"As a country, we must do more."
The US Ambassador to Ireland has called for stricter gun laws in the wake of the school shooting in Robb Elementary on Tuesday (25 May).
Claire Cronin reacted to the tragedy in a statement on Wednesday afternoon.
"My thoughts and prayers go out today to the families of the victims of the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas," Cronin said.
"The majority of the victims were children. These senseless mass shootings do not have to happen.
"I am proud that in my home state of Massachusetts, we have some of the strictest gun laws in the United States.
"States with strict gun laws have lower gun ownership rates and significantly lower gun death rates.
"As a country, we must do more. Action must be taken now to prevent this from happening again.
"Please keep the victims, their families and the Uvalde, Texas community in your prayers."
21 people died during the
shooting, including 19 children.
The school's population consists of second, third, and fourth graders, or children between the ages of seven and 10.
Local police confirmed that the suspected gunman was shot dead at the scene, and that it appeared as though he acted alone in the course of the shooting.
President Joe Biden described the shooting as "horrific" in a press conference, calling for stricter gun measures to be implemented.
"These kinds of mass shootings rarely happen elsewhere in the world," Biden said.
"Why are we willing to live with this carnage? Why do we keep letting this happen? Where in God’s name is our backbone to have the courage to deal with it?
"It’s time to turn this pain into action.
"Tonight, there are parents who will never see their child again. Parents who will never be the same.
"To lose a child is to have a piece of your soul ripped away forever.
"I ask the nation to pray for them — to give them strength in the darkness.
"As a nation we must ask: When in God’s name will we stand up to the gun lobby?
"When in God’s name will we do what needs to be done?
"I’m sick and tired of it. We have to act."
