A man was arrested on Thursday while carrying an assault rifle outside the Brooklyn home of Iranian dissident journalist Masih Alinejad, according to federal officials and media reports.
Alinejad, a fierce critic of the Iranian government, was previously the target of a kidnapping plot allegedly orchestrated by Iranian government operatives. The attempt, which was foiled by the FBI, came after Alinejad wrote publicly about the Iranian regime’s efforts to silence her through a “social media campaign calling for my abduction.”
On Thursday, police arrested Khalid Mehdiyev, a 23-year-old Yonkers resident, who was “behaving suspiciously” outside an unidentified residence over a period of days, according to a complaint. After NYPD officers pulled him over for allegedly running a red light, they discovered a suitcase in his backseat containing a loaded AK-47 and 66 rounds of ammunition, prosecutors said.
While the court documents don’t explicitly name Alinejad, the Iranian journalist told the New York Times she was informed by authorities that the 23-year-old suspect was observing her house. She also told the Times she had security footage showing the suspect outside of her home. Law enforcement sources also told the Daily News that Mehdiyev was targeting her journalist’s home.
At one point, prosecutors said, Mehdiyev left his Subaru and attempted to open the front door of the residence in question.
According to the complaint, Mehdiyev told prosecutors that he could not afford his rent in Yonkers and was scoping out the residence to see if he could lease a room. He initially denied knowledge of the assault rifle, before later admitting it was his, adding he was in Brooklyn “because he was looking for someone,” prosecutors said.
Mehdiyev is facing a range of weapons charges, including possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number, as well as failure to stop at a sign.
Disclosure: This is a guest post written by Jeeva Shanmugan
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Hi there. It’s Monday, August 1, and you’re reading The Loop, a quick wrap-up of today’s news.
One thing to know: Australian house prices are falling, and quickly
A new report from analytics firm CoreLogic has found that house prices in Australia are dropping at their fastest pace since the global financial crisis in 2008 and market conditions are “likely to worsen” as interest rates continue to rise.
The data shows the nation’s median property value dropped by 2 per cent since the beginning of May to $747,182 (this includes both houses and apartments).
But the numbers vary depending on location, so here’s a breakdown of what has happened in the major cities:
Property prices in Sydney, Melbourne and Hobart fell sharply in July.(CoreLogic)
Economists predict Australian house prices could fall between 12 and 20 per cent after recently reaching record highs.
Today we heard a lot about China’s influence in Solomon Islands
A major investigation by Four Corners has uncovered details of how money from Beijing has helped keep the controversial leader of the Solomon Islands in power.
It also revealed how China is pursuing economic opportunities across Solomon Islands to boost its strategic interests in the Pacific.
A Chinese state-owned company is negotiating to buy a deep-water port and a World War II airstrip in the country.
You can read the full report from the Four Corners team right here.
Here is what happened when Four Corners tried to film a Chinese business in Solomon Islands as part of the investigation …
Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume.
Watch what happened when Four Corners tried filming a Chinese business in Solomon Islands
News you might have missed
australian swimmer Emma McKeon has won a record-breaking 11th Commonwealth Games gold medal, overtaking legends of the sport such as Ian Thorpe and Leisel Jones to have the most gold medals of any Commonwealth Games athlete. On social media she described the moment as “a huge milestone” in her career
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You might remember that last week we reported on what appeared to be large pieces of space junk which were discovered in the New South Wales Snowy Mountains region. Well, the existence of another huge piece has now been brought to light (well, to Earth, more accurately). It’s also believed to be linked to SpaceX, but the company is yet to claim ownership of it. Here’s what it looks like…
More space junk has been found in the NSW Snowy Mountains, this time at a property in Moonbah.(Supplied: Nick Lodge)
The federal government has warned gas producers that it will pull its “gas trigger” to restrict their exports if domestic supplies for next year aren’t guaranteed. It comes after consumer watchdog the ACCC warned the government to consider intervening because the outlook for next year was “very concerning”, with most gas supplied slated for export
Here’s what Australia has been searching for online
bill russell. The celebrated American basketballer and civil right activist has died at the age of 88. Russell was a 12-time NBA All-Star and the centerpiece of a Boston Celtics dynasty which won 11 championships in 13 years. Tributes have been flowing from basketballers and activists around the world, including the NBA itself…
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Nichelle Nichols: The American actor who broke barriers for black women in Hollywood when she played lieutenant Nyota Uhura in the original Star Trek TV show has died aged 89. She also served for many years as a NASA recruiter, helping to bring minorities and women into the astronaut corps. Here’s how her de ella fellow Star Trek cast member George Takei remembered her today…
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One more thing: There was a huge cycling crash at the Commonwealth Games
Some dramatic photos have emerged after three cyclists were taken to hospital and spectators were injured in a horrific crash during a heat of the men’s scratch race at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games.
