Home ›› 17 Mar 2021 ›› World Biz
Eight people, many of them women of Asian descent, have been killed in shootings at spas in the US state of Georgia.
Police said the shootings took place at a massage parlour in Acworth, a suburb north of Atlanta, and two spas in the city itself.
South Korea later confirmed that four of the victims were of Korean descent.
Officials said a 21-year-old man had been arrested and was believed to be the suspect in all of the attacks.
No motive has yet been established, but there were fears that the crimes may have deliberately targeted people of Asian descent.
Hate crimes against Asian-Americans have spiked in recent months, fuelled by rhetoric that blames them for the spread of Covid-19.
In an address last week, President Joe Biden condemned "vicious hate crimes against Asian-Americans who have been attacked, harassed, blamed and scapegoated."
Sheriff's office spokesman Capt Jay Baker said two people died at the scene and three were taken to hospital, where two more died. He later confirmed that the victims were two Asian women, a white woman and a white man, and that a Hispanic man had been wounded.
Less than an hour later, police were called to a "robbery in progress" at Gold Spa in north-east Atlanta.
