International
Walmart employee kills six in US mass shooting
| By AFP | Michael Mathes |
A Walmart employee shot dead six people at a store bustling with Thanksgiving holiday shoppers, before turning the pistol on himself, police said Wednesday, in America’s second mass shooting in four days.
Four other people remained hospitalized in unknown condition following the Tuesday night rampage in Chesapeake, Virginia, police chief Mark Solesky said.
Solesky told a news conference the gunman was believed to have died of a “self-inflicted gunshot wound,” and that the motive behind the country’s latest deadly outburst of gun violence was not immediately known.
President Joe Biden condemned “yet another horrific and senseless” attack, mourning the fact “there are now even more tables across the country that will have empty seats this Thanksgiving.”
He added: “There are now more families who know the worst kind of loss and pain imaginable.”
The assault two days before the quintessential American family holiday, marked this year on November 24, followed a weekend gun attack at an LGBTQ club in Colorado that killed five people.
It was also the second mass shooting in the state of Virginia this month: three students at the University of Virginia who played on its football team were killed November 13 by a classmate after a field trip.
Emergency calls were first made just after 10:00 pm Tuesday (0300 GMT Wednesday) while the store was still open.
Officers arrived in a matter of two minutes and entered the Walmart two minutes later, Solesky said.
US media reported that the gunman opened fire in a room where employees take meal breaks but the police chief said he could not confirm this.
In the hours afterwards, news footage showed a major police presence around the Walmart, which is located about 150 miles (240 kilometers) southeast of the US capital Washington.
‘Senseless violence’
Gun attacks in grocery stores in America have become increasingly common in recent years. A teenage gunman killed 10 people, most of them Black, at a grocery store in Buffalo, New York in May.
Last year a shooting at a supermarket in Boulder, Colorado also left 10 dead. And in a particularly gruesome attack in 2019, a young gunman killed 23 and wounded 26 as he stalked shoppers at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas.
An advocacy group called Guns Down America has reported that from January 1, 2020 to May 14 of this year there were 448 “gun incidents” and 137 deaths at 12 large national retailers.
In Chesapeake, local resident Edna Dunham told CBS news after the shooting, “That could have been me.”
“It could’ve been any of us because we go there so much. It could’ve been any of us,” Dunham said.
Walmart, the largest retailer in the United States, issued a statement early Wednesday saying: “We are shocked at this tragic event.”
The company added that it was “praying for those impacted, the community and our associates. We’re working closely with law enforcement, and we are focused on supporting our associates.”
Virginia state Senator Louise Lucas, who represents the Chesapeake region, said she was “heartbroken that America’s latest mass shooting took place… in my district.”
“I will not rest until we find the solutions to end this gun violence epidemic in our country that has taken so many lives,” she wrote on Twitter.
Congressman Bobby Scott of Virginia tweeted: “Tragically, our community is suffering from yet another incident of senseless gun violence just as families are gathering for Thanksgiving.”
The incident occurred three nights after a gunman opened fire inside an LGBTQ nightclub in Colorado Springs, killing five people and injuring at least 18, in what is being investigated as a possible hate crime.
Authorities said that suspect, identified as 22-year-old Anderson Lee Aldrich, had used a long rifle at the club, where partygoers were marking the Transgender Day of Remembrance, which pays tribute to trans people targeted in violent attacks.
So far in 2022, the Gun Violence Archive website has tracked more than 600 mass shootings in the United States — defined as an incident with four or more people shot or killed, not including the shooter.
International
U.S. Issues Urgent Evacuation Call for Citizens in Venezuela
The U.S. Department of State on Saturday urged American citizens currently in Venezuela to leave the country “immediately,” citing an increasingly unstable security situation.
In a security alert, the State Department warned of reports involving armed militia groups, known as colectivos, that have set up checkpoints and are stopping vehicles to search for evidence of U.S. citizenship or support for the United States.
The warning comes one week after U.S. forces captured Venezuela’s ousted president, Nicolás Maduro, and his wife, Cilia Flores, during a bombing operation in Caracas. Both were transferred to New York to face trial on narcotics trafficking charges.
U.S. authorities emphasized that the volatile security environment poses significant risks to American nationals and reiterated their long-standing advisory against travel to Venezuela.
International
U.S. strike in Caracas killed 32 cuban security officers, experts say surprise was crucial
Two days after a U.S. military attack on a military complex in Caracas, Havana confirmed that 32 members of its security forces were killed in the operation, some of whom were likely responsible for protecting Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro. The Venezuelan government also reported that 23 of its own military personnel died during the assault.
Of the Cuban dead, 21 belonged to the Ministry of the Interior, which oversees intelligence services, and 11 were from the Revolutionary Armed Forces. No official information has been released regarding potential injuries.
Experts consulted by AFP agreed that the element of surprise was the key to the success of the U.S. military operation, which was meticulously prepared over months and kept entirely secret. “Cuban intelligence … convinced the Maduro regime and its security agencies that the United States would never attack Venezuelan territory,” explained José Gustavo Arocha, a former Venezuelan army officer and expert at the Center for a Secure Free Society, a U.S. defense think tank.
Fulton Armstrong, a former U.S. intelligence officer and Latin America researcher at American University in Washington, also highlighted the failure to anticipate the attack and to detect U.S. helicopters entering Venezuelan airspace, noting that even a five- to ten-minute warning could have made a significant difference for the guards and for Maduro.
U.S. forces additionally benefited from “incredible” real-time intelligence provided by stealth drones to monitor movements of the Venezuelan leader, according to experts. A highly sophisticated combat team was deployed, and analysts believe the order to “fire to kill” was likely given.
Paul Hare, former British ambassador to Cuba and Venezuela, added that Cuban intelligence also underestimated the extent of U.S. access to internal cooperation within Venezuela’s security apparatus, contributing to the operation’s success.
International
Report: Vatican mediation included russian asylum offer ahead of Maduro’s capture
The Vatican reportedly attempted to negotiate an offer of asylum in Russia for Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro before his capture by U.S. forces last Saturday, according to The Washington Post.
The U.S. newspaper reported that Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin spoke with U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See Brian Burch about a supposed Russian proposal to grant Maduro asylum. A source familiar with the offer said that what was proposed “was that he would leave and be able to enjoy his money,” and that part of the plan involved Russian President Vladimir Putin guaranteeing Maduro’s security.
Despite these diplomatic efforts, the United States carried out a military operation that resulted in Maduro’s capture and detention, along with his wife Cilia Flores, who are now being held in New York on narcoterrorism charges.
The Washington Post also noted that U.S. President Donald Trump may have invited Maduro to Washington for in-person discussions about safe conduct, an offer that Maduro reportedly declined.
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