DENMARK
IS suspects arrested
Police said they had arrested four people on Thursday suspected of having been recruited by the Islamic State (IS) to commit terrorist violence and two others of suspected breaking the weapons law. Police said in a statement the four had been indicted for “having violated the penal code ... by allowing themselves to be recruited by IS in Syria to commit terrorist acts.” Later on Thursday, police arrested two people they believe could be linked to ammunition and weapons found during a search carried out in connection with the earlier detention of the four. The two will be indicted for breaking the weapons law, Copenhagen police said in a statement. Sweden on Thursday charged a 20-year-old man with terrorism for allegedly building a suicide bomb with the intent of staging an attack in Sweden.
MEXICO
Fake policemen arrested
Four gunmen riding in a fake police car have been arrested after the real authorities noticed a spelling mistake on their otherwise identical vehicle. The car was painted and outfitted to look exactly like the ones used by the federal police, but spelled the word “division” with a “c” instead of an “s.” That aroused the suspicion of a military patrol in the state of Michoacan, which stopped the vehicle and arrested the four men with guns and ammunition.
UNITED STATES
Last ‘idol’ crowned
Trent Harmon is the 15th and final American Idol winner. He was crowned on Thursday as Fox TV’s singing contest ended its 15-season run. The runner-up was La’Porsha Renae. The 24-year-old Harmon worked as a waiter at his family’s restaurant before auditioning for the show. He grew up on a farm and described himself as a “dude from Mississippi,” from the town of Amory. Harmon, whose supple voice won over viewers, said on Wednesday’s show that his persistence made him believe he had a shot at winning. The 22-year-old runner-up, Renae, is a single mother who overcame domestic abuse to compete. She is also from Mississippi. American Idol, once a ratings powerhouse that influenced TV and music, had suffered steady audience erosion.
CUBA
Fidel appears in public
Cuban revolutionary icon Fidel Castro appeared in public on Thursday for the first time in nine months, chatting with school children and criticizing US President Barack Obama’s recent visit. Castro, 89, was seen on state TV seated as he spoke to children about a late fellow revolutionary leader, Vilma Espin. The last time Castro appeared in public was nine months ago, when state TV showed him with civilians who work with the armed forces and the interior ministry.
UNITED STATES
Man stuck after proposal
As marriage proposals go, Michael Banks’ was a cliffhanger. Banks, 27, scaled 180m Morro Rock just off California’s Central Coast early on Thursday morning to propose to his girlfriend, who was watching via FaceTime video. The good news: Banks’ girlfriend said “Yes,” according to Morro Bay fire Captain Todd Gailey. The bad news: Banks got stuck, and had to be plucked by helicopter for a tricky, post-proposal flight to safety. Banks “took a different trail down, much steeper” and became stranded, Gailey said. “He couldn’t go any direction, on a sheer ledge, with his feet dangling [25m] off the ground.” Rescuers called in a helicopter, and Gailey descended by cable to hoist Banks from the ledge.
AUSTRALIA
Terrorism penalties touted
Canberra yesterday said that it would strip dual nationals convicted of terror-related crimes of their citizenship. Dual nationals who were either involved in terror activities, members of a banned organization or convicted of terrorism offences could lose their Australian citizenship, Minister for Immigration Peter Dutton said. “There is a very significant penalty to pay if people are involved in terrorist activities and they’re a dual national,” Dutton said. Australia has been on heightened alert for attacks by homegrown radicals. While nearly 200 people were suspected of being a domestic threat, Dutton said approximately 100 people had left Australia for Syria to fight alongside organizations such as the Islamic State.
EGYPT
Seven killed in Sinai blasts
At least five Egyptian soldiers, a military officer and a civilian woman were killed, and 15 injured, on Thursday in the Sinai Peninsula, after armored personnel carriers exploded in two separate incidents, security and medical sources said. The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the attacks on several Web sites. Several explosive devices were planted on the road in Rafah and southern Sheikh Zuwayed and were remotely detonated as soon as the vehicles passed by, the sources said. Egypt’s military spokesman could not immediately be reached for comment.
SYRIA
Mass abduction reported
Islamic State militants on Thursday abducted 300 cement workers and contractors in an area northeast of Damascus, Syrian state TV reported, as fighting elsewhere in the country also worsened. State TV said Thursday’s mass abduction of workers from the al-Badia Cement Company took place in Dumeir, an area where militants launched a surprise attack against government forces earlier this week. Later reports from Syrian military officials said that 175 of the captured workers had been massacred.
INDONESIA
Executions set to resume
Indonesia on Thursday said that it would resume executions of drug traffickers this year, after a brief hiatus since last year’s controversial executions of mostly foreign convicts. Attorney General H.M. Prasetyo told reporters “more than one” person would be executed for drug offences this year and foreigners were also on the list. “We will not stop. We will step up the war on drugs,” Prasetyo said. He declined to name the nationalities of the convicts on death row.
Republican US lawmakers on Friday criticized US President Joe Biden’s administration after sanctioned Chinese telecoms equipment giant Huawei unveiled a laptop this week powered by an Intel artificial intelligence (AI) chip. The US placed Huawei on a trade restriction list in 2019 for contravening Iran sanctions, part of a broader effort to hobble Beijing’s technological advances. Placement on the list means the company’s suppliers have to seek a special, difficult-to-obtain license before shipping to it. One such license, issued by then-US president Donald Trump’s administration, has allowed Intel to ship central processors to Huawei for use in laptops since 2020. China hardliners
A top Vietnamese property tycoon was on Thursday sentenced to death in one of the biggest corruption cases in history, with an estimated US$27 billion in damages. A panel of three hand-picked jurors and two judges rejected all defense arguments by Truong My Lan, chair of major developer Van Thinh Phat, who was found guilty of swindling cash from Saigon Commercial Bank (SCB) over a decade. “The defendant’s actions ... eroded people’s trust in the leadership of the [Communist] Party and state,” read the verdict at the trial in Ho Chi Minh City. After the five-week trial, 85 others were also sentenced on
Conjoined twins Lori and George Schappell, who pursued separate careers, interests and relationships during lives that defied medical expectations, died this month in Pennsylvania, funeral home officials said. They were 62. The twins, listed by Guinness World Records as the oldest living conjoined twins, died on April 7 at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, obituaries posted by Leibensperger Funeral Homes of Hamburg said. The cause of death was not detailed. “When we were born, the doctors didn’t think we’d make 30, but we proved them wrong,” Lori said in an interview when they turned 50, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported. The
RAMPAGE: A Palestinian man was left dead after dozens of Israeli settlers searching for a missing 14-year-old boy stormed a village in the Israeli-occupied West Bank US President Joe Biden on Friday said he expected Iran to attack Israel “sooner, rather than later” and warned Tehran not to proceed. Asked by reporters about his message to Iran, Biden simply said: “Don’t,” underscoring Washington’s commitment to defend Israel. “We are devoted to the defense of Israel. We will support Israel. We will help defend Israel and Iran will not succeed,” he said. Biden said he would not divulge secure information, but said his expectation was that an attack could come “sooner, rather than later.” Israel braced on Friday for an attack by Iran or its proxies as warnings grew of