PITTSBURGH, United States (AFP) — Gunman Robert Bowers only needed 20 minutes to sow terror at the Tree of Life synagogue in the US city of Pittsburgh, where congregants had gathered peacefully for Shabbat services marking a day of rest. Shortly before 10 am (1400 GMT) the 46-year-old Bowers — who had penned virulent anti-Semitic messages on social networks — burst into the synagogue armed with an assault rifle and three handguns. Stephen Weiss, […]
Tag: crime
Synagogue gunman kills 11 in America’s worst anti-Semitic attack
by Dustin Franz Agence France Presse PITTSBURGH, United States (AFP) — A heavily armed gunman opened fire during a baby-naming ceremony at a synagogue in the US city of Pittsburgh on Saturday, killing 11 people and injuring six in the deadliest anti-Semitic attack in recent American history. The shooter — identified as a 46-year-old local resident named Robert Bowers — reportedly yelled “All Jews must die” as he burst into the Tree of Life synagogue, […]
Saudi rejects Turkey call to extradite Khashoggi killers
by Sylvie Lanteaume with Natacha Yazbeck in Dubai Agence France Presse MANAMA, Bahrain (AFP) — Riyadh Saturday dismissed Ankara’s calls to extradite 18 Saudis wanted for the murder of critic Jamal Khashoggi, as Washington warned the crisis risked destabilizing the Middle East. “The individuals are Saudi nationals. They’re detained in Saudi Arabia, and the investigation is in Saudi Arabia, and they will be prosecuted in Saudi Arabia,” Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir told a regional […]
Malaysian drug trafficker hanged in Singapore
SINGAPORE (AFP) — A convicted Malaysian drug trafficker was hanged in Singapore on Friday, officials said, after the city-state rejected last minute efforts to save him. The Malaysian government — which decided earlier this month to abolish the death penalty — had asked neighbouring Singapore to spare the 31-year-old man from the gallows on humanitarian grounds. But Malaysia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement late Friday that Prabu N Pathmanathan was executed in […]
Turkey shares evidence with CIA chief over Khashoggi murder: report
ISTANBUL, Turkey (AFP) — Turkish intelligence has shared “all the evidence” over the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi with the CIA chief during a visit, pro-government media reported on Wednesday. CIA Director Gina Haspel visited the Turkish capital Ankara on Tuesday for talks with officials about the killing of Washington Post contributor Khashoggi inside Saudi Arabia’s Istanbul consulate. Video images and audio tapes as well as evidence gathered from the consulate and the […]
US violent crime rate fell in 2017: official data
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States saw a 0.2 percent fall in overall violent crime in 2017, returning to a long-term trend of decline after two years of increases, according to data published by the FBI on Monday. The bureau recorded almost 1.25 million cases of violent crime in 2017, which included nearly 18,000 homicides, or a murder rate of 5.3 for every 100,000 inhabitants in its report, “Crime in the United States, […]
Needle found in Australian strawberries sold in New Zealand
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AFP) — The Australian strawberry scare has spread to New Zealand with a supermarket chain announcing Sunday that needles were found in a box of the fruit sourced from the neighbouring country. The Countdown supermarket chain said it had taken a brand of Australian strawberries off the shelves after a sabotaged punnet — a plastic box — was sold in an Auckland store. The strawberries, from Western Australia state, were sold in […]
Woman shoots dead three at US warehouse, commits suicide: sheriff
ABERDEEN, United States (AFP) — A woman opened fire with a handgun at the warehouse where she worked in the US state of Maryland on Thursday, killing three people and injuring another three before committing suicide, the county sheriff said. Harford County Sheriff Jeff Gahler did not identify the suspect but said she was 26 years old and a temporary employee at the distribution center for the Rite Aid drugstore chain in Aberdeen, Maryland. “We […]
$60 million in virtual currency hacked in Japan
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Digital currency worth around 6.7 billion yen ($60 million) has been stolen in Japan following a hacking attack, a virtual exchange operator said on Thursday. Osaka-based Tech Bureau, which operates virtual currency exchange Zaif, said its server had been illegally accessed and money transfered. “We decline to comment on the details of how this illegal access occurred, as it is a crime and we’ve already asked the authorities to investigate,” Tech […]
Nation state cyber attacks on rise, says Europol
by Danny Kemp Agence France Presse THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AFP) — Global ransomware attacks are increasingly linked to nation states, with the lines between politics and crime often blurring, Europe’s police agency said on Tuesday. Key ransomware attacks include the so-called WannaCry and NotPetya malware, which infected hundreds of thousands of computers around the world in 2017, demanding that users pay ransoms to regain access. “Ransomware retains its dominance,” said Europol’s latest annual report […]
Three shot dead in popular Mexico City tourist plaza
MEXICO CITY, Mexico (AFP) — Gunmen dressed as mariachi musicians killed three people and wounded seven others in a square in downtown Mexico City popular with foreign tourists, police said. The three assailants carried out the shootings shortly before 10pm on Friday (0300 GMT Saturday) in the busy Plaza Garibaldi, police said. Neither the motive for the attack nor the identities of the gunmen were known, but the area is located near the Tepito neighborhood, […]
Ex-UN climate chief to face sexual assault trial
NEW DELHI, India (AFP) — Former UN climate panel chief Rajendra Pachauri will stand trial in a sexual assault and harassment case three years after an employee accused him of inappropriate conduct, a lawyer said Friday. Pachauri, 78, has been charged under various counts including sexual assault, harassment and criminal intimidation, according to the complainant’s lawyer. “After examining the charges and hearing arguments from the counsels, the court came to the conclusion that prima […]





