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Tuesday, March 3, 2009

Six policemen and a civilian driver were killed and seven members of the Sri Lankan cricket team have been injured in a coordinated gun and rocket attack by 12 to 14 gunmen in Lahore, Pakistan at about 8.00 a.m local time.

The Sri Lankan players were ambushed en route to the Gaddafi stadium to play the third day of the second test, near the liberty roundabout. According to eye witnesses the team convoy was stopped by two vehicles blocking their path.

Security for the tourists included varying the route to the stadium; however, the attack occurred just outside the stadium, with the gunmen surrounding the team convoy on four sides. Wearing ballistic vests and armed with AK 47s, grenades and rockets, the gunmen first targeted the police escort, who bore the brunt of the attack, before turning their sights on the cricketers.

The masked gunmen used rockets to disable the lead vehicle. The driver of the team bus was able to avoid injury and was able to drive out of the area within a minute of the ambush, however injuries were sustained by the team as they were hit by both small arms fire and the resulting spall. No one has claimed responsibility for the attack and no suspects have been arrested.

The team escaped to the safety of the stadium and received first aid in the dressing rooms. The gunmen and police continued to exchange fire for half an hour before the gunmen escaped.

Bloodied and in shock, the team were evacuated from the stadium by air force helicopters landing on the wicket, with Tharanga Paranavithana and Thilan Samaraweera requiring hospital treatment for shrapnel wounds to the chest and leg respectively.

After the attack the tour was immediately cancelled. The team has been recalled and will leave Pakistan as soon as possible. The Sri Lankans were not even meant to be in Pakistan, being there only because the Indian team had withdrawn from a tour in the wake of the 2008 Mumbai attacks.

In view of the attack the ICC, issued a statement noting their “dismay and regret” and has called into question the future of international cricket in Pakistan, including Pakistani involvement as co-hosts of the 2011 Cricket World Cup.

Friday, May 29, 2009

A 48-year-old man in Ohio has been arrested and is facing charges of obstruction of justice and disorderly conduct after refusing to stop cutting the grass at a local public park.

John Hamilton of Sandusky says on Thursday the grass in Sandusky Central Park was over 12 inches long. He decided to take up the task of cutting it after driving around his city and seeing how long the grass was in vacant lots and in public parks. He was also inspired by Toledo‘s mayor, who spent his time off cutting the grass in his local parks.

“I was only trying to save the city some money,” said Hamilton to FOX 8 in Cleveland. As Hamilton was cutting the grass, city workers attempted to stop him, showing him a list of lawns they were going to cut, including the one he was mowing. Hamilton told the worker to go cut another lawn while he finished cutting the one in Sandusky Central Park.

A short time later, police arrived on the scene and told Hamilton to stop cutting the grass. When he refused, police verbally warned him. When he refused a second time, police arrested him and charged him with obstruction and disorderly conduct. Police say that the trash was not removed from the lawn prior to him mowing it and his riding mower was throwing the debris onto the sidewalks and into the streets.

City officials call the incident unfortunate, but that they knew the grass would be an issue months before the growing season started. Officials say there are over 600 acres of park grass that needs to be mowed regularly, but that only three or four people are assigned the task due to city budget cuts. Officials also add that residents can adopt local parks in an effort to help maintain them, but Hamilton did not go through the process.

Hamilton appeared in court today where he pled not guilty.

“I am a citizen,” said Hamilton who added he had no regrets about the incident. “The only thing I’m worried about is…how am I going to tell my wife.”

Thursday, January 14, 2010

Countries and organizations from around the world are sending aid and help to victims of the devastating 7.0 magnitude earthquake that struck Haiti on Tuesday, damaging many buildings. The death toll is currently unknown, but estimated to run into the tens of thousands of people.

US president Barack Obama said in a press conference that “I’ve directed my administration to launch a swift, coordinated and aggressive effort to save lives and support the recovery in Haiti.”

