Tag Archives: Death

8 ISIS Senior Figures Killed in Airstrike; Status of Main Leader Unknown

Eight ISIS senior figures were killed in an airstrike while meeting in a town in western Iraq. Residents of the town and hospital sources reported that the self-proclaimed leader of the ISIS caliphate in Iraq and Syria, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, was not among them.

On Sunday, Iraq’s air force led a strike that hit the meeting and the convoy that was bringing Baghdadi to the meeting. After being struck, the convoy drove away with the leader in an unknown condition. So far, Baghdadi has survived a year of U.S.-led airstrikes.

A Twitter account used by the Islamic State said that the “rumors” of an airstrike hitting Baghdadi’s convoy were false. The account then issued another statement saying that if Baghdadi was injured or killed, his self-proclaimed caliphate would survive.

“Do you think we would leave the State of the caliphate and abandon it, oh vile world?,” asked one of his followers. “This is the religion of God, it rose on the skulls of heroes and martyrs and every time one of them is martyred we rise.”

Currently there are still very mixed reports about the condition of Baghdadi. Russian news outlets have stated that Baghdadi was injured and hospitalized in Al-Qa’im, an Iraqi town near the Syrian border. However, Iraqi military officials told Reuters that it’s a very distinct possibility that Baghdadi wasn’t in the convoy at all.

Twice in the past year, Iraqi officials have claimed that Baghdadi was injured in airstrikes. Each time, Baghdadi posted audio recordings on social media days after the airstrikes.

Deadly Bombing in Turkey over the Weekend; ISIS Main Suspects

A suicide bombing that took place in Ankara, Turkey killed 97 people and injured 250 others on Saturday. As the country mourned the deaths, Turkey’s government said that the prime suspect for the bombing was ISIS.

It is currently believed that two suicide bombers carried out the attack near Ankara’s main train station where a peace rally was being held. The rally was calling for an end to the conflict between the Turkish government and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party.

Turkish Prime Minister Ahment Davutoglu stated that the attack was intended to influence their election in November. The vote will not be postponed, according to officials.

“As the country enters the final stage of the second election campaign this year, our concerns that political instability and security threats would increase are proving tragically accurate,” said Cristian Maggio, head of Emerging Markets Research at TD Securities in London in an e-mailed report on Monday. Maggio has been studying the security flaws in Turkey.

At this time, no group has claimed responsibility for the attacks and suspects include Kurdish rebels, militant nationalists, Marxist radicals, the Turkish government, and ISIS.

“If you consider the way the attack happened and the general trend of it, we have identified Islamic State as the primary focus,” Davutoglu told Turkey’s NTV television. “It was definitely a suicide bombing…DNA tests are being conducted. It was determined how the suicide bombers got there. We’re close to a name, which points to one group.”

The aftermath of the incident has also led to clashes between police and civilians. As police continue to investigate the area, civilians wish to visit the scene to mourn and honor the dead. Police are continuing to block civilians from the scene and even had to fire tear gas in the air in once incident.

Violence in Israel Intensifies; Death on Both Sides

The worst spell of civil unrest that has hit the region in years has resulted in several deaths of both Jewish and Arab citizens.

On Friday, a Jewish man stabbed and wounded four Arabs in south Israel. In the past 10 days, four Israelis have been shot or stabbed in Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank. At least a dozen Israelis have been wounded by knife and screwdriver wielding Palestinians in various Israeli cities, including Tel Aviv. Attacks have continued on both sides recently resulting in the deaths of four Arab men by a Jewish man in his 20s. A 14-year-old Jewish boy was wounded in a stabbing by a Palestinian while a woman believed to be Palestinian tried to stab an Israeli guard at a bus station.

There have been talks of a third Palestinian uprising after the death of three Palestinians who were killed by Israeli security forces in stone-throwing demonstrations. Many more Palestinians have been wounded in the same demonstrations.

The escalation in violence seems to be over the events at the al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem’s Old City. Palestinians fear that Israel is trying to change the status quo at the holy site. The current conditions are that Jews are allowed to visit the site, but only Muslim prayer are allowed.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denied that conditions at the holy site are being changed, but his assurances have done little to keep the peace.

Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas have called for calm and for Israeli security forces and Palestinian police to continue working together to restore order. However, signs indicate that the violence will continue.

Guatemalan Mudslide Kills 237; Death Toll Expected to Rise

Recovery after the Guatemalan Mudslide that erased part of  the town of Santa Catarina Pinula last week has uncovered 237 bodies so far from the mountains of mud and debris in the mudslide created from heavy rainfall.

Backhoes continued to remove thousands of tons of dirt from the acres-wide mudflow in the neighborhood of Cambray, on the outskirts of Guatemala City, with very little hope of finding anyone alive.

