Grief and terror on the streets ofVegas

THE slaughter in Las Vegas has brought grief, terror and loss to families in the latest shooting atrocity.

The United States has faced natural disasters in recent weeks but at least 58 people have just been killed by an individual in possession of lethal weaponry.

In the days and months ahead we will learn more about Stephen Paddock, the 64-year-old who unleashed his hail of bullets on the crowd of 22,000.

The so-called Islamic State (IS) was quick to claim responsibility but the FBI said it had found “no connection to an international terrorist organisation”.

Regardless of the killer’s motivation, this was an act of terror. Yet again, a city famed for people celebrating life has become a scene of sorrow and pain.

Questions must be asked as to how an individual was able to build such an arsenal. Ten guns were found in his 32nd-floor hotel room.

The failure of the United States to introduce effective gun control is damaging the reputation of a great country.

The gun lobby exercises legendary influence in the democratic process at the state and federal level. But how many more mass shootings must take place before access to deadly firearms is properly regulated?

How many more times will a US President have to step before the cameras and try to articulate expressions of anger at mass murder and messages of comfort for the bereaved?

If political leaders want to address fear in society they should give people reason to hope that terrorists and lunatics will find it harder to gain access to militarygrade weapons. They will need courage to stand up to gun industry lobbyists but they are doing citizens a disservice if they refuse to build a safer America.

It is true that gun laws will not stop every determined killers from committing acts of violence, as has been brutally demonstrated in European cities. Individuals that blaze with hate and anger have brought horror to the streets of London, Manchester and Barcelona.

The more than 500 people who were injured in the Las Vegas attack will wonder why a stranger would want to hurt them. They are innocent victims of a profound injustice.

These men and women deserve sympathy and solidarity. The healing process will involve not just recovering from injury but overcoming the hideous trauma.

Attempts to explain what compels an individual to commit an act of such horror is unlikely to bring comfort. It is clear that people can be gripped with an evil that blinds them to the humanity of those they hurt.

But it is also evident that compassion and bravery can also inspire people to rush to help people in danger and in pain, often with heroic disregard for their own safety. The love of friends and family who will comfort those who are suffering in the years ahead is a powerful and precious force which burns brighter than any hate. The Western Mail newspaper is published by Media Wales a subsidiary company of Trinity Mirror PLC, which is a member of IPSO, the Independent Press Standards Organisation. The entire contents of The Western Mail are the copyright of Media Wales Ltd. It is an offence to copy any of its contents in any way without the company’s permission. If you require a licence to copy parts of it in any way or form, write to the Head of Finance at Six Park Street. The recycled paper content of UK newspapers in 2016 was 62.8%