Sri Lanka authorities say Easter attack leader killed in one of nine hotel bombings - Fox News

The suspected leader of the Easter Sunday bombings in Sri Lanka died in the Shangri-La hotel, one of six hotels and churches targeted in the attacks that killed at least 250 people, authorities said.

Police said Mohamed Zahran, leader of the National Towheed Jamaat militant group, had been killed in one of the bombings. The group’s second in command was also arrested, police said.

Zahran amassed an online following for his hate-filled sermons. Some were delivered before a banner depicting the Twin Towers.

Sri Lankan authorities said Friday that Islamic cleric Mohammed Zahran died in the blast at the Shangri-La hotel during the Easter Sunday atatcks that killed at least 250 people.  (YouTube)

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said Friday that the attackers responsible for the bombings were supported by the Islamic State group. Around 140 people in Sri Lanka had connections to ISIS, Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena said.

"We will completely control this and create a free and peaceful environment for people to live," he said.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Investigators determined the attackers received military training from someone called "Army Mohideen.” They also received weapons training overseas and at some locations in Sri Lanka, according to authorities.

A copper factory operator arrested in connection with the bombings helped Mohideen make improvised explosive devices, police said. The bombings have led to increased security throughout the island nation as authorities warned of another attack.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://www.foxnews.com/world/sri-lanka-authorities-say-easter-attack-leader-killed-in-one-of-nine-hotel-bombings

2019-04-26 07:26:45Z
52780273201173

Daimler Says It Has No Idea How Kim Jong Un Got Its Limos - TIME

this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

http://time.com/5578569/kim-jong-un-north-korea-daimler-limousines/

2019-04-26 06:59:32Z
52780277221893

Kim Jong Un accuses US of acting in 'bad faith' - CNN

The report in North Korea's state-run KCNA news was released on the final day of Kim's visit to the far-eastern Russian city of Vladivostok. Kim and Putin met there for the first time Thursday, spending about three and a half hours together. The North Korean leader left Vladivostok Friday afternoon aboard his armored government train.

KCNA reported that "Kim Jong Un said that the situation on the Korean Peninsula and the region is now at a standstill, and has reached a critical point where it may return to its original state, as the US took a unilateral attitude in bad faith at the recent second DPRK-US summit talks," using the acronym for North Korea's formal name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

KCNA also said Kim told his Russian hosts that "peace and security on the Korean Peninsula will entirely depend on the US' future attitude, and the DPRK will guard itself for every possible situation."

US President Donald Trump's second meeting with Kim in Hanoi in February ended earlier than expected and without a deal. Trump and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the two sides could not agree on the amount of sanctions relief to exchange for concrete steps by North Korea to eliminate its nuclear weapons program.

While Trump said both sides left things on good terms, North Korean officials have accused the US of sabotaging the talks.

Diplomats from Pyongyang have used similar language to Kim's in describing US demands at the Hanoi summit.

North Korean First Vice Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui told reporters in March that the country has "no intention to yield to the US demands (put forward at the Hanoi summit) in any form, nor are we willing to engage in negotiations of this kind."

Putin and Kim did not sign any documents or agreements after their meetings, nor were they weren't expected to. The summit was instead heavy on lavish symbolism and platitudinous remarks about mutual friendship. Kim called the relationship "a precious treasure of our two nation's people that is an amalgamation of the mutual goal and interest based on historical tradition."

Analysts say the meeting may have been attempt by the Russian leader to reinsert Moscow into one of the most important regional conflicts after months of sitting on the sidelines while China, South Korea and the US engaged in diplomatic talks with North Korea.

Others say Pyongyang may have been shopping for deals, seeking to lessen its economic reliance on Beijing and hedge against the possibility that talks with Washington fail.

"The trip is more about stirring other interlocutors into renewed talks/concessions," said Robert Kelly, a professor of international relations at Pusan National University in South Korea.

CNN's Jake Kwon, Zahra Ullah and Nathan Hodge contributed to this report

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://www.cnn.com/2019/04/26/asia/kim-jong-un-vladivostok-intl/index.html

2019-04-26 06:38:00Z
52780277221893

Sri Lanka attacks: Death toll revised down by 'about 100' - BBC News

Sri Lanka has revised down the death toll from Sunday's blasts by more than 100, to "about 253", the health ministry says.

It has blamed a calculation error.

Suicide bombers struck hotels and churches in the Colombo area and the eastern city of Batticaloa. Hundreds were injured, officials said.

