Police have arrested an 18-year-old recruit who opened fire at his colleagues during a drill.

Jurors in Pittsburgh have begun considering whether the gunman in a white supremacist 2018 shooting at a local synagogue complex should get the death penalty. In June, Robert Bowers, who killed 11 people at the Tree of Life synagogue, was convicted on 63 federal counts. According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, experts called by his attorneys have been arguing in court in recent days that he was so mentally damaged by the time of the shooting he shouldn’t face the death penalty, which is forbidden against people with certain intellectual handicaps. They pointed out how Bowers had been in multiple psychiatric hospitals by the time he was 13 years old, diagnosed with depression and other ailments. As a teenager, he also attempted to kill his mother by spraying an aerosol toward her and trying to light it on fire. By 16, he was voluntarily committed again to a mental facility and had made “repeated suicide attempts,” according to the defence. Richard Rogers, a forensic psychologist who met with Bowers four times while he was in prison, told jurors the gunman showed signs of delusional thinking tied to his white supremacist ideas. “He did not just believe [his conduct] to be correct,” Mr Rogers said, “he believed it absolutely had to be done.” A majority of families whose loved ones died in the shooting have voiced their support for the death penalty in the case. “We are not a ruthless, uncompassionate people; we, as a persecuted people, understand when there is a time for compassion and when there is a time to stand up and say enough is enough — such violent hatred will not be tolerated on this earth,” they wrote in a 2022 letter in the Pittsburg Jewish Chronicle. “Our beloved 11 were taken from us in a brutal, cold-blooded act of hatred and violence. We, the undersigned, will feel further violated by letting the defendant have the easy way out. His crimes deserve the death penalty.” Others tied to the tragedy, the deadliest antisemitic shooting in US history, argued the death penalty violates Jewish tradition. “Jewish practice as I understand it does not — outside of self-defense — allow humans to take the lives of other humans. Not even the life of a murderer whose guilt is beyond doubt,” Beth Kissileff, whose husband, a rabbi, was in the Tree of Life facility during the shooting, wrote in The New York Times. “The death penalty does nothing to promote healing; it only continues more killing,” she added. The Independent and the nonprofit Responsible Business Initiative for Justice (RBIJ) have launched a joint campaign calling for an end to the death penalty in the US. The RBIJ has attracted more than 150 well-known signatories to their Business Leaders Declaration Against the Death Penalty - with The Independent as the latest on the list. We join high-profile executives like Ariana Huffington, Facebook’s Sheryl Sandberg, and Virgin Group founder Sir Richard Branson as part of this initiative and are making a pledge to highlight the injustices of the death penalty in our coverage. Read More A copycat Zodiac Killer terrorised New York years after the California original. This is how he got caught Pittsburgh synagogue killer has extensive history of mental illness, defense expert testifies Doctors give mixed testimony on whether tests show brain damage in the Pittsburgh synagogue killer

Australia's women's football team won the country's highest sporting honour on Friday for causing a "seismic shift" in the national game...

Police have fatally shot a Georgia gunman who went on the run after allegedly killing four people in a small town south of Atlanta. Andre Longmore, 40, was killed during a manhunt on Sunday afternoon, Henry County Sheriff Reginald Scandrett confirmed to the WSB-TV station. “The monster is dead,” Henry County Sheriff Reginald Scandrett told reporters on Sunday afternoon. “The entire state of Georgia can breathe a little easier tonight.” Authorities say that a Henry County deputy and a Clayton County police officer were wounded during the incident, but both are conscious. The deputy was taken by Life Flight to Grady Memorial Hospital for medical treatment. Officials say that officers exchanged gunfire with Longmore twice in nearby Clayton County before he was “neutralised” and declared dead, the sheriff added. Investigators say that Longmore killed four residents of Dogwood Lakes Drive and Dogwood Ridge around 10.45 am on Saturday. Hampton Police Chief James Turner identified the victims on Sunday as s Scott Levitt, 67; Shirley Levitt, 66; Steve Blizzard, 65; and Ronald Jeffers, 66. Police said that Longmore lived in the Dogwood Lakes Drive neighbourhood but they have not yet determined a motive for the shooting. “Wherever you are, we will hunt you down in whatever hole you may be hiding in and bring you into custody. Period,” Henry County Sheriff Reginald Scandrett told reporters on Saturday. Police had identified the suspect as 40-year-old Andre Longmore, who they had obtained four warrants for and described him as being armed and dangerous. Hampton is a city of 8,500 residents located around an hour south of Atlanta, Georgia. Officials say that the last homicide was reported in 2018 and insisted it is one of the safest communities in the state. “This community is grieving,” Hampton city manager Alex Cohilas said on Sunday. “We’re thankful we have achieved a resolution in which no more loss of life has occurred.” And he added: “It’s just not normal for us.” The murders and the police response are under investigation by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. Earlier, Frankie Worth, a resident of the neighbourhood, said he saw the suspect brandishing a black handgun and that he witnessed him fatally shoot his neighbour. “Just when I was about to open the window, I heard pow,” Worth told Atlanta’s WSB-TV. “When I opened the window, I saw (the gunman’s) arms up and he’s coming back down.” And he added: “When he realised the shot was good, he took the weapon, checked it for a minute, put it in his holster.” Read More In quiet Georgia subdivision, neighbor says he saw man accused of killing 4 shoot man in street At least four killed in Georgia mass shooting as police hunt ‘active shooter’ Usher’s ex-wife wants to drain Georgia lake where her son was killed

The housing sector accounts for a third of China's economy, whose post-pandemic recovery has been sluggish.

Police in Florida say they've arrested a suspect in the mass shooting on a Tampa street overnight

Trader Joe’s is recalling a broccoli cheddar soup that may contain insects and cooked falafel that may contain rocks, about one week after the grocery chain recalled two cookie products over similar concerns

For the first time since the breakup of the Soviet Union, Russia is taking an intense interest in Cuba as Moscow has become increasingly isolated...

More than 200 people rallied outside San Francisco's City Hall to urge supervisors to act on reparations for Black residents

Teachers are leaving jobs in growing numbers, state reports show

Ukraine could still achieve a big breakthrough in its counteroffensive before changing weather conditions make it harder to advance, president Volodymyr Zelensky says. Mr Zelensky’s forces have broken through the first of three main Russian defensive lines in Zaporizhzhia and could make more gains in the weeks to come, he said, though a breakthrough will not be “tomorrow or the day after tomorrow”. “If we push them [Russia] from the south, they will run,” he told The Economist in an interview. It comes after US military chief General Mark Milley said Kyiv could have as little as 30 days of fighting left before the onset of Ukraine’s infamously wet autumn weather makes battlefield movement more difficult. General Milley said the rains would make it “very difficult to manoeuvre” for both sides. Mr Zelensky reiterated the assessments of his military and Western intelligence agencies that Ukraine is making clear gains, however modest, in the east and south. “Keeping morale high is crucial. This is why even limited progress on the frontline is essential,” Mr Zelensky said. “Now we have movement. It’s important.” Read More Russia is turning to old ally North Korea to resupply its arsenal for the war in Ukraine Families in Gaza have waited years to move into new homes. Political infighting is keeping them out India avoids condemnation of Russia to produce united G20 declaration

Kanye, 45, takes a stroll in LA with his kids, North and Saint, creating precious family moments after Kim's epic rant on ‘The Kardashians’ Season 3