Mosque at center of Egyptian clashes

Source:CNN

Renewed clashes between protesters and security forces at a mosque in central Cairo threatened to pull Egypt into another day of widespread violence on Saturday.

The Al-Fateh mosque in Cairo's Ramses Square was the epicenter of the unrest, as security forces surrounded the building, where hundreds of protesters had spent the night.

Those holed up inside the mosque -- most of them supporters of deposed President Mohamed Morsy -- and security forces outside blamed each other for instigating the violence.

According to state television, security forces said they were responding to shots being fired from atop the mosque.

At least 173 people have been killed across the country since Friday's mass protests began, a government spokesman said Saturday.

It was an especially bloody week in Egypt, as the interim government put in place by a military coup seeks to restore stability to the country while Morsy supporters fight to restore the democratically elected former president to power.

With no end to the clashes in sight, the pressure on the international community to act increases, raising questions about aid and diplomacy in North Africa and the Middle East.

Inside the Al-Fateh mosque

Hundreds of protesters defied a government-imposed curfew Friday night and stood fast at Ramses Square. The government had warned that those breaking curfew would be dealt with "firmly."

But security forces appear to have acted with restraint overnight, when 1,000 people reportedly took refuge inside the mosque located on the square.

During clashes on Friday -- which protesters had dubbed "a day of anger" -- the building had served as a makeshift morgue and field hospital for the pro-Morsy protesters.

Security forces remained outside the mosque, apparently preventing anyone from entering but not interfering with those leaving.

At one point, a group of women left the mosque and were escorted away by Egyptian security forces. In a scene carried live by several Egyptian broadcasters, officers fired guns into the air to clear the way as a crowd gathered.

The military offered to provide safe passage out for those inside the mosque, but the protesters said they feared that they would be attacked by pro-government supporters aligned with the military who were also outside the mosque.

The military told the protesters inside the mosque that they would be taken to an unspecified location, said Hanan Amin, a doctor who spoke with CNN from inside the mosque.

Without water and food, and distrustful of the military forces outside the building, those who remained inside said they felt like hostages.

"We want to go home in a very polite way," Amin said. "It's a shame for our military persons to deal with our people like this."

Amin said she could see people armed with rocks and knives outside the mosque, and that she supposed them to be supporters of the interim government. But their entrance to the mosque was blocked by the military, who formed a ring around the building to keep them at bay.

The hallways of the mosque were filled with more than 20 people who had suffered gunshot wounds -- to their abdomens, arms and elsewhere, Amin said. But, without supplies, those trying to help could do no more than apply pressure to the wounds.

A son of Muslim Brotherhood spiritual leader Mohamed Badie was killed Friday during a protest near the mosque, said the Brotherhood's political wing, the Freedom and Justice party. Ammar Badie, 38, was shot in his neck and head.

More violence

Elsewhere in Cairo, the military engaged Friday night in battles with roving bands of armed protesters, state media reported.

Helicopters circled overhead, and there were reports that protesters were trying to shoot them down. Smoke wafted through Ramses Square from a fire that engulfed a nearby commercial building. It was unclear what caused the fire.

Death counts continued to rise in the confrontation that began Wednesday when an estimated 580 people were killed and 4,000 wounded as the military forced pro-Morsy protesters out of encampments in Cairo.

There was no apparent progress toward a political resolution to the crisis. An umbrella group for opponents of the military government called for daily demonstrations next week.

The casualties have not been limited to Morsy supporters and security forces. A number of bystanders, residents and journalists have been killed.

In northern Egypt, at least 25 people were killed and 171 wounded in fighting Friday between Morsy supporters and the military in the coastal city of Alexandria, a government spokesman said Saturday.

The Interior Ministry said 1,004 Muslim Brotherhood members were arrested Friday across Egypt. State-run Nile TV reported Brotherhood members were charged with rioting and creating violence. Authorities seized seven hand grenades, five automatic weapons, pistols and 710 rounds of ammunition, state media said.

French President Francois Hollande and German Chancellor Angela Merkel called for a meeting next week of European Union foreign ministers to coordinate a response.

U.S. President Barack Obama condemned the crackdown by security forces Thursday and canceled scheduled joint exercises by the U.S. and Egyptian military.

