Minneapolis braces for fourth night of riots and arson 

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A man stands in front of police as they hold a line on the fourth day of protests on May 29, 2020 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (AFP)
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Fire burns inside The Family Dollar Store after a night of unrest and protests in the death of George Floyd early Friday, May 29, 2020 in Minneapolis. (AP Photo)
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Protesters hold signs during a protest against the fatal injury inflicted by Minneapolis police on African-American man George Floyd, in Denver, Colorado, US May 28, 2020. (Reuters)
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A protester confronts a police officer while standing on a destroyed cruiser on May 28, 2020 in St. Paul, Minnesota. (AFP)
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State Patrol Police officers block a road on the fourth day of protests on May 29, 2020 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (AFP)
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Updated 31 May 2020
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Minneapolis braces for fourth night of riots and arson 

  • Unrest follows police killing of George Floyd
  • FBI and US Justice Department investigating death  

CHICAGO: Minneapolis exploded into riots and arson this week after an African-American suspected of handling counterfeit money was killed on Monday during his arrest by two city police officers.

Videos on social media showed an officer placing his knee on George Floyd’s neck as he was handcuffed and being restrained on the street by the kerb. The 46-year-old said that he could not breathe, but police insisted that Floyd was “resisting arrest” and had to be forcibly restrained.

Floyd was pronounced dead at the scene and his family immediately called for an independent investigation, reflecting a growing number of incidents of police brutality against African-Americans in the US.

 

 


His family turned to civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump, who said the family’s first concern was to seek an autopsy independent of the police because of a lack of trust in law enforcement and to give their deceased family member a proper funeral.

“Is it two justice systems in America?” Crump said as he addressed the media. “One for black America and one for white America? We can’t have that. We have to have equal justice for the United States of America and that’s what I think the protesters are crying out for.”

Protests spread across the country and turned violent as arson destroyed property, including the police station where the police officers were assigned.

President Donald Trump denounced the rioters as “thugs” and warned that he might send in the military “to take control.” 

Minneapolis Police handed the investigation into Floyd’s death to the FBI and US Justice Department on Thursday night.

“On Monday evening, shortly after 8:00 p.m., officers from the Minneapolis Police Department responded to the 3700 block of Chicago Avenue South on a report of a forgery in progress.  Officers were advised that the suspect was sitting on top of a blue car and appeared to be under the influence,” according to the police department’s account of what happened on May 25.

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“Two officers arrived and located the suspect, a male believed to be in his 40s, in his car. He was ordered to step from his car.  After he got out, he physically resisted officers. Officers were able to get the suspect into handcuffs and noted he appeared to be suffering medical distress. Officers called for an ambulance. He was transported to Hennepin County Medical Center by ambulance where he died a short time later.”

Officials from the FBI and US Justice Department promised that the probe would be “robust and meticulous.”

“The Department of Justice has made the investigation a top priority and has assigned experienced prosecutors and FBI criminal investigators to the matter,” US Attorney Erica MacDonald and FBI Special-Agent-in-Charge Rainer Drolshagen said in a joint statement.

“The Federal investigation will determine whether the actions by the involved former Minneapolis Police Department officers violated federal law. It is a violation of federal law for an individual acting under color of law to willfully deprive another person of any right protected by the Constitution or laws of the United States.”

The media’s role in the protests that followed Floyd’s came sharply into focus when, early on Friday, CNN’s Omar Jimenez was arrested along with his TV crew.

Minneapolis had deployed police officers in the 3rd Precinct near the burned-down police station, in anticipation of another day of riots and arson. They were trying to clear the area when they asked Jimenez to leave.

Jimenez told police as he prepared to do a live report: “We are getting out of your way.” 

But the journalist began his report instead of leaving, prompting police to say he was under arrest.

CNN anchor Alisyn Camerota, who looked on as her colleague was being arrested, told viewers: “If you are just tuning in you are watching our correspondent Omar Jimenez being arrested by state police in Minnesota. We are not sure why our correspondent is being arrested.”

The camera crew was arrested after refusing to leave and trying to continue the live CNN report.

The city’s mayor, Jacob Frey, urged for calm and restraint following the violence.

“What we have seen over the last two days and the emotion ridden conflict over last night is the result of so much built up anger and sadness,” he tweeted. “Anger and sadness that has been ingrained in our black community not just because of five minutes of horror, but four hundred years. If you are feeling that sadness and that anger it is not only understandable it is right. It is the reflection of the truth of what our black community has lived.”

