WAUKESHA, Wisconsin: An 8-year-old boy became the sixth person to die Tuesday as a result of a man driving his SUV into a suburban Milwaukee Christmas parade, with a criminal complaint alleging that the suspect in the case steered side-to-side with the intent of striking marchers and spectators.
Darrell Brooks Jr., 39, was charged with five counts of first-degree intentional homicide, a charge that carries a mandatory life sentence if convicted. He rocked back and forth in his seat and cried throughout his court hearing on Tuesday, his attorney’s arm on his back, as the charges against him were detailed. His bail was set at $5 million, and a preliminary hearing was scheduled for Jan. 14.
“The nature of this offense is shocking,” said Waukesha Court Commissioner Kevin Costello.
Additional charges related to the sixth death and the more than 60 people injured will be coming later this week or next, said Waukesha County District Attorney Susan Opper. The criminal complaint said 62 people were injured, up from the 48 previously announced by police.
Brooks is accused of speeding away from police and entering the Waukesha Christmas parade on Sunday night, refusing to stop even as an officer banged on the hood of his SUV. Another officer fired three shots into the vehicle, but it did not stop.
Five people ranging in age from 52 to 81 were pronounced dead within hours. Jackson Sparks, 8, was the first of many injured children to have died. He was walking in the parade with his 12-year-old brother Tucker, who was injured in the crash and was being discharged from the hospital, according to his GoFundMe page.
“This afternoon, our dear Jackson has sadly succumbed to his injuries and passed away,” the page’s organizer, Alyssa Albro, wrote.
The city’s livestream video and bystander video captured the chaotic scene when an SUV sped along the parade route and then into the crowd. Several of those injured remain in critical condition.
According to the criminal complaint, witnesses told police that the vehicle “appeared to be intentionally moving side to side,” with no attempt to slow down or stop as it struck multiple people and sent bodies and objects flying.
Brooks ignored several attempts to stop him, according to the criminal complaint.
A detective — wearing police insignia and a neon orange safety vest — stepped in front of Brooks’ vehicle and pounded on the hood, shouting “Stop,” several times but Brooks drove past him, according to the complaint.
A uniformed police officer who saw Brooks’ SUV traveling toward the parade route also tried to get his attention, yelling “Stop, stop the vehicle” several times but was ignored, according to the complaint. The officer “observed the driver looking straight ahead, directly at him, and it appeared he had no emotion on his face,” the complaint said.
Brooks braked at one point, but instead of turning away from the parade route, he turned into the crowd and appeared to rapidly accelerate, the complaint said.
Another police officer shot at the vehicle, striking it three times as it entered the parade route. Brooks was not hit by the bullets, the Waukesha police chief said Monday.
The complaint said one witness who spoke with police said the SUV “continued to drive in a zig zag motion. It was like the SUV was trying to avoid vehicles, not people. There was no attempt made by the vehicle to stop, much less slow down.”
Waukesha Police Chief Dan Thompson said Brooks was leaving the scene of a domestic dispute that had taken place just minutes earlier when he drove into the parade route.
He had been free on $1,000 bail for a case in Milwaukee County earlier in November in which he’s accused of intentionally striking a woman with his car. Prosecutors said they’re investigating their bail recommendation in that case, calling it inappropriately low.
Brooks has been charged with crimes more than a dozen times since 1999, mostly in Wisconsin but also in Georgia and Nevada, and had two outstanding cases against him at the time of the parade disaster. That included resisting or obstructing an officer, reckless endangering, disorderly conduct, bail jumping and battery for the Nov. 2 incident.
Thompson said that there was no evidence the bloodshed Sunday was a terrorist attack or that Brooks knew anyone in the parade. Brooks acted alone, the chief said.
NBC News published doorbell camera footage that appeared to capture Brooks’ arrest. It showed Brooks, shivering in just a T-shirt, knocking on a homeowner’s door and asking for help calling for a ride. Moments later, police surrounded the house and shouted, “Hands up!” Brooks, standing on the porch, held up his hands and said, “Whoa whoa whoa!”
Hundreds gathered at a downtown park Monday night in Waukesha, Wisconsin, for a candlelight vigil in honor of those lost and hurt. A pair of clergy solemnly read the names of those who died. Volunteers handed out sandwiches, hot chocolate and candles at the vigil, which was attended by interfaith leaders and elected officials.
