MICHIGAN: A 19-year-old student suspected of killing his parents at a Central Michigan University dormitory before running from campus was apprehended early on Saturday following an intensive day-long search that included more than 100 police officers, some heavily armed in camouflage uniforms, authorities said.
James Eric Davis Jr. was arrested without incident after an individual spotted him on a train passing through the north end of campus shortly after midnight, according to a release posted on Central Michigan’s Emergency Communication website.
CMU President George E. Ross thanked the campus, surrounding community and law enforcement personnel “who came together to keep each other safe and apprehend the suspect,” according to the university police website.
Friday’s shooting at Campbell Hall happened on a day when parents were arriving to pick up students for the beginning of a week-long spring break.
The university identified the two dead as Davis’ mother Diva Davis and father James Davis Sr., a part-time police officer in the Chicago suburb of Bellwood. The shooting occurred around 8:30 a.m. at a residence hall at Central Michigan, which is about 112.6 km north of Lansing.
Following the shooting, police released a photo of Davis and urged the public to call 911 if they saw him but also warned that he should not be confronted. Hours after a campus lockdown, police started a “slow, methodical removal” of staff and students who were ordered to take shelter in campus buildings, Lt. Larry Klaus said, adding that he “should be considered armed and dangerous.”
Klaus said video at the dorm suggested that Davis had fled on foot after the shooting. He was wearing a hoodie but had been shedding certain clothes while on the run.
“This has been a tragic day. The hurting will go on for a while,” Ross said.
The search focused on Mount Pleasant neighborhoods near campus. Officers in camouflage knocked on doors and checked possible hiding places, such as yards and porches. In the surrounding community, students and staff in the Mount Pleasant school district were told not to leave nine buildings.
Klaus said Davis was taken to a hospital on Thursday night by campus police because of a drug-related health problem, possibly an overdose.
The Davis family is from Plainfield, Illinois, about 61 km southwest of Chicago. Davis Jr. graduated from Central High School in 2016, said Tom Hernandez, a spokesman for Plainfield School District 202.
Bellwood Police Chief Jiminez Allen released a statement Friday night praising Davis Sr.’s work.
Davis’ “contributions to our community positively impacted everyone he served and served with,” Allen said.
The shooting occurred on the last day of classes before a week-long break. Parents who were trying to pick up students were told instead to go to a local hotel where staff would assist them while the manhunt was ongoing.
Suspect in US college campus shooting apprehended
Suspect in US college campus shooting apprehended
Prince William expresses sadness at death of his former nanny’s stepson in New Orleans attack
- Edward Pettifer was the stepson of Tiggy Legge-Bourke, who was the nanny for both William and his brother, Prince Harry
- King Charles III is said to be deeply saddened by the news
LONDON: Prince William expressed his shock and sadness Saturday at the news of the death of his former nanny’s stepson in the New Year’s truck attack in New Orleans that killed 14 people.
London’s Metropolitan Police confirmed Saturday that they are supporting the family of 31-year-old Edward Pettifer, including helping them through the process of returning his body to the UK. Pettifer, who is from west London, is the final victim to be identified.
In a statement on social media, the Prince of Wales said he and his wife, Catherine, were “shocked and saddened by the tragic death of Ed Pettifer. Our thoughts and prayers remain with the Pettifer family and all those innocent people who have been tragically impacted by this horrific attack.”
Pettifer was the stepson of Tiggy Legge-Bourke, who was the nanny for both William and his brother, Prince Harry, between 1993 and 1999, which included time after the death of their mother Princess Diana in 1997. Legge-Bourke, who is also known as Alexandra Pettifer, was regularly photographed with Diana.
British media also reported that King Charles III is said to be deeply saddened by the news and that he has sent his condolences to Pettifer’s family.
In a statement, Pettifer’s family said they were “devastated at the tragic news of Ed‘s death” and described him as “a wonderful son, brother, grandson, nephew and a friend to so many.”
“We will all miss him terribly. Our thoughts are with the other families who have lost their family members due to this terrible attack,” the family added.
The UK’s Foreign Office also said it was supporting Pettifer’s family and was in contact with US authorities.
Authorities say 14 people were killed and about 30 were injured in the attack early Wednesday by Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a former Army soldier who posted several videos on his Facebook hours before the attack previewing the violence he would unleash and proclaiming his support for the Islamic State militant group. The coroner’s office listed the cause of death for all 14 victims as “blunt force injuries.”