Obama has declined to label Morsy's ouster by the military a coup, a declaration that would stop U.S. military aid to Egypt.

Read More

82 child soldiers saved in Democratic Republic of Congo -- U.N. force

Source:CNN

Scores of child soldiers, some of them as young as eight years old, have been rescued from an armed group in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the U.N. mission in the African nation said.

The 82 children, 13 of them girls, were recovered since Sunday from the Mayi Mayi Bakata Katanga armed group in the southeastern Katanga province, MONUSCO said Friday in a statement.

The children, aged up to 17 years, had reportedly been recruited by the armed group within the past six months, it said.

Forty of them have been reunited with their parents.

The others are being cared for until they can be returned home, the statement said.

"We are extremely concerned by continued reports of active recruitment by Mayi Mayi Bakata Katanga and other armed groups in eastern DRC," said MONUSCO chief Martin Kobler.

"Children face unacceptable risks when they are recruited for military purposes. The recruitment of children, particularly those under 15 years of age, could constitute a war crime and those responsible must be held to account."

Child protection agencies in the province orchestrated the rescues, MONUSCO said.

Since the start of the year, 163 children, including 22 girls, have been rescued from Mayi Mayi Bakata Katanga by MONUSCO and child protection workers, the statement said.

The country's mineral-rich eastern part is at the epicenter of a political and ethnic conflict involving its neighbors to the east, Uganda and Rwanda, and has long been embroiled in violence.

The region's humanitarian crisis involves 2.6 million internally displaced people, the United Nations says, with 6.4 million people in need of food and emergency aid.

Nearly 20,000 troops are deployed in the Democratic Republic of Congo as part of the MONUSCO peacekeeping force.

Read More

Edward Snowden: My father and his legal team do not speak for me

The man wanted by the United States for leaking details of National Security Agency intelligence gathering says journalists have been misled into printing false claims about his legal situation, The Huffington Post reported Thursday.

In an e-mailed statement to the news organization, Edward Snowden distanced himself from his father, Lon Snowden; his father's attorney, Bruce Fein; and Fein's associates, saying "they do not possess any special knowledge regarding my situation."

"None of them have been or are involved in my current situation, and this will not change in the future," the statement said.Big bucks for former Snowden employer

Notable leakers and whistle-blowers

Filmmaker helped NSA leaker tell story

Sharing secrets: U.S. intelligence leaks

"I ask journalists to understand that they do not possess any special knowledge regarding my situation or future plans, and not to exploit the tragic vacuum of my father's emotional compromise for the sake of tabloid news."

The statement was released the same day The Wall Street Journal reported that Lon Snowden's legal team does not trust his son's closest advisers: WikiLeaks and Guardian reporter Glenn Greenwald.

"I would like to correct the record: I've been fortunate to have legal advice from an international team of some of the finest lawyers in the world, and to work with journalists whose integrity and courage are beyond question," Snowden said in the statement.

Snowden stepped forward publicly in June to claim responsibility for leaking to the media, including The Guardian, that the NSA had secretly collected and stored millions of phone records from accounts in the United States. The agency also collected information from U.S. companies on the Internet activity of overseas residents, he said.

Snowden, a former NSA contractor, fled first to Hong Kong and then to Russia, where he was granted temporary asylum despite pressure from the Obama administration to return him to the United States to face charges.

He has been charged with three felony counts, including violations of the U.S. Espionage Act, for the leaks.

The Huffington Post reported that the American Civil Liberties Union confirmed that the e-mailed statement was from Snowden. The ACLU has lauded Snowden's actions as a "service" to the country, and it reportedly is helping coordinate the former intelligence contractor's defense in the United States.

Read More

Sheriff Arpaio: Crosses will mark spots where immigrants die in Arizona desert

SOURCE:CNN
Deputies in Arizona's Maricopa County will leave white wooden crosses at desert locations to mark the spots where immigrants die as they try to enter the country from Mexico.

Sheriff Joe Arpaio, who made the announcement, said 14 people have died since June in the area known as Gild Bend.

More than 30 people have been rescued in the same area, he said at a Thursday news conference in the desert south of Phoenix.

"Desert crossers are dying in unknown numbers due to the desert's brutal conditions and excessively high temperatures," the sheriff said.

He said the crosses, made by inmates, also will serve as landmarks so people in distress in the desert can give their location when they call for help.

