Three Muslims killed in shooting near US college campus

  Three young Muslim people were fatally shot in an apartment complex near the campus of the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, authorities said Wednesday.

The victims were identified as Deah Barakat, 23, his wife, Yusor Mohammad Abu Salha, 21 and her sister, Razan Mohammad Abu Salha, 19, who shared an apartment.

The shooter, 46-year-old Craig Stephen Hicks, surrendered to authorities "without incident", authorities said.

Barakat was a second year student at UNC's dentistry school and his wife planned to enroll there in the fall, the university said.

Both Barakat and his wife were graduates of North Carolina State University where Razan was a sophomore studying design.

North Carolina capital Raleigh's WRAL.com said Chapel Hill police were looking into the possibility that Tuesday evening's shooting resulted from a long running dispute over parking at the apartment complex.

Pending definitive information on the motive, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) urged authorities to consider whether anti-Muslim sentiment may have played a role.

"Based on the brutal nature of this crime, the past anti-religion statements of the alleged perpetrator, the religious attire of two of the victims, and the rising anti-Muslim rhetoric in American society, we urge state and federal law enforcement authorities to quickly address speculation of a possible bias motive in this case," Nihad Awad, CAIR's national executive director, said in a statement.

Hicks' Facebook page includes the banner "Atheists for Equality" and statements critical of religion, while a recent photo of the three victims shows the two women wearing headscarves.
see also:

Atheist Kills Muslims In North Carolina
February 11, 2015

Bill Donohue of Catholic League comments on the killing of three Muslims in Chapel Hill, North Carolina:
 
Craig Stephen Hicks turned himself in after shooting three young Muslims near the campus of the University of North Carolina. Hicks is a rabid atheist who is known for his hatred of Christianity and Islam. Indeed, he saw the two religions as similar. He recently asked on his Facebook page "why radical Christians and radical Muslims are so opposed to each others' influence when they agree about so many ideological issues."
 
Hicks is a big fan of British atheist Richard Dawkins. Dawkins condemned the killings but he said nothing about Hicks' atheism or his influence on him. Dawkins needs to open up about this issue. Hicks supports Atheists for Equality and other gay activist associations. Similarly, we need to know more about this linkage.
 
Facebook Likes listed by Hicks include the Southern Poverty Law Center and Freedom from Religion Foundation.
 
The Southern Poverty Law Center specializes in naming individuals and groups that allegedly promote hate speech. It lists Dr. Ben Carson, a respectable conservative activist, and the Family Research Council, a respectable conservative organization, as haters. It would be instructive to know why it thinks that Hicks, a true hater, was drawn to its work.
 
Freedom from Religion Foundation has a moral obligation to speak up. After all, it spends most of its time demonizing religion. What might Hicks have learned from them?
 
We also need to know why the Associated Press and the New York Times, unlike all other media outlets, refuse to mention the killer's atheism. Had Hicks been a Catholic activist, they would be highlighting the connection.