US Navy christens new ship after Gabrielle Giffords, former congresswoman injured in 2011 shooting

Former U.S. Rep. Gabby Giffords will attend the christening of a Navy ship named in her honor.

Giffords, of Arizona, will be at the Saturday christening of the USS Gabrielle Giffords in Mobile, Alabama.Giffords was gravely wounded in the 2011 Tucson shooting that left six dead and 13 injured.She gave up her seat in Congress and later founded an organization that advocates for gun control.

Officials said the aluminum vessel is 419 feet long and that seven Littoral Combat Ships were under construction at Austal shipyard.

"The christening of the future USS Gabrielle Giffords marks the beginning of what is certain to be a long life for this great ship," Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus said in a statement.

The ship will be the 15th named for a woman.