List of All Articles with Tag 'c'

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis condemned Walt Disney World and the U.S. Justice Department — not his chief Republican rival, Donald Trump — as he courted Nevada Republicans deep in the heart of Trump country

A 19-year-old Michigan man accused of threatening a mass attack on a synagogue will make his second appearance in court this week after the FBI arrested him on Friday and discovered a cache of weapons at his home. Seann Patrick Pietila, of Pickford on Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, was charged with one count of interstate communication of threats after posting antisemitic content on social media, prosecutors said. He appeared in court on Friday and a detention hearing is scheduled for Thursday. According to prosecutors, Mr Pietila seemed inspired by mass shootings that included the 15 March 2019 mosque attacks in Christchurch, New Zealand which left 51 dead and 40 injured, The Detroit News reported. Court documents outlined how authorities found makeshift plans for Mr Pietila’s own event on the tragedy’s five year anniversary – 15 March 2024 – possibly targeting the Shaarey Zedek congregation in East Lansing, according to the AP. “The investigation began with a tip earlier this week that someone was making threats on Instagram to commit a mass killing, according to a criminal complaint filed in federal court,” the AP reported. Officials said that a note was found in Pietila’s phone mentioning Shaarey Zedek and the date of 15 March 2024, the Lansing State Journal reported. The note continued: “Me and Limey, Equipment: hand-made pipe bombs, molotovs, Two Stag-15s, 12 guage shotgun and two back up Glock 18s AND a Akm full auto conversion,” the paper reported. On the same day the teenager was arrested, another man was found guilty by a federal jury of attacking.a synagogue 350 miles away in Pittsburgh in 2018. Robert Bowers was found guilty on all 63 counts he faced, which included hate crimes resulting in death and the obstruction of the free exercise of religion resulting in death. The ruling came more than four years after he killed 11 people during the Tree of Life synagogue attack. On 18 October 2018, Bowers walked into the synagogue with an AR-15 and other guns and began firing at the congregants. The attack would become the worst anti-Semitic attack in US history. In addition to the 11 people he killed, Bowers injured seven people, including five police officers who engaged him in a shootout. In Michigan, Rabbi Amy Bigman of Shaarey Zedek told The Detroit News the synagogue had notified its congregation of 220 families after learning on Friday afternoon about the Pietila investigation from FBI agents, and that an arrest had been made and that person had been charged, the AP reported. “We wanted our congregation to know that federal, state and local authorities are aware of the situation that didn’t happen because our law enforcement was on top of things, which we are thankful for,” Bigman said. If convicted, Mr Pietila faces up to five years in federal prison. The Independent has reached out to his lawyer. US Attorney Mark Totten said on Friday that Mr Pietila was “alleged to have communicated with others on social media and “evinced a neo-Nazi ideology, antisemitism, glorification of past mass shooters, and a desire and intent to mimic past mass shooters or mass casualty events,” according to the State Journal. Mr Totten said he was “incredibly grateful to the FBI for their swift action to identify and arrest Pietila,” the AP reported. “Antisemitic threats and violence against our Jewish communities — or any other group for that matter — will not be tolerated in the Western District of Michigan,” he said. “Today and every day, we take all credible threats seriously.” Read More Synagogue shooter found guilty in deadliest attack on Jewish community in US history Synagogue massacre survivor cried 'Mommy' as her 97-year-old mother was shot and killed by her side Rabbi recounts fear and heroism during deadliest antisemitic attack in US history US weighs in on Roger Waters antisemitism debate, says artist has long history of denigrating Jews Kanye West sparks controversy after serving sushi on nude women during 46th birthday party

Eight people, including teenagers, were injured in a shooting in Los Angeles County, authorities said Saturday. Two are in critical condition.

By Rich McKay Months after a grand jury declined to indict eight police officers in Akron, Ohio, who

A federal judge has given Enbridge three years to shut down a section of an oil and gas pipeline that crosses reservation land

Jerome Powell will be in the Capitol Hill spotlight a week after the Federal Reserve paused its most

The two rival superpowers are having their most important talks in years. Here are the points of tension.

Bond investors are having to regroup after this week’s Federal Reserve meeting dealt a crippling blow to a

Spain has witnessed its hottest spring since 1961, with high temperatures likely to continue for months.

Mississippi authorities say they have captured the second of two escapees who broke out of a detention facility in May.

'I’ve been experiencing my creativity ever since last summer in a really special and private way,' wrote Lady Gaga

President Joe Biden on Saturday called the Chinese spy balloon debacle “embarrassing” for the Asian superpower’s leaders – while highlighting his hopes for productive talks as Antony Blinken embarks upon the first high-profile diplomatic trip to Beijing since the 46th president took office. Speaking before boarding a plane to Pennsylvania on Saturday morning, President Biden told reporters that China “has some legitimate difficulties unrelated to the United States. “And I think one of the things that that balloon caused was not so much that it got shot down, but I don’t think the leadership knew where it was and knew what was in it and knew what was going on,” the President said. “I think it was more embarrassing than it was intentional. And so I’m hoping that, over the next several months, I’ll be meeting with [Chinese President] Xi [Jinping] again, and talking about legitimate differences we have – but also how ... to get along.” The already tense relations between the United States and China became further strained earlier this year when the US shot down what it said was a Chinese spy balloon flying over American soil. China persistently denied that the balloon, which was shot down in February over the Atlantic, had been used for spying. Presidents Biden and Xi agreed to Secretary Blinken’s trip at a meeting last year in Bali, but it was delayed by the balloon drama. Secretary Blinken will be the highest-level American official to visit China since President Biden took office and the first secretary of state to make the trip in five years. He is expected to meet with Foreign Minister Qin Gang on Sunday, top diplomat Wang Yi, and possibly Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday, according to US officials. “Yet prospects for any significant breakthrough on the most vexing issues facing the planet’s two largest economies are slim, as already ties have grown increasingly fraught in recent years,” the Associated Press news agency reported. “Animosity and recriminations have steadily escalated over a series of disagreements that have implications for global security and stability.” Speaking to the AP before Mr Blinken’s departure, two US officials downplayed hopes for major progress and stressed that the trip was intended to restore a sense of calm and normalcy to high-level contacts. “We’re coming to Beijing with a realistic, confident approach and a sincere desire to manage our competition in the most responsible way possible,” said Daniel Kritenbrink, the top US diplomat for East Asia and the Pacific. Kurt Campbell, the top Asia expert at the National Security Council, said “intense competition requires intense diplomacy if we’re going to manage tensions. That is the only way to clear up misperceptions, to signal, to communicate, and to work together where and when our interests align.” Read More Blinken set for high-stakes China visit with tensions rising and breakthrough prospects low China calls hacking report 'far-fetched' and accuses the US of targeting the cybersecurity industry Chinese premier meets with Palestinian president in effort to increase Middle East presence Blinken heads to China this weekend on mission to salvage sinking ties and keep communications open Beijing criticizes new US sanctions on companies over pilot training, weapons development