Most of those killed were Sri Lankans, but dozens of foreigners were also casualties, officials said. There were a suspected nine attackers.

• Sri Lanka attacks: What we know
• Sister of ‘ringleader’ deplores attack

Police have continued carrying out raids and have issued photographs of seven people wanted in connection with the attacks.

In other developments:

• Sri Lanka's defence secretary announced his resignation on Thursday in response to failures in passing on intelligence

• The country's Catholic Church has announced the suspension of all church services

• Police say more than 70 people have now been arrested

• The UK Foreign Office is now warning against all but essential travel to Sri Lanka

• It emerged that one of the attackers once studied in the UK and Australia

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-48059328

2019-04-25 16:41:15Z
52780273201173

Researchers say world's second-largest emperor penguin colony has been wiped out | TheHill - The Hill

Researchers say what was once the world’s second-largest colony of emperor penguins has “now all but disappeared” after changes in sea-ice conditions made their typical breeding grounds highly unstable.

A group of researchers from the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) published their findings in the Antarctic Science journal on Thursday. The team said in a statement that they studied “very high resolution satellite imagery to reveal the unusual findings.”

ADVERTISEMENT

According to their research, satellite imagery showed that the emperor penguin colony at Halley Bay in Antarctica had drastically decreased over the past three years on account of breeding failures caused by severe changes in local environmental conditions.

“For the last 60 years the sea-ice conditions in the Halley Bay site have been stable and reliable,” the team said. “But in 2016, after a period of abnormally stormy weather, the sea-ice broke up in October, well before any emperor chicks would have fledged.”

The group said the conditions were repeated the following two years, leading to “the death of almost all the chicks at the site each season.”

“The colony at Halley Bay colony has now all but disappeared, whilst the nearby Dawson Lambton colony has markedly increased in size, indicating that many of the adult emperors have moved there, seeking better breeding grounds as environmental conditions have changed,” the researchers said.

Peter Fretwell, the lead author of the report and a remote sensing specialist at BAS, said the team has been studying the population of penguins at the Halley Bay colony and other nearby colonies for years using the high resolution satellite imagery.

“These images have clearly shown the catastrophic breeding failure at this site over the last three years,” Fretwell said. “Our specialized satellite image analysis can detect individuals and penguin huddles, so we can estimate the population based on the known density of the groups to give reliable estimate of colony size.”

Phil Trathan, a penguin expert with BAS who co-authored the report, said “it is impossible to say whether the changes in sea-ice conditions at Halley Bay are specifically related to climate change, but such a complete failure to breed successfully is unprecedented at this site.”

“Even taking into account levels of ecological uncertainty, published models suggest that emperor penguins numbers are set to fall dramatically," he said, adding that the penguins are likely to lose between 50 percent and 70 percent "of their numbers before the end of this century as sea-ice conditions change as a result of climate change.”

The researchers said they plan to continue to study the colony's response to the changing sea-ice conditions to help other scientists gain "vital information about how this iconic species might cope with future environmental change."

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/440646-researchers-say-the-worlds-second-largest-emperor-penguin-colony

2019-04-25 15:56:54Z
52780276577508

UK warns against all but essential Sri Lanka travel - BBC News

The UK is advising against all but essential travel to Sri Lanka after the Easter Sunday bombings in which more than 350 people died.

The Foreign Office says terrorists are very likely to try to carry out indiscriminate attacks there, including in places visited by foreigners.

Eight Britons are known to be among those killed in the attacks on churches and hotels in the Sri Lankan capital Colombo, Negombo and Batticaloa.

More than 500 people were injured.

BBC diplomatic correspondent James Robbins said the government was now talking to the travel industry about helping the 8,000 British tourists believed to be in Sri Lanka if they decide they want to cut short their visits.

The Foreign Office has issued advice to any Britons still in Sri Lanka:

• Remain vigilant, keep up to date with developments and follow the advice of local security authorities and hotel security staff

• Keep a low profile, avoid crowded public places, large gatherings (including religious gatherings and places of worship) and any demonstrations.

• Avoid travelling during periods of curfew (other than to or from the airport)

• Keep in touch with family and friends and make them aware of any plans you may have

Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt said he hoped to be able to be able to change the advice once the current security operation had concluded.

"My first priority will always be the security of British citizens living and travelling abroad.

"We all hope the situation will return to normal very soon, and that the Sri Lankan tourism industry is able to get back on its feet following the terrorist attacks.

"We will do all we can to help the Sri Lankan authorities in the meantime," he added.