England’s Matt Walls was catapulted over the barriers and into the crowd at the Lee Valley VeloPark, before receiving treatment and eventually leaving in an ambulance.
Spectators were also hurt when Walls and his bike came over the top of the barriers at a corner of the track.
Matt Walls and his bike cleared the barrier surrounding the track during the crash.(Getty Images/PA Images: John Walton)
Walls lays horizontally among the shocked crowd. (AP: Ian Walton)
Riders had also failed in a crash lower down the banking. (AP: Ian Walton)
Retired Australian cyclist Stuart O’Grady told Channel Seven he believes the varying abilities of cyclists has contributed to the crashes we’ve seen at the Commonwealth Games (there was an earlier one involving Australia’s Matt Glaetzer too).
“We have got a varying ability of athlete at the Commonwealth Games, more so than Olympics and World Championships,” he said.
“We may not be at the level as the big international superstars, so when you are racing on a few millimetres of tire on bikes with no breaks and high-pressure incidents, things can go wrong really quickly.”
You’re up to date!
We’ll be back tomorrow with more.
If you happen to hop on a bike before then, just …
“Migration must not be used as a union membership drive,” Willox said.
Abul Rizvi, who was deputy secretary of the Department of Immigration between 2005 and 2007, said people would “fall off their chairs” when they heard the proposal, saying he feared it would be viewed entirely through political eyes rather than in terms of policy.
Rizvi said Australia needed to take strong action to avoid falling into levels of exploitation seen in parts of Europe, the US, and the Gulf states, adding no one had tried what was being proposed by the AWU and he believed it would work.
“Unions are not part of the government, and, as a result people aren’t as fearful they will get deported if they complain. Secondly, we know the Fair Work Ombudsman is completely overwhelmed with the complaints they are getting,” Rizvi said.
Skills and Training Minister Brendan O’Connor said the summit would be an important forum to scrutinize a number of ideas and “agree upon the steps required to ensure our [vocational education and training] sector delivers the skills Australian workers and businesses need”.
“Our goal is building a bigger, better-trained and more productive workforce; boosting incomes and living standards; and creating more opportunities for more Australians to get ahead and to realize their aspirations,” O’Connor said.
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Health and aged care have become priority areas in filling the national shortage, with employers calling on the government to temporarily ditch the requirement to advertise locally before recruiting from overseas, but Walton said this must stay.
“It’s in the national interest for Australians to fill Australian jobs,” he said. “If hiring an Australian isn’t possible today, employers should have to make sure it’s possible tomorrow.”
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese recently backed a suggestion for the Pacific Australia Labor Mobility Scheme, which places Pacific Islander workers on Australian farms mostly, to be expanded to fill vacancies in aged care homes across the country.
A Labor-led parliamentary inquiry heard of multiple reports of exploitation of migrant workers on Australian farms, and Rizvi said Pacific workers who came to Australia under an expanded scheme risked being exposed to similar vulnerabilities.
Cut through the noise of federal politics with news, views and expert analysis from Jacqueline Maley. Subscribers can sign up to our weekly Inside Politics newsletter here.
Broward Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Richard Van Der Eems describes the scene he encountered at the school after the mass shooting as he testifies during the penalty phase trial of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooter Nikolas Cruz, Friday, July 22, at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (Mike Stocker, South Florida Sun-Sentinel via AP)
Estimated read time: 5-6 minutes
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Few Americans outside law enforcement and government ever see the most graphic videos or photos from the nation’s worst mass shootings — in most states, such evidence is only displayed at trial and most such killers die during or immediately after their attacks . They never make it to court.
That has made the penalty trial of Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz for his 2018 murder of 17 people at Parkland’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School unusual.
As the worst US mass shooting to reach trial, the surveillance videos taken during his attack and the crime scene and autopsy photos that show its horrific aftermath are being seen by jurors on shielded video screens and, after each day’s court session, shown to a small group of journalists. But they are not shown in the gallery, where parents and spouses sit, or to the general public watching on TV.
Some online believe that should change — that to have an informed debate on gun violence, the public should see the carnage mass shooters like Cruz cause, often with high-velocity bullets fired from AR-15 semiautomatic rifles and similar weapons.
