6 dead, 8 wounded in Quebec mosque shooting, police say

Quebec City police say six people are dead and eight are injured after gunmen opened fire Sunday night at a mosque during evening prayers.

Dozens of people were believed to be at the mosque at the time of the shooting, The Associated Press reported, citing the moque's president, Mohamed Yangui.

Two men were arrested after the shooting, the AP reported, citing police. 

Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard termed the act “barbaric violence.”

The gunmen opened fire in the men's section of the mosque, Yangui said. At the time, he told reporters five people were dead and he worried some were children.

"Why is this happening here? This is barbaric,” said the mosque's president, Mohamed Yangui, according to Reuters.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called the shooting a "terrorist attack on Muslims."

“While authorities are still investigating and details continue to be confirmed, it is heart-wrenching to see such senseless violence," Trudeau said in a statement. "Diversity is our strength, and religious tolerance is a value that we, as Canadians, hold dear."

“Muslim-Canadians are an important part of our national fabric, and these senseless acts have no place in our communities, cities and country," he added. "Canadian law enforcement agencies will protect the rights of all Canadians, and will make every effort to apprehend the perpetrators of this act and all acts of intolerance."

Other Canadian officials echoed those sentiments.

Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale tweeted that his office was closely monitoring the situation, but he did not immediately confirm a motive for the shooting.

The New York Police Department said in a statement it assigned members of the Critical Response Command, its counterterrorism squad, to certain mosques in light of the Quebec City shooting.

The mosque last June was the site of an anti-Islamic hate crime during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. In that incident, a worshipper found a pig's head left at the mosque's doorstep around 2:30 a.m. It was accompanied by a note that read, "Bon appétit," the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation reported. Eating pork is prohibited in the Islamic faith.

Follow Greg Toppo on Twitter: @gtoppo

Contributing: Steph Solis.