard Meat Market, told Fox. “I heard a lot of people running, right, left, with their kids. They came inside, and we had to lock the door, they were scared,” he added.
A witness, Najah Bey, told WPVI-TV that “we were just running and running and one of my family members got shot in the stomach,” adding that “hundreds” of people were at the event.
“We don’t know who was shooting, where the shots came from, but people started shooting and everyone just started running. You have babies, elderly people, everybody was just there to enjoy themselves, and now we end up at the emergency room,” the woman added. “You can’t even have a celebration without having to worry about somebody getting shot,” she said.
Helicopter video footage that was taken from Clara Muhammad Square Park shows a significant amount of police officers and a large crime seen near what reporters say is the Philadelphia Masjid mosque. Police have set up yellow tape near a playground and a park located nearby.
The injured were being treated at hospitals, but further details on their injuries were not immediately disclosed. Dozens of police officers responded to the shooting in the city’s Parkside section.
Authorities told a local news outlet that four people have been arrested.
Other reports said that a person who was running away from the shooting was struck by a vehicle.
The Philadelphia Police Department has not released a statement about the incident. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) told CNN they are responding to the shooting and agents are on the scene, while the FBI told local media that it is responding.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
From The Epoch Times
