SYDNEY: Australian police battled severe alpine weather on Saturday on the fifth day of a search for a gunman who escaped into dense bush after allegedly shooting dead two officers and injuring another at a rural property in Victoria state.
Hundreds of officers were in the field searching for 56-year-old Dezi Freeman, previously known as Desmond Filby, who is believed to have expert bushcraft skills and multiple powerful firearms, a police spokesperson said.
The search area includes the town of Porepunkah, about 300 kilometers northeast of Melbourne, where Freeman is alleged to have fired on police on Tuesday, before fleeing on foot into the bush.
Bureau of Meteorologist senior forecaster Jonathan How said a severe weather warning was current for the region, which was experiencing challenging conditions of cold, wind and snow.
A very cold night was on the way for the area, including possible black ice on roads, How said. A minimum temperature of 0 degrees Celsius (32 degrees Fahrenheit) was forecast on Sunday for Porepunkah, according to the weather bureau.
Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan visited nearby Wangaratta police station on Friday to pay tribute to the two slain officers, Detective Leading Senior Constable Neal Thompson, 59, and Senior Constable Vadim De Waart, 35, amid what she said was the “huge operation” by authorities to catch Freeman.
“Their loss won’t be forgotten. With honor they served,” Allan said of the officers on social media platform X.
Freeman is alleged to have fired on a team of 10 police officers, including members of the sexual offenses and child investigation team, when they arrived at his Porepunkah property to execute a search warrant.
Australian media have reported that police believe Freeman is a “sovereign citizen” who regards the government is illegitimate.
Search for Australian gunman enters fifth day as weather closes in
https://arab.news/zmyct
Search for Australian gunman enters fifth day as weather closes in
- Dezi Freeman, previously known as Desmond Filby, is believed to have expert bushcraft skills and multiple powerful firearms
- Australian media have reported that police believe Freeman is a “sovereign citizen” who regards the government is illegitimate
Brazil’s Lula accuses Trump of seeking to forge ‘new UN’
- Lula defended multilateralism against what he called “the law of the jungle” in global affairs
- Key US allies including France and Britain have also expressed doubts
BRASILIA: Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva accused Donald Trump on Friday of trying to create “a new UN” with his proposed “Board of Peace.”
The veteran leftist joins other world leaders who have avoided signing up for Trump’s new global conflict resolution organization, where a permanent seat costs $1 billion and the chairman is Trump himself.
“Instead of fixing” the United Nations, “what’s happening? President Trump is proposing to create a new UN where only he is the owner,” Lula said.
Trump unveiled his “Board of Peace” at the World Economic Forum in the Swiss ski resort of Davos Thursday, joined on stage by leaders and officials from 19 countries to sign its founding charter.
Lula defended multilateralism against what he called “the law of the jungle” in global affairs.
His remarks come a day after he spoke by phone with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, who urged his counterpart to safeguard the “central role” of the United Nations in international affairs.
In his remarks on Friday, Lula said “the UN charter is being torn.”
Although originally intended to oversee Gaza’s rebuilding, the board’s charter does not seem to limit its role to the Palestinian territory and appears to want to rival the United Nations.
Key US allies including France and Britain have also expressed doubts.
London balked at the inclusion of Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose forces are fighting in Ukraine after invading in 2022.
France said the charter as it currently stood was “incompatible” with its international commitments, especially its UN membership.
