International
Suspect, 15, in custody over latest US mass shooting
AFP
The gunman believed to have killed five people in North Carolina in America’s latest mass shooting is a 15-year-old boy, in critical condition after being shot by police, officials said Friday.
Two more people were wounded in the Thursday night shooting, the motive of which remains under investigation, Raleigh police chief Estella Patterson told a news conference in the state capital.
She said the fatalities included a 29-year-old off-duty police officer who was on his way to work. The four other victims were a 16-year-old boy and three women aged 35, 49 and 52.
A 59-year-old woman also remained hospitalized in critical condition.
“The nightmare of every community has come to Raleigh,” Governor Roy Cooper said. “This is senseless, horrific and infuriating act of violence.”
President Joe Biden condemned the shooting and said gun violence in America is now so rampant that some killings no longer make the news.
“Enough. We’ve grieved and prayed with too many families who have had to bear the terrible burden of these mass shootings,” Biden said in a statement.
He renewed his appeal for a ban on high-power assault rifles commonly used in these massacres — a proposal that has repeatedly failed due to opposition from Republicans in Congress.
The shooter in this latest case opened fire in Raleigh on and near a popular walking trail called the Neuse River Greenway.
Patterson and other officials gave few details of how the mass shooting unfolded.
After an hours-long standoff in a house, the suspect was shot and taken into custody, police said.
“My heart is heavy because we don’t have answers as to why this tragedy occurred,” Patterson said.
Gun violence is an urgently pressing problem in the United States, where more than 34,000 people have been killed by firearms so far in 2022 alone, more than half of them from suicide, according to the Gun Violence Archive website.
The North Cabrolina shooting occurred after a jury earlier in the day rejected the death penalty and backed life imprisonment for Nikolas Cruz, who shot and killed 17 people at a Florida high school in 2018.
Mass shootings have repeatedly stunned the nation, reigniting debate on the divisive issue of gun control — but there has been little headway in Congress.
However, several of the most recent gun rampages, including a shooting at a school in Texas and a supermarket frequented by African Americans in New York state, prompted lawmakers to agree in June, for the first time in 30 years, to pass modest reform of gun control laws.
Nearly 400 million guns are in circulation among the civilian population in the United States, or 120 guns for every 100 people, according to the Small Arms Survey project.
International
Afghan man sentenced to life in prison for deadly Munich vehicle attack
A German court on Thursday sentenced an Afghan man to life imprisonment for a 2025 attack in which he drove a vehicle into a trade union demonstration in Munich, killing two people and injuring around 40 others.
The Munich Higher Regional Court ruled that the 25-year-old man, identified only as Fahrad N. under German privacy laws, committed a particularly serious crime.
Presiding judge Michael Höhne said the court was convinced that the defendant deliberately drove his vehicle into the protesters from behind. He described the scene of the attack as a “real field of destruction.”
The verdict followed the request of federal prosecutors, while the defense had sought a 15-year prison sentence and admission to a psychiatric hospital.
Fahrad N. was convicted of two counts of murder and 23 counts of attempted murder, one more charge than prosecutors had requested. He was also found guilty of 19 counts of serious bodily harm and three counts of intentional injury.
The attack occurred on February 13, 2025, as Munich prepared to welcome international leaders attending the Munich Security Conference, while Germany was entering the final stage of its parliamentary election campaign.
That morning, around 1,400 people were marching through the city center in a demonstration organized by the services union Verdi. According to investigators, the Afghan national drove a BMW Mini past police officers escorting the march before intentionally crashing into the crowd.
The vehicle traveled approximately 23 meters before coming to a stop.
Fahrad N., who was interested in bodybuilding, arrived in Germany at the age of 15 as an unaccompanied minor and had his residence permit renewed. Authorities had previously considered him “well integrated” into local society.
Investigators said he later became radicalized under the influence of Afghan clerics he followed on social media in the months before the attack.
According to prosecutors, the defendant believed Western countries were responsible for the suffering of Muslim populations in Afghanistan and the Middle East, and concluded that he should “kill randomly selected people in Germany.”