Others disagree. They say the public display of such videos and photos would add to the harm the victims’ families already endure and might entice some who are mentally disturbed to commit their own mass shooting. They believe such evidence should remain sealed.
Liz Dunning, a vice president at the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence, doesn’t believe releasing such videos and photos would have the political impact some think. Polls show that most Americans already support stronger background checks for gun buyers and bans or restrictions on AR-15s and similar weapons, said Dunning, whose mother was murdered by a gunman.
“Public perception is not the issue,” Dunning said. “We should be asking more of the powerful.”
Since most of the worst US mass shooters were killed by themselves or police during or immediately after their attack, it is rare for anyone outside government to see such surveillance videos or police and autopsy photos. The public didn’t see such evidence after the Las Vegas shooting in 2017, Orlando in 2016, Sandy Hook in 2012, Virginia Tech in 2007 and others.
Medical Examiner Dr. Wendolyn Sneed describes the wounds of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School victims as she testifies in the penalty phase of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooter Nikolas Cruz’s trial at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on Monday, July 25 (Photo: Carline Jean, South Florida Sun-Sentinel via AP)
But Cruz, 23, fled after his shooting and was arrested an hour later. He pleaded guilty in October to 17 counts of his first-degree murder-his trial is only to determine if he is sentenced to death or life without parole. The videos and photos are part of the prosecution’s case.
Since the trial began July 18, everyone in the courtroom and watching on TV has seen and heard heartbreaking testimony from teachers and students who saw others die. They have heard the gunshots and screams as jurors watched cellphone videos.
But when graphic videos and photos are presented, those are not shown. Usually, they only hear medical examiners and police officers give emotionless descriptions of what the jury is seeing.
Then at the end of each day, a group of reporters reviews the photos and videos, but are only allowed to write descriptions. That was a compromise as some parents feared photos of their dead children would be posted online and wanted no media access.
Miami media attorney Thomas Julin said in Florida before the internet, any photos or other evidence presented at trial could be seen and copied by anyone. Newspapers didn’t print the most thick photos, so no one cared.
But in the mid-1990s as the internet boomed, Danny Rolling faced a death penalty trial for the serial murders of four University of Florida students and a community college student. The victims’ families argued that the publication of crime scene photos would cause them emotional harm. The judge ruled that anyone could view the photos, but no one could copy them. Such compromises have since become standard in Florida’s high-profile murder trials.
The surveillance video of the Stoneman Douglas shooting is silent. It shows Cruz moving methodically from floor-to-floor in a three-story classroom building, shooting down hallways and into classrooms. Victims fall. Cruz often stops and shoots them again before moving on.
The crime scene photos show the dead where they fell, sometimes on top of or next to each other, often in contorted shapes. Blood and sometimes brain matter are splattered on floors and walls.
Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooter Nikolas Cruz is led into the courtroom during the penalty phase of his trial at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on Monday, July 25. (Photo: Carline Jean, South Florida Sun-Sentinel via P.A.)
The autopsy photos show the damage Cruz and his bullets did. Some victims have massive head wounds. One student had his elbow blown off, another had her shoulder blown open. Another of her had most of her forearm of her ripped away.
Yet, despite their grossness, Columbia University journalism professor Bruce Shapiro says most autopsy and crime scene photos wouldn’t have a lasting public impact because they don’t have context.
The photos and videos that have a strong effect on public opinion tell a story, said Shapiro, who runs the university’s think tank on how journalists should cover violence.
The photos of Emmett Till’s battered body lying in its coffin after the Black teenager was tortured and killed by Mississippi white supremacists in 1955. Mary Ann Vecchio screaming over Kent State student Jeffrey Miller’s body after he was shot by National Guard troops in 1970. Vietnamese child Phan Thi Kim Phuc running naked after being burned by a napalm bomb in 1972. The video of police officer Derek Chauvin kneeling on George Floyd’s neck until he’s dead in 2020.
“They work not just because they are graphic, but because they are powerful, stirring images,” Shapiro said.
And even if the graphic photos and videos were released, most major newspapers, wire services and television stations would be hesitant to use them. Their editors weigh whether the public benefit of seeing an image outweighs any prurient interest — and they usually pass.
That would leave most for only the most salacious websites. They would also become fodder for potential mass shooters, who frequently research past killers. cross did; testimony showed he spent the seven months before his attack making hundreds of computer searches about committing massacres.
“The images of the carnage will become part of their dark fantasy life,” Shapiro said.