Officials have reported that many other people are still missing.  

Several hundred people were being housed in shelters run by the local government National Disaster Reduction Commission known as Conred.

The agency has said it issued a number of warnings about the dangers of living on the base of this mountain area. Officials this week declared the area uninhabitable.

Manuel Pocasangre, the communications director for the municipality of Santa Catarina Pinula said state employees in recent years had gone door-to-door to talk to people about the risks of where they lived even in the last year.  

Stating that he had warned Mayor Tono Coro of the municipality of Santa Catarina Pinula that the river was eating away at the base of the steep hill. “What we know is that people were conscious about the risk they were taking,” Pocasangre said Wednesday.  

Maldonado acknowledged there are many neighborhoods like Cambray in and around Guatemala City that are at risk of flooding or mudslides

The country’s prosecutor’s office has announced an investigation of the matter.

Spreading Violence in Israel Forces Netanyahu to Cancel German Visit

A rise in street violence has prompted the Prime Minister to cancel his visit to Germany planned for Thursday.

Israeli and Palestinian leaders have been attempting to calm the fueled confrontations that have been surrounding Jerusalem’s al Aqsa mosque complex, Islam’s third holiest site which is considered as a holy place called the Temple Mount by Jews and the site of their two ancient temples.

The prospect that Israel is trying to expand the Jewish presence at the hilltop compound has led to ongoing clashes, including Palestinians barricading themselves inside the mosque and throwing stones and firebombs at Israeli forces.

Several incidents throughout Israel including a Palestinian man was shot dead in southern Israel on Wednesday after he stabbed an Israeli soldier and attempted to grab his weapon.

Earlier Wednesday, a Palestinian woman stabbed an Israeli man who then shot and wounded her in Jerusalem’s Old City and a Palestinian stabbed an Israeli man outside a mall in central Israel, police said. The attacker was arrested.

Four Israelis have been killed in stabbings in Jerusalem and a drive-by shooting in the occupied West Bank since Thursday, and two Palestinians have been shot dead and scores injured in clashes with security services, triggering fears of an escalation.

Palestinians fear increasing visits by Jewish groups to al-Aqsa are eroding longtime Muslim religious control there. Netanyahu has said he is committed to maintaining the status quo.

South Carolina Suffers and Braces for More Flooding

The Rivers are rising to historic levels as dams break with others at the brink.  The death toll has risen to 17 in the Carolinas with no end in site to the massive flooding as most of the waterways have not reached their crest.   

South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley says state wildlife officials have made at least 600 rescues during the flooding that has ravaged the state.

She says the central area of the state is recovering as the waters recede, but officials are keeping a close eye on the southeastern part of the state.

She added 62 dams across the state are being monitored and 13 had already failed.

More than 400,000 state residents were under a “boil water advisory” affecting about 16 water systems, said Jim Beasley, a spokesman for the S.C. Emergency Response Team.

The damage in South Carolina is still being assessed and numbers are up in the air regarding how many have lost homes and their businesses.  Costs in recovery are being estimated at close to a billion and will not be truly known until the flooding recedes.

Explosions Rock Yemen, Killing 15

Three explosions hit Yemen’s port city of Aden on Tuesday, killing 15 people. One rocket hit a hotel housing exiled Yemeni officials, and the other two attacks struck locations used by troops from the United Arab Emirates. Authorities state no government officials have been hurt.

At this time it is not clear who the victims were.

Officials originally blamed Yemen’s Shiite rebels for the attack, but a new Islamic State affiliate claimed responsibility for the attacks. The terrorist group used Twitter to claim the attack, posting photos of the suicide bombers and the aftermath of the bombing. More chaos is expected to ensue now that the Islamic State is involved with Yemen’s months-long civil war.

Military official, Major General Ahmed Sayf stated that the attacks were deployed with car bombs.

Yemen is currently in the middle of a civil war where Shiite rebels and forces loyal to the former president are fighting the Saudi-backed, internationally recognized government as well as local militias, Sunni extremists, and southern separatists. The war in Yemen began in March of this year and so far, more than 4,000 people have been killed. The country is also on the brink of famine.

South Carolina Declared Major Disaster

President Obama has declared several counties in South Carolina as major disaster areas. With some areas of the state that have received up to 24 inches of rain, 18 dams that have breached, lakes and creeks overflowing as well as roadways completely washed away, South Carolina is indeed a major disaster. With billions of dollars in damage and over a dozen deaths reported, South Carolina is still waiting for the rivers and lakes to crest.  

Although the bulk of the rain has ended, high waters are still a very dangerous reality after the historic flood event in South Carolina. Rescue crews went door to door in South Carolina’s capital city of Columbia as officials continued to free residents that were trapped by severe flooding that swamped virtually the entire state.