International
Mexican TikTok Influencer Shot Dead While Livestreaming in Sinaloa
A Mexican influencer was shot dead Tuesday night while livestreaming on social media outside a restaurant in the violence-plagued state of Sinaloa, in northwestern Mexico.
César Gastelum, who had more than 500,000 followers on TikTok, was broadcasting live with two friends while taking part in a challenge in which they dressed as food delivery workers. During the livestream, a motorcycle carrying two individuals stopped beside them, and the driver shot Gastelum in the head.
The broadcast was interrupted immediately after the attack and was later removed by the platform. However, several news outlets preserved parts of the footage and shared images of the incident.
Initial reports from local police indicated that a delivery worker had been killed. However, after reviewing the recording and gathering witness statements, authorities identified the victim as Gastelum, who was approximately 25 years old, according to local media reports. The influencer was known for sharing lifestyle-related content.
The attack took place in a busy shopping area near the Sinaloa Attorney General’s Office in Culiacán, the state capital. Military and police forces were deployed to the scene, while forensic experts collected evidence and removed the victim’s body, according to local television reports.
Sinaloa has been experiencing a wave of violence for the past two years due to internal disputes within the powerful local drug cartel.
Local media have reported that around a dozen influencers, some allegedly linked to criminal groups, have been killed in recent years in the state.
International
Iran Rejects Negotiations With U.S. as Strait of Hormuz Remains Blocked Amid New Attack
Tensions remained high in the Strait of Hormuz on Monday after a vessel was hit by a projectile, despite U.S. President Donald Trump’s claims that negotiations with Iran were moving forward and that the strategic maritime route could reopen as early as Tuesday.
Tehran denied that direct talks were taking place, but Trump insisted that discussions were underway and described the situation as a final opportunity for Iran to reach an agreement.
“This is the last chance they have to sign a good document,” Trump told reporters at the White House, adding that the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz could happen “literally tomorrow” Tuesday.
The comments came after another escalation in rhetoric from Washington. Last week, Trump threatened Iran with military strikes before unexpectedly changing course on Sunday and announcing that negotiations with Tehran would resume.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baqai rejected the U.S. president’s version of events, stating that Tehran was not holding negotiations with Washington.
“At this moment, we are not negotiating with the United States. We are negotiating with Oman to guarantee safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz,” Baqai said.
Earlier, the Iranian official said that Tehran was close to reaching an agreement with Oman, which lies across the Strait of Hormuz, to reopen the crucial waterway that plays a key role in global energy trade.
The maritime route has remained blocked by Iran since the outbreak of hostilities following U.S. and Israeli strikes against the Islamic Republic on February 28.
Meanwhile, Yemen’s Houthi rebels announced Tuesday that they had launched an attack against an airport in Saudi Arabia. The Iran-backed group had previously disrupted the passage of Saudi vessels through the Red Sea, an alternative route used for crude exports by the world’s largest oil producer.
The continued instability in the region has raised concerns over global energy supplies, as the Strait of Hormuz remains one of the most important chokepoints for international oil shipments.
Afghan man sentenced to life in prison for deadly Munich vehicle attack
Guatemala Declares Highest Alert in Areas Affected by Fuego Volcano Eruption
Mexican TikTok Influencer Shot Dead While Livestreaming in Sinaloa
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
Defense Minister commends salvadoran soldier for Central American Cross Country victory
Extension of the state of emergency approved in southern Chile
-
International2 days agoIran Rejects Negotiations With U.S. as Strait of Hormuz Remains Blocked Amid New Attack
-
International4 days agoTruck bomb attack near police station in Colombia leaves 14 injured ahead of presidential inauguration
-
International3 days agoLula Launches Re-Election Campaign Amid Rising Tensions With Trump
-
International1 day agoMexican TikTok Influencer Shot Dead While Livestreaming in Sinaloa
-
Central America1 day agoGuatemala Declares Highest Alert in Areas Affected by Fuego Volcano Eruption
-
Central America2 days agoU.S. Defense Secretary to Close Multinational Military Exercises in Panama to Protect Canal
-
International12 minutes agoAfghan man sentenced to life in prison for deadly Munich vehicle attack