Europe 1 with AFP 09:39, October 24, 2023

A new investigation into the deadly shooting in Christchurch, New Zealand, was launched on Tuesday, with the aim of finding out if lives could have been saved at the time of the shooting. The 2019 attack on mosques killed 51 people, all Muslims. The perpetrator, an Australian named Brenton Tarrant, was later sentenced to life imprisonment.

Public prosecutors on Tuesday opened an investigation into the shooting at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, that left 51 people dead in 2019, to find out if lives could have been saved. On March 15, 2019, Australian white supremacist Brenton Tarrant, who was sentenced to life in prison in 2020 without the possibility of release, used an arsenal of semi-automatic weapons to shoot worshippers attending Friday prayers in cold blood at two mosques in Christchurch (southern New Zealand), broadcasting images of his attack live on social media. His 51 victims were all Muslims, including children, women and the elderly.

Prosecutor Brigitte Windley, deputy chief prosecutor of Christchurch's public prosecutor's office, said on Tuesday that the inquiry would look at "what can be learned from this atrocity with the aim of protecting lives" on behalf of those who lost their loved ones in the attack. Maha Galal, a spokesman for relatives of the victims, insisted on the "urgent need for answers". "Our primary concern is to know the truth," she said in a statement before the investigation was launched. The families of the victims "are united in their quest for clarity as to whether their loved ones could have survived," Galal added. "The search for truth is crucial for healing and grieving."

>> ALSO READ – Christchurch attack: Gunman had brief stay in Israel in 2016

'No immediate action'

The inquest will examine all events from the beginning of the shooting to the police questioning of Tarrant, including the times of arrival at the scene by police and emergency services. "One of the main questions is why our loved ones were left in the mosque without any immediate action for some time and the police did not allow us or anyone else to take them out," Galal said. "We trust the prosecutor's procedure and our legal representation to answer these pressing questions and provide the necessary clarifications," she said.

Other questions arise: Did anyone help Tarrant? Could a different medical intervention have saved lives? Was an emergency exit from one of the mosques closed at the time of the shooting? "We believe that there is much to learn from what happened on March 15, 2019, so that we can all prepare as a community if such a tragedy were to happen again," Galal said. After the shooting, then-Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern immediately tightened the gun law and pressured social media to spread extremist messages online.