Jabbar, 42, was fatally shot in a firefight with police at the scene of the deadly crash on Bourbon Street, famous worldwide for its festive vibes in New Orleans’ historic French Quarter.
Malaysia expels two boats ferrying about 300 Myanmar migrants
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia said Saturday it expelled two boats ferrying about 300 undocumented migrants from Myanmar from the country’s waters.
The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) said the boats were located two nautical miles (3.7 kilometers) southwest of the northern resort of Langkawi late Friday evening.
“MMEA provided assistance, including food and clean drinking water, before expelling the boats out to the national maritime border to continue their journey,” Director-General Mohd Rosli Abdullah said in a statement.
“We are also working closely with Thai authorities to obtain additional information on the movements of these boats.”
On Friday Malaysian police detained almost 200 suspected Rohingya migrants from Myanmar after their boat ran aground in Langkawi.
The Rohingya experience persecution in their predominantly Buddhist homeland of Myanmar, with many fleeing to affluent, Muslim-majority Malaysia or refugee camps in Bangladesh.
They often endure harrowing, months-long sea journeys to arrive in Malaysia by boat or sneak into the country via its porous border with Thailand.
If caught, they are often sent to detention centers that rights groups say are typically overcrowded and filthy.
Ghana announces visa-free entry for African passport holders
- Ghana joins Rwanda, Seychelles, Gambia and Benin in offering visa-free entry to African travelers
ACCRA: Ghana’s outgoing President Nana Akufo-Addo Friday announced visa-free travel for all African passport holders from the start of this year, marking a step toward continental economic integration.
The announcement came during his final state of the nation address as he prepares to step down on January 6 after two terms in office.
“I am proud to have approved visa-free travel to Ghana for all African passport holders, with effect from the beginning of this year,” Akufo-Addo said in his speech to parliament.
“This is the logical next step to the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and the workings of the largest trading bloc in the world,” he said.
“All these are essential elements to the realization of the AU’s Agenda 2063, which envisages an integrated and connected Africa by 2063,” he added, referring to the African Union’s development blueprint for a 50-year period.
Ghana joins Rwanda, Seychelles, Gambia and Benin in offering visa-free entry to African travelers.
Ghana had previously allowed visa-free access to citizens of 26 African nations and visas on arrival for travelers from 25 others, while only two African countries — Eritrea and Morocco — required a visa before entry.
The visa-free policy builds on Ghana’s efforts to strengthen its international reputation, particularly through initiatives like the 2019 Year of Return, which celebrated the African diaspora and commemorated 400 years since the transatlantic slave trade.
The campaign attracted thousands of visitors, including celebrities, to Ghana and led to some receiving citizenship, bolstering the country’s global profile as a cultural and tourism hub.
Akufo-Addo also used his last address to trumpet economic progress under his leadership, citing an increase in Ghana’s gross international reserves to $8 billion, from $6.2 billion in 2017, and significant GDP growth in 2024.
“Economic growth has returned to the pre-Covid trajectory,” he said, projecting a 6.3-percent growth rate for 2025.
“I leave behind a Ghana that is thriving, one that has navigated significant global challenges with remarkable tenacity, whose economy is steadily rebounding, and whose institutions are operating effectively,” he said.
The oil-and-gold-rich West African nation is one of the most stable democracies in Africa.
Since 2022, it has been battling one of its worst economic crises in decades and is currently under a $3-billion International Monetary Fund relief program.
The outgoing president hands over power to John Mahama, who won the December elections.
New protests, fear over India’s handling of 1984 Bhopal toxic gas disaster
- After 40 years of inaction, authorities move 337 tons of toxic material for disposal
- Fears grow over contamination of the area where poisonous waste will be incinerated
NEW DELHI: Violent protests broke out in the central Indian town of Pithampur on Saturday, after authorities moved hundreds of tons of toxic waste to its disposal facility from the site of the worst industrial accident in history: the Bhopal chemical leak disaster that took place 40 years ago.
Pithampur, which is located in the Dhar district of Madhya Pradesh some 230 km from Bhopal, the state’s capital, was selected by the local government as the place where 337 metric tons of the toxic waste remaining in Bhopal after the 1984 catastrophe will be incinerated over the next several months.
Twelve trucks carrying the toxic material reached Pithampur on Thursday, raising fears among its residents that, after the material is burnt, its residue will pollute the soil and water in nearby villages.
