Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, characterized this week's shooting in Chattanooga, Tenn., which claimed the lives of four U.S. Marines, as an "act of war."

Law enforcement officials are still investigating whether the shooter, Mohammad Youssuf Abdulazeez, 24, had any ties to outside terror groups, including the Islamic State and al Qaeda.

"Mohammod Youssuf Abdulazeez was there to carry out jihad, an act of radical Islamic terrorism," the 2016 Republican presidential candidate said in a statement Friday. "An act of war, in which those four brave Marines lost their lives, while at least two others were wounded."

The victims of Thursday's shooting included Sgt. Carson Holmquist, 27, David Wyatt, 37, Skip Wells, 21, and Gunnery Sgt. Thomas Sullivan, 40.

"In the wake of this vicious attack on our nation we need to rid ourselves of two dangerous delusions, first and foremost that a 'lone gunman' — as President Obama described the shooter — is somehow isolated from the larger threat of radical Islamic terrorism," Cruz's statement said.

"In the modern world, no one acts in isolation. Through social media ISIS, al Qaida, and other groups are infiltrating our nation with impunity while our government will not even admit that radical Islamic terrorism is a problem."

Details on Abdulazeez are scarce, but it was established early after the shooting that he was a naturalized citizen from Kuwait.

Cruz's statement continued, claiming that it's delusional to think that Thursday's attack "is somehow isolated from previous episodes, notably those in Little Rock, Arkansas and Fort Hood, Texas, in 2009 — both of which were attacks on American military facilities."

"The Obama administration was woefully reluctant to call either an act of radical Islamic terrorism, instead suggesting 'workplace violence' as a justification for the killings," he added. "We cannot afford to wait six years to recognize what happened yesterday in Chattanooga for what it was. We need to see with clarity right now what has happened."

U.S. attorneys said Friday that they are treating the event as an act of domestic terrorism.