Adding to the tragedy, the 32-year-old was expecting his first child as his wife was nearly five months pregnant.

A 32-year-old resident of Qatar who had only recently travelled to the United States was shot and killed at a gas station in Miami Gardens in the late hours of Tuesday, US police confirmed.

Ahmed Ali was standing by the entrance of the RaceWay gas station, when he was shot twice in the arm and back. Ali was said to be at RaceWay visiting a friend who worked there before stepping out for a cigarette.

A screenshot post shared by Elraiah’s younger brother said Ahmed had recently moved to the United States. The post indicated that his services and funeral were scheduled to be held at the Sudanese Cultural Center in Doha.

“It was too early for you, my brother. I mourn your death with all my heart,” loved one Adeil ElTigani, who lives in Khartoum, wrote in Arabic on Facebook.

Journalist Ola Diab said Ahmed was a Sudanese residing in Qatar and lost his life while vacationing in the US. He had diligently saved up during the World Cup to travel to the US alongside his wife. Merely a week into his visit to Miami, Florida, his life was abruptly taken.

Adding to the tragedy, Ahmed was expecting his first child as his wife was four months (nearly five) pregnant, the journalist further detailed on X.

A reward of up to $5,000 has been offered for any anonymous tips leading to the capture of the assailant.

Speaking on the details of an investigation into the incident, Miami Gardens Police Chief Delma Noel-Pratt said: “It’s too early right now,” adding that “we just don’t know. Was he targeted? We don’t know.”

Police said they are looking into “grainy” surveillance footage in an attempt to piece together shreds of evidence surrounding Ali’s death.

The US has long been heavily criticised for it lax gun control that has seen a worrisome number of school shootings and violence, particularly against people of colour. Such incidents have triggered calls for the implementation of strict gun laws across the country.

Up to 26 October, a total of 35,275 individuals have died from gun-related violence in the US this year, as reported by the Gun Violence Archive. This statistic translates to an average of nearly 118 fatalities daily.

Among the killed, 1,157 were teenagers, and 246 were children. The majority of these deaths took place in Texas, California, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Illinois and Louisiana.

Gun violence has been a leading cause of death for children and adolescents in the US as of 2020, a University of Michigan research published in the New England Journal of Medicine revealed.

Between 2000 and 2020, the total firearm-related deaths among the reported age group disturbingly rose from 6,998 to 10,186.

The research compared the total of gun-related deaths to traffic accident fatalities, which have dropped due to the implementation of initiatives since the 1960’s.

“Research has shown that most injuries can be prevented by means of the manufacture and appropriate use of safe products and the implementation of policies reducing product-related danger and the occurrence of hazardous situations — the principles of harm reduction,” it said.

Texas is one of the largest states to adopt a law, signed in 2021, which allows anyone above the age of 21 to obtain a gun license.