Frey urged “our non-black communities” to understand the rage from African- American citizens around the US and not just in Minneapolis.

The Washington D.C-based US Council of Muslim Organizations urged Muslims across the country to pray for Floyd’s family and condemned the officers’ conduct.  

“Minneapolis police officers marked Memorial Day by suffocating an utterly subdued black man named George Floyd to death as he pleaded with his last stifled words for the right to breathe. They snuffed out the light of his life with a knee on his neck, collapsing his trachea. They killed him in broad daylight. They killed him over a slow seven minutes. They killed him while contemptuously mocking the helpless bystanders pleading for mercy, for humanity, for George Floyd’s expiring life. They killed him even after Floyd had died by continuing to kneel on his limp, lifeless body for another two minutes.”

 

 


Poland shuts consulate in Saint Petersburg on Russian order

Updated 53 min 54 sec ago
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Poland shuts consulate in Saint Petersburg on Russian order

  • Russia ordered the closure in December after Poland said in October it was closing Russia’s consulate in the Polish city of Poznan
  • “The Polish Consulate General in Saint Petersburg was shut down upon Russia’s withdrawal of its consent to the activity of the Polish post,” Poland’s foreign ministry said

WARSAW: Poland announced Wednesday it had shut its consulate in the Russian city of Saint Petersburg, after Russia ordered the closure in a tit-for-tat move.
Russia ordered the closure in December after Poland said in October it was closing Russia’s consulate in the Polish city of Poznan, accusing Moscow of “sabotage” attempts in the country and its allies.
“The Polish Consulate General in Saint Petersburg was shut down upon Russia’s withdrawal of its consent to the activity of the Polish post,” Poland’s foreign ministry said in a statement Wednesday.
“It is in retaliation for a decision of the Polish foreign minister to close down Russia’s Consulate General in Poznan in the aftermath of acts of sabotage committed on Polish territory and linked to Russian authorities.”
After Russia ordered the closure, Poland responded that it would close all the Russian consulates on its soil if “terrorism” it blamed on Moscow carried on.
Tensions between Russia and NATO member Poland have escalated since Moscow sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022, with both sides expelling dozens of diplomats.
Poland is a staunch ally of Kyiv and has been a key transit point for Western arms heading to the embattled country since the conflict began.
In one of the largest espionage trials, Poland in 2023 convicted 14 citizens of Russia, Belarus and Ukraine of preparing sabotage on behalf of Moscow as part of a spy ring.
They were found guilty of preparing to derail trains carrying aid to Ukraine, and monitoring military facilities and critical infrastructure in the country.


2 Russian firefighters died in blaze caused by Ukraine drone: governor

Updated 08 January 2025
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2 Russian firefighters died in blaze caused by Ukraine drone: governor

  • “As a result of the liquidation (of the fire), there are two dead,” said the governor of Saratov region

MOSCOW: Two Russian firefighters died on Wednesday fighting a blaze caused by a Ukrainian drone attack, the local governor said, after Kyiv said it hit an oil depot that supplies Russia’s air force.
“Unfortunately, as a result of the liquidation (of the fire), there are two dead — employees of the emergency situations ministry’s fire department,” Roman Busagrin, governor of the Saratov region where the strike happened, said on Telegram.


UK police investigating suspicious vehicle in central London, carry out controlled explosions

British police carried out a number of controlled explosions as a precaution in central London as they investigated vehicle.
Updated 08 January 2025
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UK police investigating suspicious vehicle in central London, carry out controlled explosions

  • Road closures are in place in the vicinity of Regent Street and New Burlington Street in central London, police said on X

LONDON: British police carried out a number of controlled explosions as a precaution in central London as they investigated a suspicious vehicle on Wednesday, the city’s police force said on social media.
Road closures are in place in the vicinity of Regent Street and New Burlington Street in central London, police said on X.


Sri Lanka vows crackdown on illegal activities by Israeli tourists

People enjoy the beach in Colombo, Sri Lanka. (File/AFP)
Updated 52 min 25 sec ago
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Sri Lanka vows crackdown on illegal activities by Israeli tourists

  • Government reacts to complaints over emergence of Israeli-run businesses and place of worship in Arugam Bay
  • Last month, Sri Lankan civil groups demanded screenings of Israeli visitors to keep out potential war criminals

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka will crack down on reported illegal activities carried out by Israeli tourists, its prime minister said on Wednesday, following a series of complaints since last year regarding their arrivals in the country.

