Nihad Awad, the leader of the U.S. Muslim group CAIR, strongly condemned the Orlando massacre, saying the killer does not represent the Islamic faith."This is a hate crime, plain and simple, we condemn it in the strongest possible terms," Awad said. "We will not give into hate. We will not give into fear."Some 53 people were killed and 53 were injured at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, after a Daesh terrorists seized hostages yesterday, prompting a police SWAT team to storm the venue, officials said.

Daesh's Amaq news agency said on Sunday that the terrorist group was responsible for the shooting at the nightclub.

"The armed attack that targeted a gay night club in the city of Orlando in the American state of Florida which left over 100 people dead or injured was carried out by a [Daesh] fighter," Amaq said.