April 15 top stories
It is April 15. Hope your weekend was good. Here are today’s top stories.
Iran-Israel conflict
Multiple sources reported that on Saturday, Iran launched an attack on Israel in retaliation for the April 1 Israeli bombing of its consular bombing in Syria, which killed two of their top commanders.
The operation, which Israeli officials said included more than 300 missiles and drones were intercepted, marked the first time that Iran has launched a direct military attack on Israel.
U.S. Defense Secretary Austin said in a statement last Saturday that the U.S. military shot down dozens of missiles and drones en route to Israel from Iran, Iraq, Syria and Yemen, calling Iran’s assault unprecedented (never done before).
Iranian officials issued a statement saying that Iran’s military action was in response to Israel’s attack on an Iranian diplomatic facility in Syria. The statement said that Iran considered the matter “concluded” after the missile and drone strikes. But it warned that if Israel makes another mistake, Iran would deliver a considerably more severe response.
Israel will respond to Iran’s attack, but no final decisions about the size or timing of the response have been made.
Six dead in mass stabbing at Sydney shopping center
Australians are mourning the death of five women and a “courageous” Pakistani security guard killed in a stabbing attack at a Sydney shopping center.
Police on Sunday said they were yet to confirm any motivation or ideology behind the attacks in Sydney but are investigating if the killer deliberately targeted women.
Police identified the suspected killer - Joel Cauchi, a white Christian man and an Australian national, who was the seventh person killed in the attack.
The 40-year-old suspect from Queensland was killed at the scene by a police officer who shot him after he allegedly confronted her with a knife.
Eleven other people were also taken to hospital suffering stab wounds, including nine women and two men.
Somali pirates free Bangladesh cargo ship after $5M ransom paid
Somali pirates released the hijacked ship MV Abdullah on Sunday after its Bangladeshi owners reportedly paid a $5 million ransom.
Meherul Karim, the CEO of shipping company KSRM, said the 23 crew members had been released unharmed.
What happened? The MV Abdullah is a bulk carrier that was transporting more than 55,000 tonnes of coal from Mozambique to the United Arab Emirates. Pirates seized the ship around 1,000 km off the Somali coast a month ago.
Karim said one of the pirates spoke English and called him until they finalized the negotiation. After the ransom was paid, around 65 pirates left the ship on nine boats. The MV Abdullah then resumed its journey to the UAE escorted by two European Union ships.
Karim said the pirates gave the crew a letter of safe passage in Somali, promising that “the ship would not come under any more attacks by pirates until it reached Dubai port.”
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Trump’s historic hush-money trial to begin in NY
A former American president goes on criminal trial for the first time in the nation’s history on Monday.
Former president Trump is fighting 34 felony counts of falsifying business records to cover up a hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels. If convicted, the charges could land the presumptive Republican presidential nominee in prison: Many legal experts say a realistic sentence ranges from just probation to as much as four years behind bars.
Jury selection is set to start Monday, just over a year after Bragg announced the indictment against Trump on April 4, 2023. The trial is expected to last between six and eight weeks.
Trump has pleaded not guilty to the charges and recently submitted a frenzy of legal filings trying to delay the trial, so far to no avail.
On Friday, Trump said at a Palm Beach news conference that he plans to testify in the New York trial. “I’m testifying. I tell the truth. I mean, all I can do is tell the truth. And the truth is that there’s no case, they have no case.”
The trial will not be televised, in keeping with general New York court policy. Reporters will be present in the courtroom.
See Alex’s report on the 2024 Masters golf tournament. Here you go.
Scottie Scheffler wins another Masters title
World No. 1 golfer Scottie Scheffler, an American, won the Masters Tournament for the second time on Sunday. He is 27 years old. He played very confidently in the final round by getting seven birdies while his competitors made mistakes and fell behind. Scheffler earned a $3.6 million prize and his second green jacket.
The second-place finisher was Sweden’s Ludvig Åberg.
Tiger Woods played at the Masters as well but he struggled. He finished the tournament in 60th place. He did break a record by making his 24th consecutive cut, so although he’s 48 years old and has many physical ailments, he’s still able to play with much younger athletes. He said he’s preparing to play more events this season.
For trivia, Tiger Woods won the Masters five times with the most recent one in 2019.
Thanks for that report. That is all the top stories for today. See you tomorrow and stay with the light!
Iran-Israel conflict
https://www.nytimes.com/live/2024/04/14/world/iran-israel-gaza-war-news
Six dead in mass stabbing at Sydney shopping center
Somali pirates free Bangladesh cargo ship after $5M ransom paid
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-68811930
Trump’s historic hush-money trial to begin in NY
Scottie Scheffler wins another Masters title
https://www.espn.com/golf/story/_/id/39944182/scottie-scheffler-wins-second-masters-final-round-68