On Saturday Oct. 3rd 2020, a gunman opened fire at The East Market & Restaurant- Sharq, an Afghan grocery store for halal food on El Camino Avenue, a market where many muslims (the majority of whom are Afghan) purchase their food. The gunman shot three young men before taking his own life. Two of the men were killed, while one survived.
The attack claimed 2 victims, including one Mira Loma alumni. Abdul Mobeen, a 19 year old former Mira Loma student in the class of 2019, passed away a few days after the shooting on Oct. 7, 2020 in the hospital. Mobeen came to the United States from Afghanistan in 2014, for a better life and education with his family. The second victim was Shujauddin Omarkheil, a 27 year old father of two. Omarkheli moved to the US in 2018 through a special immigrant visa. He left behind a 4 year old daughter, a 6 month old son, and a wife.
One man nearly escaped: Asmatullah Amiri, a 30 year old man, was the only survivor of the incident. Amiri moved to the U.S on a special immigrant visa in 2016.
The wounded victims had originally gone missing; families were searching hospitals in-order to find them. Shujauddin Omarkhali, was the first confirmed victim and his funeral was held on the Wednesday of Oct. 7. The same day Abdul Mobeen passed away and his funeral was held on the Friday of Oct, 9. Many of the Afghan population living in the Sacramento area attended their funerals and gathered to pray.
The incident devastated the Afghan community. Many of the people affected by it are new refugees or immigrants who left their country for a better life. The shooting left a mother alone with her two very young children, forcing her to provide and care for them all on her own. That too, in a country she barely knows and a language she’s still unfamiliar with, and with no other close family to rely upon for much emotional and financial support. The only potential support she can find is from the Afghan community itself. Additionally, it reminded people of their previous situations, creating a feeling of misfortune and insecurity among its members. Many Afghani people had left their war-torn country to come to the US specifically to walk around the streets safely, not worrying if they’ll make it back home that day, but the violence had introduced new dangers to them. It had turned an opportunity for a better life into an even worse situation than they had before, as they were now left to fend for their own with structrual barriers that wouldn’t exist back home.
Later, people started talking over social media and expressed their grief through prayers and positive messages for the victims and the families. They organized two fundraisers for the victims that were killed in order to pay their hospital and funeral expenses. Families started visiting the victims and offered their help as a community. The shooting had brought the entire Afghan community together in a show of support (both emotionally and financially), but the solidarity they displayed did little to mask the fear and immense sorrow among them.
The community still requires help, and is accepting donations to the fundraisers that are paying Mobeen’s and Omarkheil’s families to pay their hospital and funeral expenses. It is important for all citizens to get educated on the incident and acknowledge their Afghan or muslim friends that may still be tramatized, since many of them were friends with the victims.
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