LOS ANGELES, July 5 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) – The man who shot and killed two people Thursday, July 4, at Los Angeles International Airport before a security guard gunned him down was an Egyptian immigrant on an FBI watchlist, officials said Friday, July 5.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) identified the gunman as 41-year-old Hesham Mohamed Hadayet who moved to the United States 10 years ago and worked as a limousine driver, FBI spokesman Matthew McLaughlin said.

According to CNN, the gunman’s identity was obtained through fingerprints and records on file with the state Department of Motor Vehicles, which had issued Hadayet a license to drive a limousine, the FBI said.

CNN also said that Hadayet’s attack occurred on his birthday. According to his driver’s license, he was born July 4, 1961 . Hadayet was married with at least one child, authorities said.

The identity of the gunman, who was overpowered and shot by an El Al security agent after killing a check-in clerk and a middle-aged man Thursday, fuelled fears that the attack could be a terrorist strike against Israel, Agence France-Presse (AFP) said.

“There might be some terrorist links,” McLaughlin told reporters, adding that Hadayet was “heavily” armed with two pistols and a knife.

However he stressed that the investigation was in its early stages, and that at this point the incident would probably be characterized as a hate crime.

The FBI and local police officers were meanwhile searching the suspect's home in Orange County , near Los Angeles , after recovering evidence from his car at Los Angeles International Airport .

“We went through the normal procedures of investigation, we ran weapons, we ran vehicles, and we got into his residence,” McLaughlin said, adding that authorities would pursue the investigation “aggressively.”

Meanwhile a senior Israeli official in Jerusalem said Israel had “no doubt” that the fatal shooting attack Los Angeles was a terrorist attack.

“There’s no doubt [for Israel] that the shooting at El Al counter at Los Angeles airport was a terrorist attack,” the official said on condition of anonymity. “We’re now waiting for the official results of the investigation.”

Earlier FBI officials had said there was no indication that the attack was a terror strike targeting the Jewish state, even as the United States was under an “elevated” level of alert as it celebrated its first July 4 independence day since last year’s September 11 terror attacks on U.S. targets.

“We have no reason to believe this was an act of terrorism,” said Ronald Idem, assistant director of the Los Angeles FBI Office, adding that the man had no air ticket or identification in his possession.

Hadayet was not an American citizen but had a “green card” (given U.S. residents) allowing him to work as a limousine driver, McLaughlin said.

Reports said his wife and children were currently in Egypt and that a search was underway for other relatives.

Police said the suspect, who opened fire in the terminal around 11:30 am (1830 GMT), was gunned down by an El Al security officer in the skirmish, the full details of which remain unclear.

A 46-year-old orthodox Jewish man who was seeing off friends and a 25-year-old El Al check in clerk, identified as Victoria Hen of Los Angeles, died later in hospital. Some seven other people were injured.

FBI agents said the gunman was armed with a .45 caliber handgun and had another 9mm handgun and a six-inch (15-centimeter) knife in his possession.

One of the seven people injured in the attack was El-Al’s security chief at Los Angeles airport Chaim Safir, whom reports said had shot and killed the gunman and was being treated for a stab wound.

The other injured included a woman shot in the leg and another woman who complained of chest pains.

“Witness accounts indicate that no words were spoken,” by the gunman before he opened fire, Ron Idem, assistant special FBI agent in charge, told reporters, adding that the attack appeared to be an “isolated incident.”

Los Angeles Mayor James Hahn and Los Angeles Police Department chief Martin Pomeroy had also described the incident as isolated.

A Federal Aviation Administration official said the level of security alert at the airport had not been raised as a result of the shooting and five hours after the incident the airport resumed normal operation.