International
At least 32 dead in two Turkey road accidents
AFP
At least 32 people were killed and dozens were injured in two separate road accidents Saturday, each in places where collisions took place earlier in the day, local media reported.
A first crash involving a bus and an ambulance killed 16 people and injured 21 more on a motorway in Gaziantep province.
Governor Davut Gul said earlier the accident had involved “a bus, an emergency team and an ambulance” on the route between provincial capital Gaziantep and Nizip.
The DHA news agency said a passenger bus had crashed into an ambulance, a firefighting truck and a vehicle carrying journalists at the site of a previous crash.
Four paramedics, three firefighters and two journalists from Turkey’s Ilhas news agency were among those killed, local media reported.
Photos on DHA showed the back of the ambulance ripped out and damage to the bus.
Gendarmes are currently questioning the driver of the bus to try to establish what happened, DHA reported.
– Investigation opened –
Prosecutors are already investigating a second deadly accident, which also happened as the emergency services were attending an earlier incident at the site.
On this occasion, at least 16 people were killed and nearly 30 injured after a truck driver hurtled into pedestrians in a town some 200 kilometres (120 miles) east, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca.
The accident in Derik in Mardin province “occurred after the breaks gave out on a lorry, which hit a crowd”, Koca wrote on Twitter. Another 29 were injured, eight of them seriously, he added.
Turkish media shared footage of a driver losing control of his truck, then careening towards nearby vehicles and pedestrians as they try to flee.
Turkey’s official Anadolu press agency reported that an accident involving three vehicles had happened at the same site shortly before. Emergency responders were already at the scene when the lorry ploughed into crowd.
Prosecutors in Derik have opened an investigation into the double accident, Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag announced.
“All resources are mobilised,” he wrote on Twitter, offering his condolences to those who had lost ones.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has sent Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu to the site of the accident and he was expected there later Saturday, the Anadolu agency reported.
International
China calls for dialogue amid rising Iran-Israel conflict
The Chinese government emphasized on Monday the importance of “creating the conditions to return to the proper path of dialogue” between Iran and Israel, which have exchanged attacks in recent days resulting in more than 20 Israeli and over 220 Iranian deaths.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun expressed deep concern at a press conference over the Israeli attacks on Iran and the “sudden escalation” of the military conflict.
Guo called on all parties to “take immediate measures to ease tensions and prevent the region from descending into further turmoil,” stating that “force cannot bring lasting peace.”
“If the conflict between Israel and Iran continues to intensify or even expand, the countries of the Middle East will be the first to suffer the consequences,” he added, while noting that China “will continue to maintain communication with the relevant parties, promoting peace and dialogue.”
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi spoke last Saturday with his Iranian and Israeli counterparts to condemn the Israeli airstrike on Iranian territory, which he described as a “violation of international law” with the potential to trigger “disastrous” consequences.
In both calls, Wang reiterated China’s rejection of the use of force, defended diplomacy as the only solution to the Iranian nuclear dispute, and offered China’s mediation to prevent further destabilization in the Middle East.
International
Suspect arrested in killing of Minnesota legislator and husband, governor Says
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz announced on Sunday the arrest of Vance Luther Boelter, 57, the main suspect in the killing of Democratic legislator Melissa Hortman and her husband in a Brooklyn Park suburb on Friday night.
Boelter, who also reportedly shot State Senator John Hoffman and his wife early Saturday morning, was apprehended in Sibley County following an intensive manhunt involving hundreds of law enforcement officers.
In a public statement, Governor Walz condemned Boelter’s “unthinkable actions,” which resulted in the death of a woman who “shaped the core of who we are as a state.”
“We cannot become numb to this. We are a deeply divided nation,” Walz said in a statement posted on his X account.
“We move forward not with hatred or violence, but with humility, grace, and civility,” he added.
Expressing solidarity with the victims’ families, Walz said the entire state of Minnesota is in mourning. He also thanked law enforcement for their bravery and professionalism: “They have saved lives,” he emphasized.
“As we heal, we will not let fear win,” Walz concluded. “We must honor Melissa by moving forward with understanding, service, and above all, humanity.”
Throughout Sunday, police and sheriff units searched a rural area in Minnesota for Vance Luther Boelter, a security company director and preacher who, according to Governor Walz, acted out of politically motivated violence.
International
40,000 tourists stranded in Israel amid airspace shutdown over Iran conflict
Approximately 40,000 tourists are stranded in Israel following the closure of the country’s airspace amid escalating hostilities with Iran, the Israeli Ministry of Tourism reported on Monday.
The ministry has set up a virtual office to provide information via email (virtual@goisrael.gov.il) and phone (+972-53-583-5808), as well as a Facebook page called Israel Virtual Tourist Office.
Israeli Tourism Minister Haim Katz is in contact with hotels and accommodations across the country to offer support to tourists in need, the ministry added.
Many stranded travelers are considering crossing overland into Jordan or Egypt to seek flights from those countries. The Israel Airports Authority reminded the public that land border crossings remain open.
Three German tourists stranded in Jerusalem told EFE today that they have not received any assistance from their country’s embassy in Israel, and their primary option currently is to cross into Jordan to catch a flight from there.
Since early Friday morning, Israel launched operations against Iran, targeting military personnel and infrastructure, including energy and nuclear facilities, as well as numerous residential areas in Tehran.
In response, Iran has fired hundreds of ballistic missiles at Israel, some of which have struck various locations across the country, leaving at least 24 dead so far, according to Israeli authorities.
Iranian health officials report at least 224 deaths, mostly civilians, including at least 17 senior military officials—nine from the Revolutionary Guard—and more than a dozen nuclear scientists.
The Israeli military has warned that many more “targets” remain, while Iran’s Revolutionary Guard declared on Monday that it will continue missile attacks against Israel until its “destruction.”
China calls for dialogue amid rising Iran-Israel conflict
Suspect arrested in killing of Minnesota legislator and husband, governor Says
40,000 tourists stranded in Israel amid airspace shutdown over Iran conflict
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