Police use Taser to subdue man who stormed media area of Trump rally in Pennsylvania

1 / 3
Attendees hold signs on the day Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump holds a rally at the Cambria County War Memorial Arena in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, on August 30, 2024. (REUTERS)
2 / 3
A supporter of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump holds a sign on the day of a rally at the Cambria County War Memorial Arena in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, on August 30, 2024. (REUTERS)
3 / 3
A supporter of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump break dances wearing a Trump's mask ahead of a rally at the Cambria County War Memorial Arena in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, on August 30, 2024. (REUTERS)
Short Url
Updated 31 August 2024
Follow

Police use Taser to subdue man who stormed media area of Trump rally in Pennsylvania

  • Another man in the crowd was handcuffed by cops and led out of the arena
  • Security at political events has been noticeably tighter since the assassination attempt on Trump

JOHNSTOWN, Pennsylvania: A man at Donald Trump’s rally in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, stormed into the press area as the former president spoke Friday but was surrounded by police and sheriff’s deputies and was eventually subdued with a Taser.
The altercation came moments after Trump criticized major media outlets for what he said was unfavorable coverage and dismissed CNN as fawning for its interview Thursday with his Democratic rival Kamala Harris and her running mate, Tim Walz.
The man made it over a bicycle rack ringing the media area, and began climbing the back side of a riser where television reporters and cameras were stationed, according to a video of the incident posted to social media by a reporter for CBS News. People near him tried to pull him off the riser and were quickly joined by police officers.
The crowd cheered as a pack of police led the man away, prompting Trump to declare, “Is there anywhere that’s more fun to be than a Trump rally?”
Moments later police handcuffed another man in the crowd and led him out of the arena, though it wasn’t clear if that detention was related to the initial altercation.
The incident happened amid heightened scrutiny of security at Trump rallies after a gunman fired at him, grazing his ear, during an outdoor rally in nearby Butler, Pennsylvania. Security at political events has been noticeably tighter since the shooting.
It was not clear what motivated the man or whether he was a Trump supporter or critic. Fierce criticism of the media is a standard part of Trump’s rally speeches, prompting his supporters to turn toward the press section and boo, often while using a middle finger to demonstrate their distaste for journalists.


Israel envoy criticizes Japan atomic survivor’s Gaza comparison

Updated 10 sec ago
Follow

Israel envoy criticizes Japan atomic survivor’s Gaza comparison

  • Around 140,000 people were killed when the United States dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima
Tokyo: Israel’s ambassador to Japan criticized on Sunday a leader of Nihon Hidankyo, the atomic bomb survivors’ group awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, for comparing their experiences to the children of Gaza.
Gilad Cohen congratulated Nihon Hidankyo for winning this year’s prize but said in a post on social media platform X on Sunday the comparison drawn by the group’s co-chair Toshiyuki Mimaki “is outrageous and baseless.”
“Gaza is ruled by Hamas, a murderous terrorist organization committing a double war crime: targeting Israeli civilians, including women and children, while using its own people as human shields,” Cohen said.
“Such comparisons distort history and dishonor the victims” of the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel that triggered the war in Gaza, Cohen said.
Mimaki said after the prize was announced on Friday that the plight of children in Gaza was similar to what Japan faced at the end of World War II.
“In Gaza, bleeding children are being held (by their parents). It’s like in Japan 80 years ago,” Mimaki said.
A representative for the Hiroshima chapter of Nihon Hidankyo could not be reached for comment about Cohen’s post.
Around 140,000 people were killed when the United States dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945, and 74,000 more were killed in Nagasaki three days later.
Survivors of the blasts later formed Nihon Hidankyo to tell the stories of those atomic bombings and to press for a world without nuclear weapons.
Nagasaki decided not to invite Cohen to mark this year’s 79th anniversary of the bombing, citing security reasons to avoid possible protests.
That decision prompted the ambassadors of the United States, Britain and the European Union, among others, to skip the ceremony and send lower-level officials instead.
The Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, resulted in the deaths of 1,206 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.
The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza says 42,175 people, a majority of them civilians, have been killed since Israel’s military campaign began there. The United Nations acknowledges these figures to be reliable.
hih/pbt

