President Barack Obama denounced what is believed to be a racially charged massacre at a historic African-American church in Charleston, South Carolina Wednesday night, calling for more gun control to prevent such tragedies from reoccurring.

The mass shooting took place when Dylann Roof, a 21-year-old white man, opened fire at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church around 9 p.m. while the church members were praying. Among the nine people who were killed was the church's pastor, State Sen. Clementa Pinckney, 41. Three people survived.

Roof was then arrested in Shelby, North Carolina, after someone recognized him and alerted authorities. He is currently being held on a $1 million bail and has been charged with nine counts of murder and one weapon possession charge.

"Any death of this sort is a tragedy. Any shooting involving multiple victims is a tragedy," said Obama in a speech on Thursday, reports CNN. "There is something particularly heartbreaking about death happening in a place in which we seek solace and we seek peace."

Obama went on to say that he and first lady Michelle Obama had personal ties to the Emanuel AME Church, where they knew Pastor Pinckney and several members.

"We knew their pastor, Reverend Clementa Pinckney, who, along with eight others gathered in prayer and fellowship, was murdered last night," Obama said. "And to say our thoughts and prayers are with them and their families and their community doesn't say enough to convey the heartache and the sadness and the anger that we feel."

Obama added that Americans should use the shooting to refocus on the effort to stop potential killers from getting their hands on guns.

"We do know that once again, innocent people were killed in part because someone who wanted to inflict harm had no trouble getting their hands on a gun," Obama said. "At some point, we as a country will have to reckon with the fact that this kind of mass violence does not happen in other advanced countries. It doesn't happen in other places with this kind of frequency. It is in our power to do something about it."

The National Rifle Association said that they do not plan to release a statement on the matter "until the facts are known," spokesman Andrew Arulanandam told CNN.