Most casualties in a terrorist attack

Hadi Matar, 24. stabbed author Salman Rushdie at a lecture in New York on August 12. The New Jersey man accused of stabbing Salman Rushdie told the New York Post in an interview published Wednesday that he was "surprised" the author had survived the attack. "When I heard he survived, I was surprised, I guess," Hadi Matar , 24, told the tabloid, which said they held a video interview with the jailed suspect. The suspected assailant, who has pleaded not guilty to attempted murder charges, did not say whether he was inspired by the 1989 edict, or fatwa, issued under Iran's former supreme leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, that ordered Muslims to kill the writer for what he deemed the blasphemous nature of the book " The Satanic Verses ." "I respect the ayatollah. I think he's a great person. That's as far as I will say about that," said Matar, who according to the Post was advised by his lawyer not to discuss the issue. Matar told the paper he had "read a couple … [Read more...] about Surprised Salman Rushdie survived, says his 24-year-old attacker Hadi Matar

CALL FOR JUSTICE Members of the Rural Missionaries of the Philippines demand justice for Fr. Marcelito “Tito” Paez, who was gunned down by unidentified assailants on Monday in Jaen, Nueva Ecija, during a condemnation rally at Jamboree Rotunda on Tomas Morato Avenue in Quezon City in this photo taken in 2017. —GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE MANILA, Philippines – The Rural Missionaries of the Philippines (RMP) denounced what it said was a “Marcosian state attack” against some of its members, who are facing non-bailable charges for allegedly financing the Communist Party of the Philippines – New People’s Army (CPP-NPA). The Department of Justice earlier indicted 16 individuals, including four RMP nuns, claiming that the group’s bank accounts showed that those involved “made funds available to the CPP-NPA.” READ: Members of church-based org face non-bailable raps for terror financing In a statement on Thursday, the RMP called the move a “part of [the] worsening state repression against … [Read more...] about Missionary group cries foul over terrorist financing raps vs members

Hadi Matar, 24. stabbed author Salman Rushdie at a lecture in New York on August 12. The man suspected of stabbing novelist Salman Rushdie last week in western New York will appear in court for arraignment on Thursday afternoon, the prosecutor said. Hadi Matar, 24, is accused of wounding Rushdie, 75, on Friday just before the "The Satanic Verses" author was to deliver a lecture on stage at an educational retreat near Lake Erie. He is scheduled for an arraignment at 1 p.m. EDT, Chautauqua County District Attorney Jason Schmidt said in an email. The suspect appeared in a county court on Saturday and pleaded not guilty to one count of second-degree attempted murder and an additional count of assault in the second degree after a criminal complaint filed by prosecutors. He was remanded without bail. Close The attack comes 33 years after Iran's then-supreme leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini issued a fatwa, or edict, calling on Muslims to assassinate Rushdie the … [Read more...] about Salman Rushdie attack suspect to appear in court Thursday

Hadi Matar appears in court on charges of attempted murder and assault on author Salman Rushdie, in Mayville, New York, U.S., August 18, 2022. REUTERS/Lindsay DeDario MAYVILLE, N.Y. — The man accused of stabbing novelist Salman Rushdie last week in western New York pleaded not guilty to second-degree attempted murder and assault charges on Thursday and was held without bail. Hadi Matar, 24, is accused of wounding Rushdie, 75, on Friday, August 12, just before the “The Satanic Verses” author was to deliver a lecture on stage at an educational retreat near Lake Erie. Rushdie was hospitalized with serious injuries in what writers and politicians around the world decried as an attack on the freedom of expression. Matar was arraigned at the Chautauqua County Courthouse on an indictment returned earlier in the day by a grand jury that charged him with one count of second-degree attempted murder, which carries a maximum sentence of 25 years in prison, and one count of second-degree … [Read more...] about Salman Rushdie attack suspect pleads not guilty to attempted murder, assault

Firefighters work at the site of a House of Culture hit by a Russian missile strike, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Kharkiv, Ukraine, August 18, 2022. REUTERS/Sofiia Gatilova KHARKIV, Ukraine — A total of 17 people were killed and 42 were injured in two separate Russian attacks on the major northeastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, the regional governor said on Thursday. Three civilians were killed and 17 wounded in a pre-dawn rocket strike on Thursday, the local emergency service said. That followed a Russian attack on Kharkiv on Wednesday, in which the emergencies service initially said 12 people were killed. Governor Oleh Synehubov said more bodies had been discovered as rescuers picked their way through destroyed houses. “As of now, 17 people have died in Kharkiv … and 42 people have been injured,” he wrote on Telegram, describing the attacks as “an act of terrorism”. Synehubov also said two people were killed on Thursday in a rocket attack on the town of Krasnohrad … [Read more...] about Total of 17 dead in two attacks on Ukrainian city of Kharkiv – official