A total of 25,514 Israelis visited Sri Lanka in 2024, according to government data. One of their favorite destinations is Arugam Bay, a small town on the southeastern coast, which is widely recognized as one of the world’s best surfing spots.

The predominantly Muslim region made international headlines in October last year, when US and Israeli authorities warned visitors of what they said was a “terrorist threat” focused on tourist areas and beaches. The alleged threat followed a series of altercations between Israelis and local residents.

Social media posts by visitors to Arugam Bay and complaints by locals themselves indicate that many of the arriving Israelis come for vacations after taking part in the ongoing deadly onslaught on Palestinians in Gaza.

Residents have also complained over the emergence of Israeli businesses in the area and the establishment of a Chabad house — a Jewish community center and place of worship.

Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya said during Wednesday’s parliament session that Sri Lankan authorities have not granted “any permission for Israeli citizens to build religious places of worship or related buildings” and “the government will take prompt action to stop it.”

Responding to questions raised by opposition lawmaker Mujibur Rahman, she also addressed reports regarding Israelis running businesses in the area.

“We have identified this as a problem. Action will be taken against this, and steps will be taken to hold talks regarding it and stop such business activities,” Amarasuriya said.

“The government has not issued any visa for Israelis to engage in business activities in Sri Lanka, especially under tourist visas. They are engaging in such activities by violating our laws.”

The government’s reaction follows last month’s protests in Sri Lanka’s capital and a petition by civil society groups demanding special screenings of Israelis arriving in the country.

The direct trigger for the protest was the identification of at least one Israeli tourist as a soldier accused of war crimes.

The man was spotted in Sri Lanka by the Hind Rajab Foundation, a nongovernmental organization based in Belgium, which pursues legal action against Israeli military personnel involved in the killing of tens of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza over the past 15 months.

Swasthika Arulingam, a human rights lawyer and leader of the People’s Struggle Movement, which helped organize the protest, slammed the former Israeli personnel.

She said those “coming here after/between service rounds, taking rest or time off from attacking Palestinians in the ongoing genocide,” and their “sympathizers who hold vigils and events for their genocidal comrades” were the most problematic groups of tourists arriving in the country and often spotted in Arugam Bay.

“We are also hearing stories of illegal tourist businesses being carried out by Israelis in Sri Lanka,” she told Arab News.

“The local economy is impacted by the factor these people are running operations in Sri Lanka making use of resources here and not paying their dues.”

The recent “terrorist threat” warning by the US has also affected the local community.

“Local residents and local tourism providers have told us that in the last couple of weeks, the advisories and threats have meant their own properties are subject to surveillance and checking from the military,” Arulingam said.

“As citizens of Sri Lanka, we are yet to know if there were actual security concerns or was this simply bullying tactics by the US to keep Sri Lanka in check. We are concerned regarding what’s transpiring in Arugam Bay.”


French minister calls for hijab ban on school trips

French Interior Minister has called for a ban on Muslim women wearing hijabs while accompanying children on school outings.
Updated 08 January 2025
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French minister calls for hijab ban on school trips

  • Bruno Retailleau: ‘The veil is a banner for Islamism, a marker of the subordination of women to men’
  • Islamists seek to ‘overturn our institutions and undermine national cohesion to impose Shariah law’

LONDON: French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau has called for a ban on Muslim women wearing hijabs while accompanying children on school outings, The Times reported.

French state schools already have a ban on religious head coverings, while the senate approved a bill mandating the removal of headscarves on school outings in 2019, but it did not become law.

“The threat of attack has never been so great as now,” said Retailleau. “It is now primarily endogenous — young individuals radicalized through social media. Last year alone, our services foiled nine attacks, the highest number since 2017.”

Political Islam poses a national threat as it seeks to “overturn our institutions and undermine national cohesion to impose Shariah law in the long term,” he added.

To combat this, the French state must curtail the spread of Islamism in public spaces, sports and education, he said.

“Women accompanying them (students) should not be veiled,” Retailleau added. “The veil is a banner for Islamism, a marker of the subordination of women to men.”

He said his views target a new tolerance for Islamism on the French political left, adding: “Today antisemitism has two faces: Political Islam and also the face of those who use the Palestinian tragedy to court the Muslim vote.”