Australians are known for their love of technology and as early adopters, we look to tech to new tech to provide efficiencies and perhaps nowhere is more representative than in farming. Aussie farmers have run to agritech innovations to improve farming efficiencies, crop yields and reduce costs wherever possible.
DataFarming is a Queensland-based company that creates digital solutions across the country and the globe. With around 40% of Australian grain farms (28,000) using their Digital-Agronomist platform.
Agri-intelligence uses machine learning to derive real-time insights into agricultural production across the landscape. Their satellite imagery is updated every five days means farmers and agronomists can monitor their crops and pastures from above in near real-time. The fidelity of these images, allows farmers to drill down to a 70-centimeter by 70-centimeter resolution.
To continue driving this success, DataFarming has launched its Series A $5 million capital raise on the growAG. platform to support the development of its product suite and scale globally. Learn more about this investment opportunity here.
We’ve got a few products, including the cloud-based Digital Agronomist, which delivers satellite images to farmers every five days to help manage the variability they’re dealing with, whether it’s assessing crop yield in field or over time, or making decisions about fertilizer use.
This helps identify what’s causing production variability factors – and we’ve built tools like variable rate application to fix those problems. Almost every producer has an agronomist, but the ability for the agronomists to service more fields can be challenging. Technology can certainly assist agronomists and farmers to do a more thorough and faster job of checking crops.
We have taken a consultancy business, which is high value, high cost and high touch point and we’ve turned that around completely into a light touch point, mass market and low price point digital platform.
We are placing valuable, easy-to-use farm data into the hands of every agronomist and producer.
DataFarming Managing Director, Tim Neale
DataFarming cofounders, husband and wife, Tim and Peta Neale.
A transgender cheerleader in the United States was kicked out of a cheerleading camp after she allegedly attacked a teammate who made a transphobic remark.
Last week Averie Chanel Medlock, 25, was expelled from Ranger College cheerleading camp in Texas after she was alleged to have choked a 17-year-old female teammate, identified only as Karleigh.
The girl and other cheerleaders reportedly locked themselves inside a room to hide from an angry Ms Medlock.
Police were called to the scene and Ms Medlock was booted from the camp.
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Ms Medlock took to Facebook to explain the incident and said she “stood up” for herself.
“Well guys I’m officially retired as a cheerleader as of last night at 5:30am. A girl on the team was being very disrespectful and told me I am a MAN with a PENIS and that [guys] should not be on the team,” she wrote.
“I stood up for myself and she called her mom and dad because she was scared because I [stood] up for myself.
“Her father said, ‘She still has testosterone and a penis and I will kill anyone who comes after my daughter.’”
Karleigh’s father Mike Jones was also called to the scene by his daughter, and denied attacking Ms Medlock’s gender or race.
“I ask you what you would have done when receiving a phone call at 1am in the morning from your daughter stating they had locked themselves in the room with other girls,” he wrote on Facebook.
“At no time did I ever say anything about your race or your gender.”
He has begun pushing for police to release body camera and CCTV footage of the incident.
Ranger College said in a statement that the school will investigate the incident.
“Ranger College takes all allegations of this nature seriously and is committed to providing a learning environment free from discrimination,” the school said.
The incident comes as debate continues to rage about transgender participation in female athletics, most recently in the case of University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas.
Ms Thomas competed for the school’s male swim team between 2017 and 2020, but transitioned to compete with females for the 2021 season.
She became the first transgender athlete to win an NCAA Division 1 national championship in 2022, and has since been at the center of debate around transgender participation in sports.
The controversy has led to 18 US states passing legislation that bans or limits transgender participation to the athlete’s birth sex.
A Townsville teenager has beaten thousands of international dancers to take up a position at one of the world’s most prestigious ballet academies.
Zai Calliste, 17, has been accepted into the English National Ballet School, following in the footsteps of his dancer mother.
“Everything I had been working hard for sort of just came into fruition and it was the most amazing feeling and I felt so proud,” Zai says.
The application process began in December 2021 via video, with the teenager later invited to London for the final round of intense and “nerve-wracking” auditions.
Zai Calliste in London auditioning for the English National Ballet School.(Supplied: Nikki Robinson)
As a male dancer of Caribbean heritage, achieving his dream has had its challenges — especially in a regional city.
“There are many things that come with being a male dancer and a male dancer of culture. [It] hasn’t always been the easiest,” Zai says.
His mother, Nikki Robinson, is also no stranger to the world stage, with a dance career spanning over 21 years.