Taiwan says on ‘alert’ as China aircraft carrier detected to its south

Updated 52 min 43 sec ago
Follow

Taiwan says on ‘alert’ as China aircraft carrier detected to its south

  • China has ramped up military activity around Taiwan in recent years

TAIPEI: Taiwan was on “alert” as it detected a Chinese aircraft carrier to its south on Sunday, the self-ruled island’s defense ministry said.
“China’s Liaoning aircraft carrier group has entered waters near the Bashi Channel and is likely to proceed into the western Pacific,” the ministry said in a statement, adding that its military “remains on alert, prepared to respond as necessary.”
China has ramped up military activity around Taiwan in recent years, sending in warplanes and other military aircraft while Chinese ships maintain a near-constant presence around its waters.
The Liaoning aircraft carrier detection comes after US State Secretary Antony Blinken warned China on Friday against taking any “provocative” action on Taiwan, following a speech by Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te during the island’s National Day celebrations a day earlier.
Lai, who China calls a “separatist,” vowed Thursday to “resist annexation” of the island, and insisted Beijing and Taipei were “not subordinate to each other.”
China warned after the speech that Lai’s “provocations” would result in “disaster” for the people of Taiwan.


Indian politician shot dead in Mumbai

Updated 13 October 2024
Follow

Indian politician shot dead in Mumbai

  • Baba Siddique, 66, was shot multiple times in the chest outside son’s office in Mumbai 
  • Siddique’s death takes place ahead of key state elections slated for later this year

MUMBAI: A senior politician in India’s financial capital Mumbai was shot dead on Saturday, weeks ahead of key state elections, with police probing the role of a notorious crime gang.
Baba Siddique, 66, a local lawmaker and former minister in Maharashtra state, was shot multiple times in the chest outside his son’s office in Mumbai, Indian media reported.
Maharashtra’s deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar, from the same party as Siddique, said he was “shocked” by the “cowardly attack.”
The Hindustan Times newspaper reported that two suspected attackers had been arrested, and police were searching for another.
Broadcaster NDTV said the two suspects claimed they were part of a gang run by Lawrence Bishnoi, who is in jail accused of running a crime gang that has carried out multiple killings.
The shooting comes just weeks after Siddique’s security detail was upgraded after he received death threats, and ahead of elections slated for later this year.
“The incident will be thoroughly investigated and strict action will be taken against the attackers,” Pawar said in a statement. “The mastermind behind the attack will also be traced.”
Siddique was close to several Bollywood stars and was known for throwing grand parties.


Vietnam, China to boost economic, defense cooperation

Updated 13 October 2024
Follow

Vietnam, China to boost economic, defense cooperation

  • Vietnam would facilitate more high-tech Chinese investment in the country and Beijing would strengthen market access for Vietnamese agricultural products
  • Both sides would prioritize cooperation in rail connectivity between the neighboring countries

HANOI: Vietnam and China said they will boost defense and economic cooperation, Vietnamese state media reported on Sunday, despite a recent fare-up in their territorial dispute in the South China Sea.
China’s Premier Li Qiang met Vietnam’s top leader To Lam in Hanoi on Saturday, the Nhan Dan newspaper reported.
The two agreed to “maintain regular high-level exchanges and cooperation in defense, security, and foreign affairs... expanding the implementation of new mechanisms,” the newspaper said.
Vietnam would facilitate more high-tech Chinese investment in the country and Beijing would strengthen market access for Vietnamese agricultural products, the newspaper said.
Both sides would prioritize cooperation in rail connectivity between the neighboring countries, Nhan Dan said.
China is Vietnam’s biggest trade partner, but the two countries share historic tensions — including in the South China Sea, a waterway through which trillions of dollars of trade pass each year.
China has for years sought to expand its presence in contested areas of the sea, brushing aside an international ruling that its claim to most of the waterway has no legal basis.
Last week Hanoi protested what it said was a “brutal” attack by Chinese vessels on Vietnamese fishermen in a disputed area of the sea.
At Saturday’s meeting Vietnam’s Lam “urged both parties to... better manage and resolve differences” in maritime issues, Nhan Dan said.
Lam took office in early August as general secretary following the death of his predecessor, Nguyen Phu Trong.
He met Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing just a few weeks after during his first overseas trip.


US says Israel has narrowed down targets for strike on Iran, NBC reports

Updated 13 October 2024
Follow

US says Israel has narrowed down targets for strike on Iran, NBC reports

  • Israel has repeatedly said it will respond to Iran’s missile attack on Oct. 1

US officials believe Israel has narrowed down targets in its response to Iran’s recent attack to military and energy infrastructure, NBC reported on Saturday.
There is no indication that Israel will target nuclear facilities or carry out assassinations, the report said citing unnamed US officials, adding that Israel has not made final decisions about how and when to act.
US and Israeli officials said a response could come during the current Yom Kippur holiday, according to the report.
Israel has repeatedly said it will respond to Iran’s missile attack on Oct. 1, launched in retaliation for Israeli strikes in Lebanon and Gaza and the killing of a Hamas leader in Iran.