International
One dead in unrest at Argentina soccer match: official
AFP
One person died Thursday following violent clashes that started outside a soccer match on the outskirts of Buenos Aires before spilling into the stadium and onto the pitch, authorities said.
Police fired rubber bullets and tear gas as they attempted to stop fans attending the match between top-flight teams Boca Juniors and Gimnasia y Esgrima from pushing into the already crowded venue.
The unrest outside the Carmelo Zerillo stadium in La Plata, about 50 kilometers (31 miles) south of Argentina’s capital, continued inside, where shocked spectators were seen squeezing through fencing to escape the violence and get onto the field.
“There were about 10,000 people around the stadium trying to get in, some with tickets, some without. Everyone could see that the stadium was very full,” said Eduardo Aparicio, head of a government agency tasked with preventing violence in sports.
“All this is being investigated,” including “the actions of the police,” he added.
Authorities at San Martin hospital in La Plata confirmed the death of 57-year-old Cesar Regueiro from cardiac arrest as he was being transferred from the stadium to a hospital.
A cameraman for sports channel TyC was injured by rubber bullets while dozens of spectators were suffering from the effects of tear gas and had been taken to hospitals, according to local media.
‘The air became unbreathable’
The game was suspended after nine minutes due to a lack of security, referee Hernan Mastrangelo said.
“It affected all of us on the field,” he added. “The air became unbreathable. The situation got out of control and there were no security guarantees.”
Explosions were heard inside the stadium and smoke from the fumes quickly reached the pitch.
The players, the referee and technical staff members were forced to evacuate the field.
At the same time, fans, including children being led or carried by adults, rushed from the stands and onto the pitch, where people were seen sitting or lying down apparently recovering from tear gas exposure.
“The first thing I saw was that people had started to flee the stalls and I began to feel the effects of the gas. I thought about my family and I started to worry,” Nicolas Contin, a Gimnasia player, said from the locker room where he had carried his young son.
“I’m angry about everything that happened.”
The match came at a critical point in Argentina’s Primera Division, with Gimnasia trying to stay in the title race and Boca looking to move into first place.
“What was going to be a party ends in this. It hurts us all what happened, it is tremendous and we regret it,” Boca Juniors manager Hugo Ibarra told reporters.
Clashes inside and outside Argentina’s stadiums have resulted in more than 300 deaths since soccer became professional in the 1930s, with two-thirds of the deaths occurring after the 1990s, according to a local NGO.
The violence in La Plata comes just five days after one of the deadliest disasters in soccer history in which 131 people were killed in a stadium crush in Indonesia.
The incident in the city of Malang also descended into tragedy after police fired tear gas into packed stands.
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Fans of Gimnasia y Esgrima enter to the pitch after the police threw tear gas outside the Juan Carmelo Zerillo stadium and entered the field during the Argentine Professional Football League Tournament 2022 match between Gimnasia y Egrima and Boca Juniors in La Plata, Argentina, on October 6, 2022. - Police fire rubber bullets and tear gas at football fans attempting to enter the Juan Carmelo Zerillo Stadium, in La Plata, Argentina, resulting in one death and the suspension of the match between Boca Juniors and Gimnasia y Esgrima. (Photo by ALEJANDRO PAGNI / AFP)
International
Man arrested after deliberately driving into seven children in Osaka
Japanese police arrested a man on Thursday after he rammed his car into a group of seven schoolchildren in an apparent deliberate attack in the city of Osaka.
The children, who were on their way home from school, sustained injuries and were taken to the hospital. All seven remained conscious, according to local authorities.
An Osaka police officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the suspect is a 28-year-old man from Tokyo. The officer shared statements the man made after his arrest: “I was fed up with everything, so I decided to kill people by driving into several elementary school children,” the suspect reportedly said.
The man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder.
The injured children, aged between seven and eight, included a seven-year-old girl who suffered a fractured jaw. The six other children—all boys—suffered minor injuries such as bruises and scratches and were undergoing medical evaluation.
Witnesses described the car as “zigzagging” before hitting the children. One witness told Nippon TV that a girl was “covered in blood” and the others appeared to have scratches.
Another witness said the driver, who was wearing a face mask, looked to be in shock when school staff pulled him from the vehicle.
Violent crimes are rare in Japan, though serious incidents do occur from time to time. In 2008, Tomohiro Kato drove a two-ton truck into pedestrians in Tokyo’s Akihabara district, then fatally stabbed several victims. Seven people were killed in that attack.
Internacionales
Clashes erupt during may day protests across France amid calls for better wages
May Day protests in France were marked by a heavy police presence and clashes between demonstrators and law enforcement in several cities.
In Paris, Lyon, and Nantes, thousands took to the streets to demand better wages, fairer working conditions, and to voice their dissatisfaction with President Emmanuel Macron’s government.
While the majority of the demonstrations remained peaceful, isolated confrontations broke out in some areas. Protesters threw objects at the police, prompting the use of tear gas and resulting in several arrests.
Videos showing police crackdowns circulated widely on social media, drawing criticism from labor unions and human rights advocates, who denounced the authorities’ response to the protests.
International
Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president
U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem claimed that Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has deported “more than half a million” migrants due to pressure from former President Donald Trump.
During a cabinet meeting highlighting the “achievements” of Trump’s administration in its first 100 days, Noem asserted that under the Republican leader’s influence, “Mexico has finally come to the table” to negotiate on migration and fentanyl trafficking.
“The president of Mexico told me she has returned just over half a million people before they reached our border,” Noem stated, criticizing media reports that suggest the Biden administration deported more migrants than Trump’s.
“I wish those deportations were counted,” Noem added, “because those people never made it to our border—she sent them back because you made her.” She went on to thank Trump: “They never made it here because they got the message—because you were so aggressive.”
Noem has made controversial claims about Sheinbaum in the past, prompting the Mexican leader to refute them.
On April 1, Sheinbaum responded to one such statement by declaring, “The president answers to only one authority, and that is the people of Mexico,” after Noem said on Fox News that she gave Sheinbaum “a list of things Trump would like to see” and that Mexico’s actions would determine whether Trump granted tariff relief.
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