“We are parents. We are neighbors. We are hurting. We are angry. We are sad. We are confused. We are thankful. We are all in this together. We are Waukesha Strong,” said a tearful Amanda Medina Roddy with the Waukesha school district.
Mayor Shawn Reilly described the parade as a “Norman Rockwell-type” event that “became a nightmare.”
Child is 6th death in Waukesha parade crash; suspect charged
https://arab.news/245jd
Child is 6th death in Waukesha parade crash; suspect charged
- Darrell Brooks Jr. was charged with five counts of first-degree intentional homicide
- Jackson Sparks, 8, was the first of many injured children to have died
Anti-domestic violence groups are suing over the Trump administration’s grant requirements
- The groups say the requirements, which Trump ushered in with executive orders, put them in “an impossible position”
Seventeen statewide anti-domestic and sexual violence coalitions are suing President Donald Trump’s administration over requirements in grant applications that they don’t promote “gender ideology” or run diversity, equity and inclusion programs or prioritize people in the country illegally.
The groups say the requirements, which Trump ushered in with executive orders, put them in “an impossible position.”
If they don’t apply for federal money allocated under the Violence Against Women Act of 1994, they might not be able to provide rape crisis centers, battered women’s shelters and other programs to support victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. But if the groups do apply, they said in the lawsuit, they would have to make statements they called “antithetical to their core values” — and take on legal risk.
In the lawsuit filed in US District Court in Rhode Island on Monday, the coalitions said that agreeing to the terms of grants could open them to federal investigations and enforcement actions as well as lawsuits from private parties.
The groups suing include some from Democratic-controlled states, such as the California Partnership to End Domestic Violence, and in GOP-dominated ones, including the Idaho Coalition against Sexual and Domestic Violence.
The groups say the requirements are at odds with federal laws that require them not to discriminate on the basis of gender identity, to aid underserved racial and ethnic groups, and to emphasize immigrants with some programs and not to discriminate based on legal status.
The US Department of Justice, which is named as a defendant in the lawsuit, did not respond to a request for comment.
The suit is one of more than 200 filed since January to challenge President Donald Trump’s executive orders. There were similar claims in a suit over anti-DEI requirements in grants for groups that serve LGBTQ+ communities. A judge last week blocked the administration from enforcing those orders in context of those programs, for now.
Nigerian state signs peace pact with criminal gangs: official
- Dozen bandit kingpins met with local officials to renounce violence. With no ideological leaning, the bandits are motivated by financial gains
- As a mark of goodwill, the bandits surrendered weapons and released 17 hostages, with the promise to free more people they were holding
KANO, Nigeria: Authorities in Nigeria’s northwestern Katsina state struck a peace deal at the weekend with criminal gangs to try to end years of violence, a government official said Monday.
Katsina is one of several states in northwestern and central Nigeria terrorized by criminal gangs that the locals refer to as bandits.
The gangs raid villages, kill and abduct residents as well as torch homes after looting them.
The gangs maintain camps in a huge forest straddling Zamfara, Katsina, Kaduna states in the northwest region and Niger state in the country’s central zone and have carried out mass kidnappings of students from schools in recent years.
On Saturday, a dozen bandit kingpins met with local officials and community leaders in the town of Danmusa, where they renounced violence and pledged to turn a new leaf, Nasiru Mu’azu, Katsina state internal commissioner said.
“There was a peace meeting between 12 bandit leaders and the local community leaders in Danmusa where the bandits renounced their criminal activities and committed to peace,” Mu’azu said.
The bandits initiated the meeting, he said. “The community welcomed the overtures and agreed to a peace deal as long as the bandits are genuinely interested in peace,” he said.
As a mark of goodwill, the bandits surrendered weapons and released 17 hostages, with the promise to free more people they were holding.
Authorities in Katsina had earlier ruled out peace deals after the criminal gangs reneged on peace negotiations and returned to crime.
With no ideological leaning, the bandits are motivated by financial gains but their increasing alliance with jihadists from the northeast has been raising concern among authorities and security analysts.
In 2023, Katsina state governor Dikko Umar Radda established Katsina Community Watch Corps, comprising around 2,000 vigilantes to assist the military and police in fighting the bandits.
“We have been fighting the bandits for the past two years and the state governor has reiterated he will not negotiate from a position of weakness,” Mu’azu said.