A South Korean diplomat was randomly attacked Wednesday in Manhattan, with the attacker breaking his nose before fleeing. EXCLUSIVE: 53-year-old South Korean diplomat punched in his face in an unprovoked attack on 5th Ave and 35th St around 8:10pm tonight. No words were exchanged. Suspect fled. Diplomat suffered broken nose. This is not currently being investigated as a hate crime. — CeFaan Kim (@CeFaanKim) February 10, 2022 The South Korean diplomat was walking down 5th Avenue in Midtown Manhattan around 8:00 p.m. when an unidentified attacker punched him in the face and broke his nose, NBC New York reported. When the diplomat showed his assailant his identification, the attacker fled on foot towards 6th Avenue, according to the outlet. The investigation into the incident is ongoing. “Upon arrival, officers observed a 52-year-old male, with pain and swelling to his face. Further investigation revealed an unknown adult male approached the victim, punched him in the … [Read more...] about South Korean Diplomat Randomly Attacked In Manhattan

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Topline Former Vice President Mike Pence condemned attacks against the FBI by fellow members of the Republican Party over the raid of former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in a speech Wednesday, calling the GOP the “party of law and order” — joining a movement of moderate Republicans calling out their counterparts for slamming law enforcement and deepening the divide between Pence and Trump. Key Facts Pence said in a speech at Saint Anselm College in New Hampshire, “calls to defund the FBI are just as wrong as calls to defund the police,” becoming the latest major Republican to denounce far-right attacks on law enforcement. Other top Republicans have refused to attack the agency outright, including members of the House Intelligence Committee, the New York Times reported, as well as Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.), who told CBS’ “Face the Nation” the raid was “unprecedented,” but that he has “urged … [Read more...] about Pence Condemns Attacks On FBI Over Mar-A-Lago Raid

Salman Rushdie is "pulling through" and is on the "road to recovery, his former wife and celebrated TV personality Padma Lakshmi and his agent said on Sunday, two days after the Mumbai-born author was stabbed in New York in what US authorities described as a "targeted, unprovoked, preplanned" attack. Rushdie was taken off a ventilator on Saturday and could talk after the best-selling author was stabbed on stage at a literary event in New York state on Friday. Rushdie, 75, and Chennai-born Lakshmi married in 2004 and got divorced in 2007. Lakshmi, 51, who is herself an author and the host of the hit culinary TV show TopChef, was Rushdie's fourth wife. "Relieved @SalmanRushdie is pulling through after Friday's nightmare. Worried and wordless, can finally exhale. Now hoping for swift healing, she said in a tweet. Relieved @SalmanRushdie is pulling through after Friday’s nightmare. Worried and wordless, can finally exhale. Now hoping for swift healing. Close … [Read more...] about Celebrity host Padma Lakshmi, Salman Rushdie’s ex-wife, on his recovery: ‘I can finally exhale’

Representative image (Image: AP) Ukraine said Russia had started creating a military strike force aimed at President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's hometown of Kryvyi Rih, as NATO moved closer to the most significant expansion of the alliance in decades as it responds to the invasion of Ukraine. The U.S. Senate and the Italian parliament both approved onWednesday Finland and Sweden's accession to the 30-member North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO). Under NATO membership, which must be ratified by all 30 member states, an attack on one member is an attack against all. "This historic vote sends an important signal of thesustained, bipartisan U.S. commitment to NATO, and to ensuringour Alliance is prepared to meet the challenges of today andtomorrow," U.S. President Joe Biden said in a statement. Russia, which invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, has repeatedly warned Finland and Sweden against joining NATO. NATO's 30 allies signed the accession protocol last month, allowing them to join … [Read more...] about Ukraine warns of new Russian offensive; Sweden, Finland move closer to joining NATO

(Image credit: @HughHarrop/Twitter) A walrus nicknamed Freya that attracted crowds while basking in the sun of the Oslo fjord was euthanised, Norway officials said on Sunday. "The decision to euthanise was taken on the basis of a global evaluation of the persistent threat to human security," the head of Norway's Fisheries Directorate Frank Bakke-Jensen said in a statement. "We carefully examined all the possible solutions. We concluded that we could not guarantee the well-being of the animal by any of the means available," he said. Officials had previously said they were considering euthanasia for the mammal because repeated appeals to the public to keep their distance from the young female weighing 600 kilograms (1,300 pounds) had been in vain. Freya, whose name is a reference to the Norse goddess of beauty and love, had made headlines since July 17 when she was first spotted in the waters of the Norwegian capital. Close Walruses normally live in the even … [Read more...] about Why Norway euthanised a walrus that attracted crowds of spectators