Among the victims of Sunday's bombings were Anita Nicholson and her children Annabel, 11, and Alex, 14, who were visiting Sri Lanka on holiday from their home in Singapore.

Dr Sally Bradley and William Harrop were also on holiday from western Australia where they were living.

London siblings Daniel, 19, and Amelie Linsey, 15, died after their father tried to rescue them from one of the bombings.

And IT director Lorraine Campbell, 55, from Greater Manchester, was staying at Colombo's Cinnamon Grand Hotel on a business trip when she died.

A team of family liaison officers has been sent to Sri Lanka to support the families of British victims and help repatriate the deceased.

---

Have you cancelled plans to travel to Sri Lanka? Are you in Sri Lanka? Please share your experience by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk

Please include a contact number if you are willing to speak to a BBC journalist. You can also contact us in the following ways:

• WhatsApp: +44 7555 173285
• Tweet: @BBC_HaveYourSay
• Send pictures/video to yourpics@bbc.co.uk
• Upload your pictures / video here
• Text an SMS or MMS to 61124 or +44 7624 800 100
• Please read our terms of use and privacy policy

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-48057838

2019-04-25 15:09:33Z
52780273201173

Sri Lanka suicide bomber was previously arrested and then released - CNN

Ilham Ahmed Ibrahim -- one of two sons of a spice tycoon who blew themselves up in Sunday's attacks -- detonated a device at the Cinnamon Grand hotel in Colombo, the official told CNN.

"It was the suicide bomber of the Cinnamon Grand bomb attack who was released earlier," the official said.

Ilham Ahmed Ibrahim and his brother Imsath Ahmed Ibrahim were previously identified as two of the suicide bombers in Sunday's attacks, which left at least 359 people dead across the country.

Police have confirmed to CNN that they are holding the brothers' father, Mohamed Yusuf Ibrahim, a wealthy spice trader, on suspicion of aiding and abetting his sons.

Police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekera said the elder Ibrahim was in custody, as were all other members of the Ibrahim family known to police.

CNN has not been able to reach Mohamed Yusuf Ibrahim or other members of his family for comment.

In an interview with CNN, Sri Lanka's Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said the suspected bombers were upper and middle class, well-educated and educated abroad, a profile he described as "surprising." He added that several of them were under surveillance ahead of the attacks, but that there had not been "sufficient" evidence to take them into custody.

Meanwhile, a huge international criminal investigation is ramping up in Sri Lanka, with six foreign police agencies and Interpol assisting local police, including Scotland Yard from the UK and the FBI from the US.

Gunasekera told CNN that officers from Sri Lanka's Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and Terrorism Investigation Department (TID) have raided five safe houses across the country in connection with Sunday's attacks. Those locations have since been sealed for forensic investigation.

More than 70 suspects have been taken into custody on a range of charges, including suspicion of terrorism, aiding and abetting terrorism and conspiracy to commit terrorism, Gunasekera said. Four high level suspects are being held by TID, and 33 are being held by CID, he added.

Of those arrested, four suspects are female, and all are Muslims. Gunasekera said most of them are family members and friends of the suspected suicide bombers. None of those arrested are foreigners.

Significant raids were carried out on Wednesday night, he added, in which 16 people were arrested at various locations, most near the capital Colombo. Three shotguns and two walkie-talkies were also seized.

As police continue to investigate how a previously little known terror group managed to pull off a huge and coordinated series of attacks, Gunasekera also revealed that police had confirmed that an explosion in the predominantly Muslim area of Kathankudi, in eastern Sri Lanka, in early April was a test run by the terrorists. In that explosion they blew up a motorcycle.

On Thursday, police said search operations were currently underway across Colombo, including the setting up of roadblocks. Police have asked the public not to panic, a police spokesman told CNN.

Sri Lanka remains on high alert and numerous controlled demolitions have been carried out of suspicious packages and vehicles in recent days. However, Gunasekera said that he did not believe the controlled demolitions on Thursday were of actual explosives.

Prime Minister Wickremesinghe warned of the potential for more attacks in the country. In his CNN intevriew, he said authorities were targeting "sleepers" -- terrorists who could activate to initiate another round of attacks.

"Police and security forces are rounding up those involved, but they're also rounding up the sleepers, those used on second and third rounds (of attacks)," he said.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://www.cnn.com/2019/04/25/asia/sri-lanka-investigation-arrests-intl/index.html

2019-04-25 13:50:00Z
52780273201173