2 suspects in San Bernardino shooting dead after gun battle with police

LATEST UPDATES:

• The deceased suspects have been identified by police as Syed Farook 28, and Tashfeen Malik, 27. Police say they were in a relationship, but were uncertain of its nature.
• Police say there are 14 people dead and 17 injured in San Bernardino shooting
• Police say the motive is not confirmed yet, and that it was not a “spur of the moment” attack
• Obama again calls for more gun control in the wake of the mass shooting

Police say at least 14 people were killed and another 17 people were injured when at two people opened fire on a banquet at a social services agency in San Bernardino, Calif. Wednesday.

Shortly thereafter, police surrounded an SUV in the nearby community of Redlands. After a shootout, the occupants of the vehicle were killed.

There were “two suspects dead at the scene,” San Bernadino Police Chief Jarrod Burguan, adding that one was a man, and one was a women. “They were dressed in assault-style clothing. They (were) both armed with assault rifles. They (were) both armed with handguns.”

Burguan later identified the suspects as Syed Farook 28, and Tashfeen Malik, 27. Farook was born in the United States, but Malik’s country of birth was not immediately known.

The two were in a relationship, said Burguan, and their status was not immediately known.

“We’ve seen this happen time and time again. There’s a lot of information that comes out in the first day, in the first couple of days, and that information changes significantly int he days that follows. So until we know the motive, or have something clear, [evidence]-based on that motive, I just don’t want to weigh in on that,” he said.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "We've seen this happen time and time again. There's a lot of information that comes out in the first day, in the first couple of days, and that information changes significantly int he days that follows. So until we know the motive, or have something clear, [evidence]-based on that motive, I just don't want to weigh in on that," he said.

Hussam Ayloush, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said after talking with family that the couple had a 6-month old daughter who was dropped off with relatives Wednesday morning.

WATCH: Brother-in-law of San Bernardino shooting suspect left in shock

Burguan said that Farook, who worked as an Environmental Specialist for San Bernardino County’s Public Health Department, was at a Christmas party that was taking place at the Inland Regional Center shortly before the attack.

“He was at the party, he did leave the party early, over some circumstances that were described as angry,” said Burguan.

“Based upon what we have seen…there had to have been some degree of planning that went into this. I don’t think they just ran home, put on these types of tactical clothes, grabbed guns and came back on a spur of the moment thing.”

The brother-in-law of one of the suspects says he was stunned to hear of his relative’s involvement in Wednesday’s shooting.

Farhan Khan, who is married to the sister of Syed Farook, spoke to reporters at the Anaheim office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

Khan says he last spoke to Farook about a week ago. He added that he had “absolutely no idea why he would do this. I am shocked myself.”

Burguan also said that a third person was in custody who was seen leaving the area, although he wasn’t convinced the suspect was involved.

WATCH: Holiday party fun inside Inland Regional Center one day before mass shooting

“We do not know the extent of his involvement, if any,” Burguan explained.

An officer was also injured in the gun battle with non-life threatening injuries.

Burgon said authorities continue to investigate the scene of the mass shooting for as they have found at three objects believed to be explosive devices.

It was the nation’s deadliest mass shooting since the attack at a school in Newtown, Connecticut, three years ago that left 26 children and adults dead.

Police shed no light on the motive for the massacre, but David Bowdich, assistant director of the FBI’s Los Angeles office, said the bureau is looking at several possibilities, including workplace violence and terrorism. He did not elaborate.

After news broke of the mass shooting in San Bernardino, U.S. President Barack Obama reiterated his call for more gun control reforms.

“We don’t yet know what the motives of the shooters are but what we do know is that there are steps we can take to make Americans safer,” Obama said in an interview with CBS. “We should never think that this is something that just happens in the ordinary course of events because it doesn’t happen with the same frequency in other countries.”

WATCH: Obama reacts to the mass shooting in San Bernardino, California on Wednesday

The attackers invaded the Inland Regional Center and began shooting around 11 a.m. Wednesday. They opened fire in a conference area that the San Bernardino County Department of Public Health had rented out for an employee banquet, said Marybeth Feild, president and CEO of the non-profitcentre.

WATCH: Victims rushed to hospital following active shooter situation in California

The incident occurred near the Inland Regional Center, a facility with roughly 670 staff members according to its Facebook page. The centre provides services to more than 30,200 people with developmental disabilities and their families in San Bernardino and Riverside counties.

In California, services for people with developmental disabilities are provided through 21 non-profit regional centres, in addition to state-operated centres.

The San Bernardino shooting comes just days after a gunman opened fire on a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado Springs, killing three people, including a police officer.

San Bernardino is about 100 km east of Los Angeles.

With files from the Associated Press