Headline

24 Dead As US Suffered 26 Mass Shootings In July’s First Five Days

Published

2 years ago

July 7, 2023

No fewer than 24 people have died as the United States experienced about 26 mass shootings in the first five days of July, according to data collected by the Gun Violence Archive.

The archive collects data on gun violence in the US and classifies a mass shooting as an incident where four or more people, not including the shooter, are injured or killed.

According to CBS, the shootings suffered this month included a drive-by shooting in Washington, D.C. on July 5 that injured nine and an incident in Shreveport, Louisiana that left four dead and seven injured on the Fourth of July.

It also disclosed that much of the gun violence went down over the holiday weekend including a July 2 shooting at a house party in Baltimore, Maryland in which 2 people were killed and 28 injured.

The archive disclosed that in total, at least 24 people have been killed and more than 140 people have been injured in mass shootings in the United States so far this month.

At least 14 deaths and 50 injuries resulted from shootings over the Fourth of July weekend, CBS reported.

In 2023, there have been over 9,700 gun violence-related deaths and 19,180 injuries in the U.S., according to the archive.

There were 360 mass shootings, 27 mass murders and 845 unintentional shootings. At least 143 children have been killed by guns, and another 353 have been injured.

The archive said 780 teenagers were killed, and another 2,122 were injured.

Despite the number of shootings this month, Sen. Chris Murphy, a Democrat from Connecticut, said gun violence decreased in major American cities in the first five months of 2023.

Murphy was one of the key negotiators behind the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, major gun legislation that was signed into law by President Biden one year ago.

“There’s no doubt that this bill is saving lives,” Murphy said.

Headline

12 Die, 30 Missing In Peru Landslide

Published

15 hours ago

December 1, 2025

Editor

At least 12 people, including three children, died in a landslide at a river port in central Peru on Monday, and 30 were reported missing, officials said.

The landslide submerged a boat with about 50 passengers on board, and another with none, as they were docked at the port of Iparia in the Amazon jungle region of Ucayali, according to a police report cited by the Andina news agency.

Six people were injured, it added, and a search and rescue operation was underway at the start of the Peruvian rainy season.

Without giving a toll, Peru’s COEN national emergency operations centre said on X that tragedy struck at dawn due to “erosion” of the bank of the Ucayali river.

It said the navy has been called in to help.

AFP

Headline

Nigeria Grants Asylum To Guinea-Bissau Opposition Candidate

Published

15 hours ago

December 1, 2025

Editor

The Nigerian embassy in Guinea-Bissau has granted asylum to Fernando Dias da Costa, the country’s opposition presidential candidate, following alleged threats to his life after last week’s military coup, The Cable Reports.

The coup was announced by military officers on Wednesday, just days after Guinea-Bissau’s presidential election in which both incumbent President Umaro Embaló and his main challenger, da Costa, claimed victory before official results were released.

Nigeria condemned the takeover and urged an immediate return to constitutional order.

In a letter to the President of the Economic Community of West African States Commission, Omar Touray, dated November 30, the Foreign Affairs Minister, Yusuf Tuggar, said President Bola Tinubu had approved asylum and protection for da Costa inside the Nigerian embassy in Bissau.

Tuggar wrote that the decision was made “in response to threats made against da Costa’s life.”

“In this regard, it would be appreciated if you would kindly mandate the ECOWAS Stabilisation Support Mission in Guinea-Bissau to provide him protection and security while in the premises of the Nigerian embassy,” the letter stated.

The foreign affairs minister’s Special Assistant on Media and Communications Strategy, Alkasim Abdulkadir, confirmed the letter’s authenticity to The Cable on Monday.

He said, “The decision of the Federal Government of Nigeria to grant asylum and provide protection to Fernando Dia Da Costa falls squarely within Nigeria’s sovereign responsibility and longstanding commitment to regional peace, stability, and democratic governance.”

He added that Nigeria acted “in the broader interest of de-escalation,” saying the government had exercised its discretion “to prevent further deterioration of tensions and to promote social cohesion in Guinea-Bissau and the wider West African sub-region.”

According to Abdulkadir, the intervention aligns with ECOWAS principles and reflects Nigeria’s role as a stabilising force in West Africa.

Following the coup, ECOWAS held an emergency virtual summit of heads of state and subsequently suspended Guinea-Bissau from the regional bloc until constitutional order is restored.

Headline

Trump To Attend FIFA World Cup Finals Draw On Friday

Published

15 hours ago

December 1, 2025

Editor

The White House on Monday confirmed US President Donald Trump would attend the draw for the FIFA World Cup finals in Washington later this week.

The United States will co-host the 2026 tournament alongside Canada and Mexico.

“On Friday, President Trump will attend the FIFA World Cup final draw at the Kennedy Centre,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters.

Trump has made the World Cup a centrepiece event of both his second presidency and the 250th anniversary of US independence next year.

But the giant sporting extravaganza has not escaped the political turmoil caused by Trump’s hardline stance on a host of issues.

Trump, a Republican, has raised the possibility of moving games from some US host cities amid a crackdown on what he says is crime and illegal migration in some Democratic-run areas.

AFP