“But since they on their own came forward and extended the olive branch, we have to give them that opportunity.”
In November last year, neighboring Kaduna state, which has rejected negotiation with bandits, signed a peace accord with the criminal gangs terrorizing Birnin-Gwari district.
Hunger crisis deepens in global hotspots as famine risk rises, UN warns
- Conflict, economic shocks, and climate-related hazards blamed for harsh conditions in the worst-hit areas
ROME: Extreme hunger is intensifying in 13 global hot spots, with Gaza, Sudan, South Sudan, Haiti, and Mali at immediate risk of famine without urgent humanitarian intervention, a joint UN report warned on Monday.
The “Hunger Hotspots” report by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization and World Food Programme blamed conflict, economic shocks, and climate-related hazards for conditions in the worst-hit areas.
The report predicts food crises in the next five months.
It called for investment and help to ensure aid delivery, which it said was being undermined by insecurity and funding gaps.
“This report is a red alert. We know where hunger is rising and we know who is at risk,” said WFP Executive Director Cindy McCain.
“Without funding and access, we cannot save lives.”
For famine to be declared, at least 20 percent of the population in an area must be suffering extreme food shortages, with 30 percent of children acutely malnourished and two people out of every 10,000 dying daily from starvation or malnutrition and disease.
In Sudan, where famine was confirmed in 2024, the crisis is expected to persist due to conflict and displacement, with almost 25 million people at risk.
South Sudan, hit by flooding and political instability, could see up to 7.7 million people in crisis, with 63,000 in famine-like conditions, the report said.
In Gaza, Israel’s continued military operations and blockade have left the entire population of 2.1 million people facing acute food insecurity, with nearly half a million at risk of famine by the end of September, the report said.
In Haiti, escalating gang violence has displaced thousands, with 8,400 already facing catastrophic hunger, while in Mali, conflict and high grain prices put 2,600 people at risk of starvation by the end of August.
Other countries of high concern include Yemen, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Myanmar, and Nigeria.
“Protecting people’s farms and animals to ensure they can keep producing food where they are, even in the toughest and harshest conditions, is not just urgent — it is essential,” said FAO Director General QU Dongyu.
Some countries, such as Ethiopia, Kenya, and Lebanon, have improved and have been removed from the FAO and WFP’s Hunger Hotspots list.
The UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said on Monday it was drastically scaling back its global humanitarian aid plans because of the “deepest funding cuts ever” — leaving tens of millions of people facing dire straits.
OCHA said it was seeking $29 billion in funding for 2025 compared to the $44 billion requested initially in December, in a “hyper-prioritized” appeal.
“Brutal funding cuts leave us with brutal choices,” OCHA chief Tom Fletcher said in a statement.
“All we ask is 1 percent of what you chose to spend last year on war. But this isn’t just an appeal for money it’s a call for global responsibility, human solidarity, and a commitment to end the suffering.”
In late April, while visiting a hospital in Kandahar in Afghanistan, Fletcher warned: “Cutting funding for those in greatest need is not something to boast about ... The impact of aid cuts is that millions die.”
With 2025 nearly halfway through, the UN has received only $5.6 billion out of the $44 billion sought initially for this year — a mere 13 percent.
In total, the original plan covered more than 70 countries and aimed to assist nearly 190 million vulnerable people.
Even so, that plan acknowledged there were 115 million people the UN could not reach.
“We have been forced into a triage of human survival,” Fletcher said on Monday.
The mathematics “is cruel, and the consequences are heartbreaking.”
“Too many people will not get the support they need, but we will save as many lives as we can with the resources we are given,” he said.
Aid will now be directed so that it can “reach the people and places facing the most urgent needs,” with those in “extreme or catastrophic conditions” as the starting point, said Fletcher.
“This will ensure that limited resources are directed where they can do the most good — as quickly as possible,” the statement said.
Norway’s king makes symbolic visit to Svalbard, in coveted Arctic
- the region around Svalbard has gained in geopolitical and economic importance as tensions mount between Russia and the West, not least with the ice sheet receding
- Interest in the Arctic has intensified since US President Donald Trump’s threats this year to annex Greenland, which he says the US needs for reasons of national security
OSLO: Norway’s King Harald made a highly symbolic visit on Monday to the country’s Svalbard archipelago, located in an Arctic region coveted by superpowers like the United States, Russia and China.
