Skip to main content

11 teenagers wounded in mass shooting at birthday gathering in US state of Georgia

Eleven teenagers were wounded in a mass shooting at a birthday gathering in the US state of Georgia, with two of them in critical condition, media reports said on Monday. The shooting occurred around midnight during a “large gathering” at Carolyn Crayton Park in Macon, about 85 miles (137 kilometres) southeast of Atlanta, CBS News reported, citing the Bibb County Sheriff’s Office. The victims were four 18-year-old men, two 18-year-old women and five 17-year-old boys. An 18-year-old man and a 17-year-old boy remained in critical condition, while the other nine victims were stable. Bibb County Sheriff David Davis said the gathering appeared to be a birthday party that had originally been planned at another location before attendees moved to the park. Another group later arrived, and an argument between the two groups escalated into gunfire, Davis said. All 11 people wounded were part of the birthday gathering. No arrests had been made, and the investigation r...
Post a Comment

Gaza's catastrophic food shortage means mass death is imminent, monitor says

Extreme food shortages in parts of the Gaza Strip have already exceeded famine levels, and mass death is now imminent without an immediate ceasefire and surge of food to areas cut off by fighting, the global hunger monitor said on Monday. The Integrated Food-Security Phase Classification (IPC), whose assessments are relied on by U.N. agencies, said 70% of people in parts of northern Gaza were suffering the most severe level of food shortage, more than triple the 20% threshold to be considered famine. The IPC said it did not have enough data on death rates, but estimated residents would be dying at famine scale imminently, defined as two people out of every 10,000 dying daily from starvation or from malnutrition and disease. Gaza's health ministry has said 27 children and three adults have died so far from malnutrition. "The actions needed to prevent famine require an immediate political decision for a ceasefire together with a significant and immediate increase in humanitarian and commercial access to the entire population of Gaza," it said. In all, 1.1 million Gazans, around half the population, were experiencing "catastrophic" shortages of food, with around 300,000 in the areas now facing the prospect of famine-scale death rates. The prospect of a manmade famine in Gaza has brought the strongest criticism of Israel from Western allies since it launched its war against Hamas militants following their deadly attack on Israeli territory on Oct. 7. "In Gaza we are no longer on the brink of famine. We are in a state of famine... Starvation is used as a weapon of war. Israel is provoking famine," EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said at a Brussels conference on aid for Gaza. Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz responded that Borrell should "stop attacking Israel and recognise our right to self-defence against Hamas' crimes". Israel allowed "extensive humanitarian aid into Gaza by land, air, and sea for anyone willing to help", Katz said on X, and aid was "violently disturbed" by Hamas militants with "collaboration" by the U.N.'s aid agency UNRWA. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called the IPC report an "appalling indictment" and said Israel must allow complete and unfettered access to all parts of Gaza. Britain's foreign minister David Cameron said he would carefully review the report: "It's clear the status quo is unsustainable. We need urgent action now to avoid a famine." Israel, which initially allowed aid into Gaza through only two checkpoints on the enclave's southern edge, says it is opening more routes by land, as well as allowing sea shipments and air drops. The first boat carrying aid arrived last week. Aid agencies say they still cannot get enough supplies through or distribute them safely, especially in the north. HOSPITAL ASSAULT In the ruins of Gaza City, the main settlement in the north of the Gaza Strip, Israeli forces launched a major assault on Al Shifa hospital overnight. Once the Gaza Strip's biggest hospital, it is now one of the only medical facilities still even partially functioning in the north of the territory. Israel said it had killed more than 20 Hamas fighters, including a senior Hamas commander, Fayeq al-Mabhouh, in the hospital. Hamas said he was a Palestinian police official tasked with overseeing the protection of aid deliveries in Gaza. Negotiations for a ceasefire in the war, now in its sixth month, were due to resume on Monday with an Israeli delegation led by the country's spy chief heading to Qatar. But an Israeli official said nailing down any deal would probably take at least two more weeks, a clear disappointment for Washington which had sought a deal by the start of the Ramadan holy month last week. President Joe Biden warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a call on Monday that a military operation in Rafah would deepen anarchy in Gaza and they agreed that teams from each side would meet in Washington to discuss it, the White House said. Netanyahu has pledged to push into Rafah in Gaza's southern tip, where more than half of the territory's 2.3 million residents have been sheltering to escape an Israeli assault farther north. The leader in the U.S. Senate from Biden's Democratic Party called on Israelis last week to replace Netanyahu, saying he was wrecking Israel's international standing by allowing too much suffering in Gaza. The war began when Hamas fighters stormed into Israel, killing 1,200 people and capturing 253 hostages according to Israeli tallies. Since then, Israel's assault has killed more than 31,000 Gazans, according to Palestinian health officials. SPECIAL FORCES The Israeli military said special forces, supported by infantry and tanks, conducted a "precise operation" on the Al Shifa Hospital compound, based on intelligence that the hospital was being used by Hamas leaders. "We apprehended more than 200 terrorist suspects that are now being questioned," said spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari. One Israeli soldier was killed in the fighting, he said. Residents described some of the heaviest fighting in northern Gaza for months. Mohammad Ali, 32, a father of two who lives near the hospital, told Reuters via a chat app that the sound of the assault awoke the neighbourhood at around 1 a.m. "Soon tanks started to roll, they came from the western road and headed toward Al Shifa, then sounds of gunfire and explosions increased," he said. The Gaza health ministry said displaced people inside the hospital had been killed in a fire caused by the raid.