The sheriff criticized the federal government for failing to seal the border and said it should reimburse his county for "the time and resources spent on these mercy missions."

Arpaio is known for his strict approach to immigration enforcement in Maricopa County and has been at odds with the federal government over immigration policy.

In May, a federal judge agreed with the Justice Department that his deputies were illegally detaining Hispanics on pretexts to try to find undocumented people.

Arpaio has said he will appeal the judge's ruling, which stopped a program of traffic sweeps.

Read More

Former captive Hannah Anderson attends fundraiser in California

Days after being rescued in the Idaho wilderness when an FBI agent shot her abductor dead, 16-year-old Hannah Anderson attended a fundraiser Thursday for her and her family near their Southern California home.

The teenager could be seen entering the Boll Weevil restaurant in Lakeside, a community of about 20,000 people located 20 miles northeast of San Diego.

Hannah didn't speak publicly before entering the building, though her father later did talk to reporters. The media were invited to the fundraiser at the family-friendly restaurant but were not allowed inside.

"This is a small community that we are a part of, and the community came together putting on this great fundraiser for Hannah and hopefully for her future and healing," Brett Anderson said, before he thanked local residents, family and friends, the media and law enforcement. "This is how Lakeside rolls."

Hannah went missing after cheerleading practice in San Diego County, California, on August 3.

The next day, the bodies of her mother, 42-year-old Christina Anderson, and 8-year-old brother, Ethan, were found about 45 miles east in the burned Boulevard house of James DiMaggio, who had been considered a friend of the Anderson family.

Affidavits: Teen's mother, brother 'tortured and killed'

That horror spurred a manhunt, which zeroed in on central Idaho after two critical clues: the discovery of DiMaggio's blue Nissan Versa outside the city of Cascade and a sighting of the pair by horseback riders.

Affidavits: Teen's mother, brother 'tortured and killed'

One of the horsemen recalled noticing multiple "red flags" during their brief interaction with the pair, including their brand-new camping equipment and the pajama-like bottoms Hannah was wearing.

Brett Anderson said Thursday that he'd been able to offer "our thanks and our love" to the horseback riders in a phone conversation.

"It was a chance encounter, but it did save my daughter's life," he said Thursday.

The dramatic ordeal ended last Saturday, after authorities spotted DiMaggio and his teenage captive's campsite near Morehead Lake.

Hostage rescue teams had to hike more than two hours to get to the scene, local sheriffs' departments said. Eventually, they got close enough, and an FBI tactical agent fatally shot DiMaggio, before whisking Hannah away.

California teen rescued, her alleged abductor killed

Speaking Thursday about her condition, Brett Anderson said "she's just happy to be here."

"Hannah sends her love," her father said. "She's doing good day by day, and we'll keep moving forward from here."

One of her friends, Alyssa Haugum, said from outside Thursday's fundraiser that she was looking forward to seeing Hannah in person and giving her a hug. They had communicated via Facebook, she said.

Haugum described Hannah, whom she knows from school and dance, as strong, funny and "usually really bubbly."

"It takes a lot to make her upset," she said of her friend.

The entire ordeal was surreal and scary, as it hit so close to home, Haugum said.

"It just felt like it was untrue: One day somebody could be with you, and the next day they are missing and you don't know where they're at," Haugum said.

Then, alluding to her friend Hannah, she added, "But I knew she was strong. I knew she would come back."

Something stinks here. The last article I read gave me the chills. 13 phone calls between her and that guy on the day she was "kidnapped". Now it's being reported that the police found letters that she wrote to him. I really hope she wasn't involved.

201 7

•

Reply

•

Share ›

• 
  
• 
  
• 
  

• 

  
  

  boomom03 JB

  • 

  • 
    

  
  

  I think something is rotten in Denmark too, JB. Something is creepy about her calm demeanor. I know everyone grieves differently, but she ran out and got her nails done, in honor of her mom and brother. Me, on the other hand, would have been beside myself with grief and have to be sedated. I hope she wasn't involved as well.

  
  

  147 3

  •

  Reply

  •

  Share ›

  • 
    
  • 
    
  • 
    
  • 

    Herenamaste boomom03

    • 
      

    This has Broken Family written all over it....
    Motive? Torturing and killing two people close to him....and keeping a 16 year old girl alive and fleeing with her?
    I'm by no means suggesting this was some sick Bonnie&Clyde love story.....however,
    Authorities have their hands-full with DiMaggio dead or alive.

