9 dead in Texas shooting involving rival biker gangs

May 18, 2015

Washington, May 18: At least nine people were killed and 18 injured in a shootout between rival biker gangs in Texas' Waco city on Sunday afternoon, police said on Monday.

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The shootout occurred in a parking lot between the Twin Peaks and Don Carlos restaurants shortly after noon, said local television station News Channel 25.

All the dead - eight of whom died at the scene, the ninth in a local hospital - were members of the rival motorcycle gangs.

The fight broke out in the Twin Peaks after an argument, with the brawlers spilling outside into the parking lot, police said.

Police official W. Patrick Swanton said members of at least three rival gangs were in the parking lot when the shooting erupted, but he did not provide the names of the gangs or the victims.

Police were on the scene when the shooting started and officers fired on some of the bikers to put an end to the clash, said Swanton, adding that the officers' actions "saved lives" and prevented the clash from becoming even bigger.

Many officers and emergency medical teams were dispatched to the scene of the shootout, where law enforcement authorities found chains, knives, garrots, firearms and other weaponry scattered around the area.

Police said the condition of some of the injured, who were taken to local hospitals with knife and gunshot wounds, is such that more deaths may occur in the coming hours or days.

Some of the customers inside the two restaurants managed to hide in the freezers to protect themselves from the gunfire, the TV station reported.

After the shootout, the two restaurants closed and police arrested a number of people and questioned the people present.

One eyewitness, Michelle Logan, 37, told media that there were about 30 firearms in action in the parking lot and about 100 shots were fired in all.

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June 1,2020

Washington, Jun 1: As protesters gathered outside the White House on Friday night in Washington DC, US President Donald Trump was briefly taken to the White House underground bunker, The New York Times reported citing a person having firsthand knowledge about the incident.

Trump was there for less than an hour before being brought upstairs. After hundreds of people surged towards the White House on Friday, Secret Service and the United States Park Police officers sought to block them.

Trump's team was surprised by the protests that were witnessed outside the White House on Friday night, according to the US daily. It is, however, unclear if Melania Trump and Barron Trump were also taken down with him.

in response to the continuing protests against the death of African-American man George Floyd in police custody.

National Guard members have been activated in 15 states and Washington, DC with another 2,000 prepared to activate if needed.

Demonstrators across the United States have been protesting since May 25, when George Floyd, a 46-year-old African-American man, died under the police custody in the city of Minneapolis.

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Agencies
July 22,2020

Houston, Jul 22: China said on Wednesday that the US has ordered it to close its consulate in Houston in what an official called an outrageous and unjustified move that will sabotage China-US relations.

Foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin condemned the action, which comes as tensions rise between the world's two largest economies. He warned of firm countermeasures if the US does not reverse its decision.

The unilateral closure of China's consulate general in Houston within a short period of time is an unprecedented escalation of its recent actions against China, Wang said at a daily news briefing.

There was no immediate confirmation or explanation from the U.S. side.

Media reports in Houston said that authorities had responded to reports of a fire at the consulate. Witnesses said that people were burning paper in what appeared to be trash cans, the Houston Chronicle reported, citing police.

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Agencies
June 29,2020

Tehran, Jun 29: Iran has issued an arrest warrant and asked Interpol for help in detaining President Donald Trump and dozens of others it believes carried out the drone strike that killed a top Iranian general in Baghdad, a local prosecutor reportedly said Monday.

While Trump faces no danger of arrest, the charges underscore the heightened tensions between Iran and the United States since Trump unilaterally withdrew America from Tehran’s nuclear deal with world powers.

Tehran prosecutor Ali Alqasimehr said Trump and more than 30 others whom Iran accuses of involvement in the Jan. 3 strike that killed Gen. Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad face “murder and terrorism charges,” the semiofficial ISNA news agency reported.

Alqasimehr did not identify anyone else sought other than Trump, but stressed that Iran would continue to pursue his prosecution even after his presidency ends.

Interpol, based in Lyon, France, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Alqasimehr also was quoted as saying that Iran requested a “red notice” be put out for Trump and the others, which represents the highest level arrest request issued by Interpol. Local authorities end up making the arrests on behalf of the country that request it. The notices cannot force countries to arrest or extradite suspects, but can put government leaders on the spot and limit suspects’ travel.

After receiving a request, Interpol meets by committee and discusses whether or not to share the information with its member states. Interpol has no requirement for making any of the notices public, though some do get published on its website.

It is unlikely Interpol would grant Iran’s request as its guideline for notices forbids it from “undertaking any intervention or activities of a political” nature.

The U.S. killed Soleimani, who oversaw the Revolutionary Guard’s expeditionary Quds Force, and others in the January strike near Baghdad International Airport. It came after months of incidents raising tensions between the two countries and ultimately saw Iran retaliate with a ballistic missile strike targeting American troops in Iraq.

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