Ms Robinson was the key reason behind her son entering the dance studio 11 years ago.
“I knew he had a bit of a performance bug and, even way back when he was little, he had a really endearing quality that he was able to communicate to the audience,” she says.
“It’s been really wonderful to watch him bloom and progress and, of course, I’m super proud of how he’s adapted to everything he’s faced over the years dancing.”
In Sydney, Zai Calliste gained further experience through classes offered by the Sydney Dance Company.(Supplied: Nikki Robinson)
Zai started dancing at the age of six when he was sitting in one of his mother’s ballet classes.
“I decided I wanted to try it and she said she would give me a week and after that if I still wanted to do it, she would get me sorted,” he says.
“I lasted the week and I’ve been dancing ever since.”
Now that he has secured his spot in the school, Zai has his sights set on joining the world-renowned English National Ballet Company.
Dance teacher and co-director of the Ann Roberts School of Dancing Jane Pirani says there continues to be a stigma around male dancers, despite their talents.
“I’ve lost quite a few boys [from the dance school] because they were being ostracized at school or out in the community for [dancing],” she says.
Ms Pirani says for many young male creatives, dance is a safe place to express themselves.
Growing up in Townsville, Zai was a frequent performer in regional dancing competitions.(Supplied: Nikki Robinson)
The English National Ballet School has been operating since 1988 and is held in high regard as a feeder academy into the company.
“The English National Ballet Company is now in alignment with the likes of the Royal Ballet and the Paris Opera Ballet,” Ms Pirani says.
Zai is due to move to London later this year.
“This is the stepping stone now, where it is make or break and he will have the opportunity to be offered a contract with [the English National Ballet] or audition for other companies,” Ms Pirani says.
She says it is incredibly rare for a regional dancer to make it on an international stage but believes once Zai secures his first job, he is going to be huge.
“Townsville is behind him; it’s been his dream from a little boy, and he really deserves everything he gets because he is a natural performer and that’s something you cannot teach people,” she says.
CHICAGO — At least 44 people were shot, four fatally in weekend shootings across the city, Chicago police said.
Early Saturday, a 31-year-old man was standing near a sidewalk in the 1800-block of North Milwauee Avenue when someone in a vehicle approached him and opened fire around 1:40 am, Chicago police said. He was taken to Illinois Masonic Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.
Just half an hour earlier, another man, 31, was fatally shot while stopped at a red light in Gresham on the Far South Side. The man was a passenger in the car in the 2000-block of West 87th Street when two people in a black Sedan drove by and fired at least 40 shots about 1:10 am, police said. He was taken to Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, where he was pronounced dead. A woman, 25, suffered multiple gunshot wounds and was taken to the same hospital. She was listed in critical condition, police said. Another man, 22, was shot multiple times in the torso and was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center, where he was listed in critical condition, police said.
A man was fatally shot Saturday morning on the Bishop Ford Freeway near 130th Street, according to Illinois State Police. State troopers responded to the shooting about 11:40 am and found a person with gunshot wounds, state police said. The man was taken to a nearby hospital and pronounced dead, officials said. Police say shell casings were recovered from the road. No one was in custody. The northbound lanes of Interstate 94 were shut down for several hours as police investigated.
A 16-year-old boy was killed and a man was wounded in a shooting early Sunday in Brighton Park. They were stopped at a red light about 2 am in the 4700-block of South Kedzie Avenue when someone opened fire, police said. They continued driving until they crashed into a tree in the 4600 block of South Kedzie Avenue. The 16-year-old boy was shot in the head and taken to Mount Sinai Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, police said. The man, 19, suffered a graze wound to the head and was transported in good condition to Saint Anthony Hospital.
Sunday morning, a male was found shot to death Sunday morning in Chicago Lawn on the Southwest Side. The male was found with multiple gunshot wounds about 5:55 am in the 6900-block of South Talman Avenue, police said. He was pronounced dead at the scene, according to police.
Friday night, a 13-year-old boy was shot after he and at least three others tried to break into a parked vehicle in Hyde Park on the South Side, police said. The boy was among “four to five” men who were trying to breach a parked car in the 1100-block of East 52nd Street around 8 pm when the vehicle’s owner, a 34-year-old woman, confronted the group and shot the boy in the neck, police said. The boy was transported to Comer Children’s Hospital in fair condition.
Five people were killed and at least 60 others were wounded by gunfire across Chicago last weekend.
ABC7 Chicago contributed to this report.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire – Copyright Chicago Sun-Times 2022.)