    
    

    She may not have been involved with the killings of her mother and brother.
    But NOONE is that happy, from only being 'freed' a couple of days ago, after being raped(if she was..no confirmation yet on that), abducted, taken to a dark and strange land...and then, after being 'freed', find-out that your mother and brother are dead.
    Noone can be that happy from that experience, unless there is something that isn't being said, or hasn't emerged yet.
    I don't care how strong you are.
    However, I will say again...
    I hope the best of a recovery and closure that can be attained, for everyone

Read More

CAIRO GOVERNMENT HITS BACK AT OBAMA

When Egypt's first democratically elected president was tossed out earlier this year, the White House stopped short of calling it a coup.

Doing so would have forced an end to the $1.3 billion that the United States sends in military aid every year -- and changed the course of its relationship with its strongest Arab ally in the region.

But that was before Wednesday, when the military-led interim government stormed two camps full of former President Mohamed Morsy's supporters. More than 525 people were killed and 3,717 wounded in the bloodiest day in Egypt's recent history, officials there said.

On Thursday, President Barack Obama said the state of emergency should be lifted and a process of reconciliation must begin. He condemned the violence against civilians and announced the United States is canceling next month's joint U.S.-Egyptian military exercises.

The U.S. wants to sustain its relationship with Egypt, but "our traditional cooperation cannot continue as usual when civilians are being killed in the streets," Obama said from his vacation home in Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts.

Obama said that he does not believe that force is the way to resolve political differences, but that "there remained a chance for reconciliation and an opportunity to pursue a democratic path."

"Instead, we've seen a more dangerous path taken," the president said.

The office of Egypt's Interim President Adly Mansour responded sternly to Obama's remarks, claiming they don't reflect "all the facts on the ground" -- including what it characterized as "terrorist attacks that targeted churches, courts, police stations and public and private property."

"The presidency fears that statements that do not rely on facts might strengthen the armed violent groups and encourage them to obstruct stability and democratic transportation," the Egyptian presidency said in a statement. "As a result, this would hinder the road map for the future, which we insist on achieving on time."

So will the carnage in Egypt cause deeper changes in U.S. policy toward the most populous Arab country? And might the hardening U.S. stance affect Egypt's own approach?

The short answer: We'll have to wait and see.

Read More

Lebanon car bomb death toll rises to 22

At least 22 people were killed and hundreds injured when a car bomb rocked a southern suburb of Lebanon's capital, authorities said Friday, raising the death toll from the blast a day earlier.

The bomb Thursday was in an area known as a stronghold of the Lebanese Shiite militant group Hezbollah, the Lebanese Army said.

At least 228 others were injured, the Lebanese Internal Security Forces said.

"Army units arrived immediately at the scene, enforcing a security zone within the area of explosion while military experts initiated investigations under the concerned judiciary's surveillance," the army said.

After the blast, a YouTube video surfaced in which three masked men holding weapons claimed they are part of a group responsible for the attack. They stood before a large Arabic sign containing the Islamic creed, "There is no God but Allah, and Mohammed is the messenger of Allah."

The group, which calls itself "The brigade of Aisha, Mother of Believers," accused Hezbollah of being aggressors. Aisha is the last wife of the Prophet Muhammad and is especially revered by Sunni Muslims.

In its YouTube post, the group called Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah a "pig" and said he works on behalf of Iran and Israel.

"A message: To our brothers and sisters in Lebanon: Stay away from anything to do with Iran -- whether in Beirut or outside Beirut," it said.

Hezbollah is a Shiite movement in Lebanon. Along with Shiite-dominated Iran, the group is helping Syria's government fight rebels, whose ranks are dominated by Sunnis.

CNN could not confirm the authenticity of the video or the men's claims. The U.S. Embassy in Beirut tweeted condemnations of the attack.

Civil Defense units were trying to rescue some citizens stuck inside their homes due to the fire resulting from the blast, NNA reported.

The explosion comes about a month after a car bomb injured dozens of people in the pro-Hezbollah neighborhood of Bir El Abed, located in a southern Beirut suburb.

Read More