from Latest World News, International News | Breaking World News https://ift.tt/DYxK67T
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

At least 32 miners dead after bridge fails at cobalt site in southeast DR Congo

A bridge collapsed at a cobalt mine in southeast Democratic Republic of Congo killing at least 32 wildcat miners, a regional government official said Sunday. The bridge came down Saturday onto a flooded zone at the mine in Lualaba province, Roy Kaumba Mayonde, the provincial interior minister, told reporters. He said 32 bodies had been recovered and more were being searched for. The DRC produces more than 70 percent of the world supply of cobalt, which is essential for batteries used in electric cars, many laptop computers and mobile phones. More than 200,000 people are estimated to be working in giant illegal cobalt mines in the giant central African country. Local authorities said the bridge collapsed at the Kalando mine, about 42 kilometres (26 miles) southeast of the Lualaba provincial capital, Kolwezi. "Despite a formal ban on access to the site because of the heavy rain and the risk of a landslide, wildcat miners forced their way into the quarry," said Mayonde. He said ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Vancouver tribunal says 'every dog is entitled to one bite' in injury case

A woman who sought nearly $5,000 in damages after being bitten by a dog on Christmas Eve has had her claim dismissed, after a British Columbia tribunal ruled the incident amounted to an accident — and that “every dog is entitled to one bite.” Ying Shen was bitten on the hand by a mini Australian Shepherd named Juliet as she stepped out of an elevator in her apartment building in Vancouver on 24 December 2022. The dog, which was leashed and accompanied by neighbour Jeffrey Dale Polo, bit Shen as the two passed each other in the corridor. According to the B.C. Civil Resolution Tribunal’s decision, Polo apologised, saying Juliet was “usually well behaved.” Shen sought medical attention that night at St. Paul’s Hospital, where she was treated for a superficial abrasion and given a tetanus shot. She later filed a report with the City of Vancouver. A bylaw officer determined that Juliet was not considered dangerous under city regulations, though the dog was found to be unlicensed. In his 5 M...
Post a Comment
Read more

Arab countries, Pakistan likely to observe Eid on same day

The International Astronomy Centre confirmed on Wednesday that the crescent moon of Shawwal will be impossible to sight on Saturday, March 29, across all regions of the Arab and Islamic world. This is due to the moon setting before the sun, with the conjunction occurring after sunset. As a result, observing the crescent moon, whether by the naked eye, telescopes, or other means, will be unfeasible on March 29. For countries requiring an actual sighting to mark the start of Shawwal, Ramadan will likely extend to 30 days, with Eid Al Fitr falling on Monday, March 31. However, in some regions where the conjunction occurs before sunset, allowing the moon to set after sunset, some countries may choose to declare Eid on Sunday, March 30, following traditional moon-sighting practices. Notably, a partial solar eclipse will be visible at noon on Saturday in parts of the western Arab world, including Mauritania, Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia. This event serves as definitive proof that the cresce...
Post a Comment
Read more