In a press conference Tuesday morning, Governor Nikki Haley gave an update on the current recovery efforts. Over a dozen deaths have been reported with over 600 National Guard that are now in the state assisting with rescue and recovery efforts.  More than 31,000 homes are without power. Boil water advisories are in effect with up to 40,000 people currently without drinking water or reporting low water pressure.  State and Government officials are working closely with hospitals in Columbia that are reporting water problems and over 400 roads and over 150 bridges have been closed due to flooding conditions.   

Some rivers in the state and in states further south are not expected to crest for up to two weeks leading residents to realize that this flooding event is far from over.   

Death Toll in South Carolina Rises to 9 Due to Flooding and Torrential Rain

In a news conference on Monday, Governor Nikki Haley stated that nine people are now dead in South Carolina due to the extreme weather.

Authorities have encouraged residents to stay home the past few days as more than 25 inches of rain has fallen, causing half the state to be affected by flooding Monday morning. Dozens of roads and interstate highways are closed. Of the nine people who were killed, four were killed in traffic accidents. First responders received 910 calls for collisions since the downpour began.

Over the weekend, at least 600 National Guardsmen, 11 aircraft, and 8 swift water rescue teams performed more than 200 water rescues. Over 1,000 law enforcement and 1,000 workers for the transportation department were on duty. Two dozen shelters have opened for those displaced, and utility crews are still trying to restore power to 30,000 customers.

Gov. Haley also addressed another issue: getting clean drinking water to 40,000 people who don’t have it.

“We have quite a few water issues,” Haley said. “Either people are without water or contaminated water.”

Walmart has donated 80,000 bottles of water, and officials are setting up water distribution stations throughout the state.

State officials are calling the situation a 1,000 year storm – a reference to a weather term describing a storm with a 1-in-1,000 chance of happening in any given year. The National Weather Service reported that Sunday was the wettest day in the history of Columbia, with the rainfall total at 6.87 inches.

While the rain is slowing and will soon move out of the region, meteorologists report that as much as two inches could still fall and that most rivers will not crest for another two weeks.

Some South Carolina residents were absolutely devastated by the storm. Columbia resident, Angela Williams, told CNN that the storm destroyed her neighborhood.

“We have lost everything. What I got on my body is what we have,” she told CNN affiliate WIS-TV. “Pretty much everybody down that hill there has lost everything … our vehicles, our clothes, everything.”

She added: “But the best thing is that we still have our lives.”

23 Civilians Killed in Afghan Hospital Due to U.S. Airstrikes

A U.S.-led bombing accidentally hit a Doctors Without Borders hospital in Kunduz, Afghanistan, resulting in the death of 23 civilians.

The victims included 13 staff members and 10 patients. Three of the patients who were killed were children. Doctors Without Borders also reported that 37 people were wounded. One nurse recounted the terrible situation to the Huffington Post.

“There are no words for how terrible it was. In the intensive care unit, six patients were burning in their beds,” Lajos Zoltan Jecs said in an account posted on the MSF website.

She continued describing the situation. She watched colleagues die, heard patients calling out for help in all directions, and watched some of the staff just freeze, tears streaming down their faces.

General John Campbell addressed reporters at the Pentagon Monday. He stated that the strikes were called for by Afghan forces to protect U.S. forces.

“We have now learned that on October 3, Afghan forces advised that they were taking fire from enemy positions and asked for air support from U.S. forces,” he said. “An airstrike was then called to eliminate the Taliban threat, and several innocent civilians were accidentally struck.” Campbell also offered his condolences.

Afghan officials called the situation a tragedy, but have remained mute on the situation.

U.S., NATO, and Afghan officials are investigating the situation. Doctors Without Borders, also known as Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF), is demanding an independent investigation and calling the situation a “war crime.”

“Under the clear presumption that a war crime has been committed, MSF demands that a full and transparent investigation into the event be conducted by an independent international body,” the organization said. “Relying only on an internal investigation by a party to the conflict would be wholly insufficient.”

MSF reports that the series of bombings took place in 15 minute intervals between 2:08 a.m. and 3:15 a.m. Saturday. The charity added that the bombings continued even after U.S. and Afghan officials were notified that the hospital was being attacked.

Afghan police report that Taliban militants had been using the hospital compound as a hiding place, but Doctors Without Borders denied the claims.

The charity has since closed the hospital due the extensive damages to the building and equipment. In less than a week, MSF has treated 394 wounded people in Kunduz.

“There is no access to trauma care now for the civilians and for the wounded in the whole area of Kunduz, which is some kind of battleground for the moment,” said Christopher Stokes, the aid group’s general director.