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Police Hail Plan To Stop Mohammed Cartoon Attack

Police have hailed a "successful" security plan in shooting dead two gunmen who opened fire outside an event in Texas where cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed were on display.

The gunfire erupted outside the competition venue in Garland, a suburb of Dallas, on Sunday night.

The shooters began firing on a police vehicle that was blocking a parking lot entrance, Garland police spokesman Joe Harn said.

One of the officers inside the vehicle got out and returned fire with a pistol, striking and killing both men who were armed with assault rifles.

Officer Harn said the officer's actions likely saved lives. He did not release his name but said "his reaction and his shooting with a pistol; he did a good job".

The contest at the Curtis Culwell Center was organised by the New York-based American Freedom Defence Initiative, which aimed to award $10,000 for the cartoon judged the best.

The group is known for campaigning against the building of an Islamic centre a few blocks from the World Trade Center in Manhattan and for buying advertising space in cities across the US criticising Islam.

Officer Harn said a security plan for the provocative event had been developed over several months.

The plan "was successful," he said at a news conference on Monday, adding that the two men "obviously were there to shoot people".

"We were able to stop those men before they were able to penetrate the area and shoot anyone else.

"Both men died there on the street next to their car."

A SWAT team that had been positioned on the other side of the centre was able to respond to the sounds of gunfire within seconds and help secure the scene.

People attending the event learned of the shooting only after being informed by police.

Bomb squad units were called in to search the suspects' vehicle and the surrounding area, Officer Harn said. They detonated several suspicious items found in the car, but no bombs were discovered.

Meanwhile, the investigation turned to an apartment complex in Phoenix, Arizona, where both gunmen reportedly lived in the same unit.

One of the shooters, identified in multiple US reports as Elton Simpson, was reportedly known to the FBI and had previously been the target of a terror-related investigation.

The second shooter was named in reports as Nadir Soofi.

Authorities have not officially identified the two gunmen.

According to reports, Simpson sent out several tweets leading up to the shooting, including one with the hashtag #TexasAttack.

The SITE Intelligence Group, which monitors terror groups, reported that an Islamic State (IS) fighter claimed on Twitter that the shooting was carried out by two pro-IS individuals.

The tweet, attributed by SITE to Abu Hussain al Britani, a name used by British Islamic state fighter Junaid Hussain, said: "2 of our brothers just opened fire at the Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.) art exhibition in Texas."

An audio statement from the group's Al Bayan radio station also said that "two soldiers of the caliphate" had carried out the attack on Sunday.

A White House official said President Barack Obama was briefed on the situation.

The shooting echoed past attacks or threats in other Western countries against art depicting the Prophet Mohammed.

Depictions of Mohammed are considered insulting to many followers of Islam.

According to mainstream Islamic tradition, any physical depiction of the prophet - even a respectful one - is considered blasphemous.

In January, 12 people were killed in Paris when the offices of satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo were stormed by jihadist brothers.