Obama announced that aid from the US armed forces was coming to Haiti, noting, “Several Coast Guard cutters are already there providing everything from basic services like water, to vital technical support for this massive logistical operation.”

Obama continued: “[…] today, I’m also announcing an immediate investment of $100 million to support our relief efforts. This will mean more of the life-saving equipment, food, water and medicine that will be needed. This investment will grow over the coming year as we embark on the long-term recovery from this unimaginable tragedy.”

Obama said that the US would forge partnerships with Haitian people and Haitian-Americans, along with United Nations peacekeepers. He closed by saying, “To the people of Haiti, we say clearly, and with conviction, you will not be forsaken; you will not be forgotten. In this, your hour of greatest need, America stands with you. The world stands with you.”

The UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon said that $10 million is being released from the international organization’s central emergency response fund.

Meanwhile, the UN’s World Food Programme (WFP), which already has an existing operation in the country, is beginning to distribute high energy biscuits which require no preparation before eating. On top of that, the WFP is airlifting 86 metric tons of food from their emergency hub in El Salvador.

A spokesperson for the WFP said, “In a normal day the World Food Programme will be feeding one or two million people in Haiti — and now we need to do even more, because the people have lost everything.”

China is also pledging aid to the country, despite the lack of official diplomatic ties between the two countries. Haiti recognizes the Republic of China, better known as Taiwan. Nevertheless, China has sent a 60 member search and rescue team to Haiti and the Chinese Red Cross is donating one million dollars in emergency aid.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Jiang Yu said her country expresses sympathy to the Haitian government and people. Jiang says the Chinese foreign minister has sent a telegram of condolence to his Haitian counterparts.

An 80 member team from the United Kingdom of search and rescue specialists has arrived in Haiti to help in efforts there. British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said in a joint press conference with Toaiseach of Ireland Brian Cowen that the team has arrived in the country. He also announced that the government is pledging to match the UN’s US$10 million (£6.1 million).

Brown said, “It is a tragedy beyond imagination and there is a deep sense of loss felt by the whole of the British and Irish people about the tragedy that individual families in Haiti are experiencing at the moment. We send our message of sympathy and support to the people of Haiti at this most difficult of times.”

He added, “Where men, women and children are suffering under the heaviest of burdens, that place must, for that moment, become the centre of our world’s attention, the world’s compassion and the world’s humanitarian help.”

France is also sending aid to the French-speaking country, which at one time was a colony of France known as Saint-Domingue. France is sending two planes with rescuers and aid. Civil safety authorities in France are sending a team of 130 members consisting of rescuers, trained rescue dogs, doctors and nurses along with 12,000 tons of aid and rescue supplies.

Israel is sending rescue forces in two El Al planes carrying a 121-member delegation that includes 40 doctors, five search-and-rescue teams, and an army rescue squad. The IDF medical teams are preparing to spend two weeks in Haiti.

Spain has pledged $4.3 million (€3 million) in aid money and has 150 tons of aid ready to be delivered.

South Africa is sending a team of search and rescue specialists to Haiti in response to the devastating earthquake on Tuesday. It is the first of several teams being sent by a local civic group.

The head of South Africa’s Gift of the Givers Foundation, Emtiaz Sooliman, says his group is sending up to three teams of search and rescue specialists to Haiti to help victims of the earthquake and hopefully save some lives.

“These are people who have worked with building collapses, urban search and rescue and some of them have been involved in responding to previous earthquakes so they are highly skilled,” he said.

Sooliman says a second team is to depart as soon as he can book a flight for it.

Tuesday, August 23, 2016

The following is the third edition of a monthly series chronicling the U.S. 2016 presidential election. It features original material compiled throughout the previous month after an overview of the month’s biggest stories.

In this month’s edition on the campaign trail: two individuals previously interviewed by Wikinews announce their candidacies for the Reform Party presidential nomination; a former Republican Congressman comments on the Republican National Convention; and Wikinews interviews an historic Democratic National Convention speaker.