There’s no evidence so far that the Orlando massacre at the hands of gunman Omar Mateen was orchestrated by an overseas terrorist organization, says CIA Director John Brennan.
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“We have not been able to uncover any direct link between that individual, Mateen, and a foreign terrorist organization,” Brennan told a U.S. Senate intelligence committee Thursday.
Forty-nine people were killed Sunday morning at a gay club in Orlando after an attack by Mateen, 29. He also died Sunday.
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Brennan says while links have not been established, it’s possible Mateen could have been influenced by propaganda from terrorists groups, or tried to emulate other attacks.
“That inspiration can lead someone to embark on this path of destruction and start to acquire the capability, the expertise, maybe do the surveillance, and carry out an attack without triggering any of those traditional signatures that we might see as a foreign terrorist organization tries to deploy operative here.”
Brennan said when an individual is acting alone or with few cohorts as opposed to a network of others, it can be much harder for officials to identify threats.
“It really presents a serious challenge.”
He said the agency is working with the FBI, homeland security and others to share relevant intelligence to help identify individuals who pose a risk.
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