Obama: Shooter doesn't represent US

Speaking about the Dallas ambush for the third time in as many days, US President Barack Obama denied the idea that the United States is racially split over the shooting that killed five police officers.

"America is not as divided as some have suggested," Obama said at a NATO summit press conference in Warsaw, Poland, on Saturday. "Americans of all races and all backgrounds are rightly outraged by the inexcusable attacks on police, whether it's in Dallas or anyplace else."

"That includes protesters. It includes family members who have grave concerns about police conduct, and they've said that this is unacceptable," Obama added. "There's no division there."

The president emphasized that the shooter does not represent the opinions of all black Americans either.

"The individual who carried out the attacks in Dallas, he's no more representative of African-Americans than the shooter in Charleston was representative of white Americans," Obama said in reference to Dylann Roof who gunned down nine black churchgoers last year.

Guns a contributing factor

The president also brought up the issue of gun control in the United States, saying that the proliferation of guns contributes to tensions between police and the communities they serve.

Police often have a difficult time in communities where guns are more plentiful and have very little margin for error when making decisions, he said.

"If you care about the safety of our police officers, then you can't set aside the gun issue and pretend it's irrelevant," Obama emphasized, defending calls for stricter gun control in the wake of the shootings.

The president is set to cut his visit to Europe short and return to the US to visit Dallas.

A week of violence

Thousands of people across the United States marched in protests honoring the fallen police officers and against police violence towards minorities overnight on Friday. More protests are scheduled throughout the weekend.

Tensions are still running high in the aftermath of a week of violence which saw two black men killed at the hands of officers and culminated with Thursday's shooting in Dallas.

A lone gunman, Micah Xavier Johnson, fired on police officers in Dallas during a peaceful protest against police brutality - killing five police officers and injuring seven more as well as two civilians.

Earlier this week, Philando Castile's death in Minnesota sparked nationwide outrage as his girlfriend live-streamed an officer shooting him as he reached for his driver's license. Another black man, Alton Sterling, was killed outside a shop in Louisiana.

Police use of deadly force, especially against minorities, has come under intense scrutiny over the past two years due to a string of high-profile deaths in Ferguson, Baltimore and New York.

rs/sms (AP, AFP, Reuters)