Situated halfway between the European continent and the North Pole, the region around Svalbard has gained in geopolitical and economic importance as tensions mount between Russia and the West, not least with the ice sheet receding.
Interest in the Arctic has intensified since US President Donald Trump’s threats this year to annex Greenland, which he says the US needs for reasons of national security.
“It was especially appropriate to come this year,” the 88-year-old monarch said after stepping off the royal yacht with his wife Sonja in Longyearbyen, Svalbard’s main town which is home to 2,500 people.
“We have seen increased attention being paid to the Arctic and Svalbard. This brings both challenges and opportunities,” he added.
The king was in Svalbard to take part in celebrations marking the 100th anniversary of the entry into force of an international treaty that put the Svalbard archipelago under Norwegian rule.
Drawn up in Paris in 1920, the treaty gives the citizens of the nearly 50 signatories — including China and Russia — an equal right to exploit the archipelago’s natural resources.
As a result, Russia is able to maintain two settlements, including a mining community, in the small village of Barentsburg where a Lenin statue stands and Soviet flags are regularly flown — all in a NATO country.
China has meanwhile defined itself as a “near-Arctic state” and has displayed a growing interest in the region.
“When the royal yacht ‘Norge’ drops anchor with the royal standard atop the mast, this emphasizes, even more than King Harald’s words could say, that Norway is taking care of its rights and assuming its responsibilities,” said Lars Nehru Sand, a commentator at public radio NRK.
“The king is here to show that this is ours,” he said.
UN refugee agency says will shed 3,500 jobs due to funding cuts
- UNHCR carried out a review of its activities, expenditure, staffing and structures following a plunge in humanitarian funding
- It has been among a host of UN and private aid agencies badly hit by funding cuts by the United States, which previously made up more than 40 percent of UNHCR contributions received
GENEVA: The UN refugee agency said Monday it will cut 3,500 staff jobs — slashing nearly a third of its workforce costs — due to a funding shortfall, and reduce the scale of its help worldwide.
UNHCR carried out a review of its activities, expenditure, staffing and structures following a plunge in humanitarian funding.
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has been among a host of UN and private aid agencies badly hit by funding cuts by the United States.
The United States — which was by far UNHCR’s biggest donor — has slashed its foreign aid under a radical spending review ordered by US President Donald Trump. Other countries have also cut humanitarian spending.
Washington previously made up more than 40 percent of UNHCR contributions received — $2 billion per year, the agency’s chief Filippo Grandi told the UN Security Council in April.
“In light of difficult financial realities, UNHCR is compelled to reduce the overall scale of its operations,” Grandi said in Monday’s statement.
He added that UNHCR would focus “on activities that have the greatest impact for refugees” while streamlining its Geneva headquarters and regional offices.
The agency said it had had to close or downsize offices worldwide and implement a nearly 50-percent cut in senior positions in Geneva and at the regional HQs.
“In total, approximately 3,500 staff positions will be discontinued,” the statement said.
Additionally, hundreds of temporary workers have had to leave the organization due to the funding shortfall.
“Overall, UNHCR estimates a global reduction in staffing costs of around 30 percent,” the agency said.
It said that programs ranging from financial aid to vulnerable families, health, education, and water and sanitation had already been affected by cuts.
UNHCR said it was working with other organizations and refugee-hosting countries to try to mitigate the impact on refugees.
UNHCR estimates that it will end 2025 with available funding at about the same level as a decade ago — despite the number of people forced to flee their homes having nearly doubled over the same period to more than 122 million.
“Even as we face painful cuts and lose so many dedicated colleagues, our commitment to refugees remains unshakeable,” said Grandi.
“Although resources are scarcer and our capacity to deliver is reduced, we will continue to work hard to respond to emergencies, protect the rights of refugees, and pursue solutions — including returning home, as nearly two million Syrians have done since December.”
Syria’s civil war erupted in 2011, and ruler Bashar Assad was overthrown in December 2024.
Sudan is now the world’s largest forced displacement situation, with its 14.3 million refugees and internally displaced people overtaking Syria (13.5 million), followed by Afghanistan (10.3 million) and Ukraine (8.8 million).
At the end of 2024, one in 67 people worldwide were forcibly displaced, UNHCR said Thursday.