Protests against the move began at the disposal facility on Friday evening and turned violent on Saturday morning, as hundreds of residents threw stones and clashed with police.
“We don’t want a repeat of the tragedy that took place in Bhopal 40 years ago that claimed thousands of lives and that has impacted the lives of thousands of families,” Dr. Hemant Kumar Herole, president of the Save Pithampur Committee, which helped organize the protest, told Arab News.
“This is a tribal area and people are simple, and they just want to save their lives from possible exposure to toxic waste ... Under no circumstances will we allow this waste to remain in Pithampur. The administration tried to explain that they would conduct some sort of trial, but we oppose any trial as well. We want this toxic waste to be removed from here and sent to a place where it poses no danger to humans, animals, or the environment.”
Local authorities were not available for comment but the state’s chief minister, Mohan Yadav, told reporters that the government “respects the spirit of public sentiment” and would suspend the waste incineration at least until Monday, waiting for advice from the court that had ordered the Bhopal cleanup.
The efforts to clean the Bhopal site follow a high court decision that gave Madhya Pradesh a one-month deadline following the 40th anniversary of the disaster to clear the toxic waste.
On Dec. 3, 1984, about 45 tons of the deadly chemical methyl isocyanate leaked from an insecticide plant owned by the Indian subsidiary of the US Union Carbide Corporation, located in Bhopal, the capital city of Madhya Pradesh.
The poisonous gas spread over the densely populated neighborhoods surrounding the plant, killing around 20,000 people. Nearly half a million survivors were left suffering from respiratory diseases, blindness, and other chronic health issues.
Some survivors with life-changing injuries or health issues have received compensation, but that usually amounted to just a few hundred dollars.
Toxic material remaining in the abandoned factory continued to pollute groundwater in the surrounding areas and has been linked to high rates of birth defects among residents.
While the removal of the 337 tons of waste has made headlines as a positive milestone, Rachna Dhingra, coordinator of the International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal, said it was a “PR gimmick” that did little to mitigate the pollution or the other impacts of the disaster and would potentially create similar problems in a different place. She also stressed that those 337 tons were only a tiny portion of the total amount of dangerous material still left in Bhopal.
“This is just 1 percent of the waste. This is not the waste that is contaminating the groundwater and soil ... There are still thousands of tons of toxic waste sitting inside the factory in the pits and in the solar evaporation ponds outside the factory,” she told Arab News.
“The waste that has been removed, it was not causing any problem in Bhopal, but when you burn it and bury it in Pithampur, it will cause problems ... I think they’re going to create a slow-motion Bhopal in Pithampur.”
Dhingra also claimed that victims of the Bhopal disaster do not support the move.
“They say that we should use (the money spent on removing and transporting the waste) for our rehabilitation and not to pay for what the polluter should be paying for ... The only solution for this is to seal the waste in stainless steel drums and ask the polluter, Union Carbide and Dow Chemical, to take it to their country and do whatever they would like to do with it,” she said.
“Just as in 2003, when the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board asked Unilever to take their mercury waste back to the US, the polluter — Union Carbide and Dow —should be held accountable and should be asked to take their toxic waste back.”
Russia says downed 8 US-supplied ATACMS missiles
- Outgoing US President Joe Biden authorized Ukraine to use the 300-kilometer-range arms against Russia last year
MOSCOW: Russia said on Saturday it had shot down eight US-supplied ATACMS missiles, whose use Moscow has warned could spark a hypersonic ballistic missile attack on central Kyiv.
Outgoing US President Joe Biden authorized Ukraine to use the 300-kilometer- (190-mile-) range arms against Russia last year, in a move the Kremlin denounced as a grave escalation.
“Air defense systems downed eight ATACMS US-made missiles and 72 drones,” the Russian defense ministry said.
The ministry also said it had captured the Ukrainian village of Nadiia, one of the few settlements in the eastern Lugansk region still under Kyiv’s control.
Moscow advanced by almost 4,000 square kilometers (1,540 square miles) in Ukraine in 2024, according to an AFP analysis, as Kyiv’s army struggled with chronic manpower shortages and exhaustion.
Both sides have accused each other of fatal attacks on civilians since the year began.
A Russian strike on a village in Ukraine’s northeast Kharkiv region earlier on Saturday killed a 74-year-old man, regional governor Oleg Synegubov said.