Society's ChildS


Pistol

France: Gunman opens fire on tourist bus, six injured

bus and traffic
© AFP
Six people have been injured when a bus carrying tourists came under fire on a highway in southeastern France, a local prosecutor said.

The bus was carrying 75 Czech tourists, including a group of children who were on a school trip, and was en route from Spain to the Czech Republic. The incident happened not far from the southeast French town of Saulce-sur-Rhone, when the bus was roughly halfway between Lyon and Marseille, local media report.

The gunman who targeted the bus apparently took up position on a bridge over the A7 motorway, along which the bus was traveling. An initial investigation revealed that the shooter used a hunting rifle, as one bullet was found inside the bus. "An initial shot smashed the front windscreen and a second exploded the rear window of the vehicle a few seconds later," local prosecutor Alex Perrin told AFP.

Six people, including a child, were injured by broken glass as a result of the incident. One woman suffered a serious eye injury. No arrests or claims of responsibility were made so far. Police describes the incident as an 'isolated act.' "We don't have any reason to believe this bus was targeted instead of any other," Perrin said, as quoted by AFP.

Additional police forces have been deployed to all bridges crossing the A7 motorway.
The German Federal Intelligence Service released a report in April warning that Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) could target tourists at resorts in southern Europe, including in France, Italy and Spain, with suicide bombers potentially disguised as beach vendors.

Comment: iSIS has encouraged acts of terrorism throughout the month of Ramadan, both organized and 'lone wolves.' While there is no evidence, so far, regarding this perpetrator or the motive, mandates strike fear in the public-at-large and those who were looking for permission to act may think they have it.

See also: US, EU: Islamic State urging terror attacks during Ramadan


Heart

John Oliver's show buys $15 million in medical debt and forgives it all

Medical bills
Oliver called the giveaway the "largest one-time giveaway in television history." He just about doubled the value of Oprah Winfrey's famous "You get a car! You get a car! Everybody gets a car!" giveaway to her entire studio audience in 2004.

The stunt followed a long look at debt collectors on his HBO show "Last Week Tonight," in which Oliver sharply rebuked debt purchasers for unscrupulous behavior that is limited by hardly any regulatory oversight. (HBO is owned by CNNMoney's parent company, Time Warner.)

The segment included a hidden camera brought into a Debt Buyers Association conference by "Last Week Tonight" staffers, which showed panelists appearing to scoff at how Americans don't understand their legal rights about paying their debts.

To further illustrate the lack of regulation and ease at which debt collectors can harass people over money they owe, Oliver said "Last Week Tonight" spent $50 to create its own debt collection agency, based in Mississippi.

Handcuffs

Russian mom arrested in US because of ex-husband's groundless claims

Russian embassy Washington
© wikipedia.org Embassy of Russia in Washington DC
Olga Pimanova, a Russian citizen, has been "held like a hostage" in the US after being arrested at a Chicago airport because her ex-husband claimed she had "abducted" her Russian-born daughter, said ombudsman for children rights Pavel Astakhov.

Pimanova, 30, arrived in Chicago, Illinois, on May 20 to pass her MBA exams, only to be immediately arrested at the airport. She was taken into custody by Cook County sheriffs acting on a local court order that was issued as a result of her husband filing a case accusing her of kidnapping her own child, which he believes to be his daughter. The mother was placed under house arrest at her friend's house in Illinois after enduring three days in detention along with criminal suspects, her lawyer says.

Astakhov wrote on his Twitter page that Pimanova "was arrested on a phony pretext and has been held as a hostage, being requested to return the daughter - a Russian citizen - to the USA."

Handcuffs

Indian court convicts 5 men of robbing and gang-raping 52yo Danish tourist, 3 others investigated

jail
© Adrees Latif / Reuters
A Delhi court has convicted five men of kidnapping, gang-raping and robbing a Danish tourist in 2014. The ruling is the latest to highlight India's high rate of sexual violence against women.

The Monday verdict, announced by Additional Sessions Judge Ramesh Kumar, found all five men guilty of robbing and raping the 52-year-old woman at knife-point on the night of January 14, 2014, after leading her to a secluded spot near New Delhi Railway Station.

The woman, who was traveling alone at the time, was attacked as she approached the group of men for directions after becoming lost on the way back to her hotel.

"I pronounce all the accused guilty. Arguments [on sentencing] to be held on June 9," Kumar told the court on Monday, The Times of India reported.

The defendants, all of whom were present in court on Monday, are in their 20s. Three minors are also charged, and are being tried separately in the juvenile justice system. A ninth person accused of the crimes died in February.

The 2014 attack was the latest in a string of violent crimes against tourists in India. That same week, an 18-year-old German charity worker was reportedly raped on a train as she traveled from Mangalore to Chennai.

Attention

At least 3 dead, dozens injured in violent passenger-cargo train collision in Belgium

train collision belgium
Several people are confirmed dead and dozens were treated for injuries and stress after a passenger train crashed into a cargo train in the Belgian town of Hermalle-sous-Huy near the city of Liege, badly damaging two of its cars.

A briefing with Belgian authorities, including Minister of Mobility Francois Bellot, confirmed that three people were killed in the crash, while nine were brought to a hospital for treatment, some in critical condition. Another 27 passengers received help at the site and were later allowed to go home.

The death toll could rise further, the mayor of Saint-Georges-sur-Meuse, Francis Dejon, told Belga news agency early on Monday.

The collision was extremely violent, the agency reported.

Hearts

Chechen leader promises to provide free pre-dawn and sunset meals to 25,000 Syrians each day during Ramadan

Ramzan Kadyrov
© Said Tsarnaev / Sputnik Head of the Chechen Republic Ramzan Kadyrov
Up to 25,000 Damascus residents and refugees from war-torn areas of Syria will be offered pre-dawn and sunset meals each day during Ramadan, the holy month for Muslims, Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov has promised.

"My dear mother, the president of the Regional Public Fund (ROF), has decided to organize daily pre-dawn and sunset meals for residents of Damascus and refugees from war-torn parts of Syria," Chechen leader Kadyrov wrote on Instagram on Monday.

Practicing Muslims all over the world are preparing for the month of Ramadan, said to be the longest in decades as it coincides with the summer solstice, meaning a longer period of fasting. Many Muslims will not drink water or eat during daytime, with fasting ending at sunset with a meal known as Iftar.

Eye 1

Lone gunman kills five Jordan intelligence agents outside Palestinian refugee camp near Amman

Baqaa camp
© AFPPeople and security personnel stand outside the Jordanian intelligence agency office in the Baqaa camp, north Amman, following a gun attack, on June 6, 2016.
A gunman apparently acting alone killed five Jordanian intelligence agents on Monday (June 6) in a daylight "terrorist attack" on their office in a Palestinian refugee camp north of the capital.

Jordan is a leading member of the US-led coalition fighting the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) group, and has been the target of militant attacks in the past.

"The intelligence agency office in the Baqaa camp was the target of a cowardly attack shortly before 7:00 am (0400 GMT) today that left five agents dead," government spokesman Mohammed Momani said.

Momani said security forces were investigating who was responsible for the "terrorist attack" on the first day of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

A security source told AFP that preliminary findings suggested the attack was carried out by a lone gunman who opened fire with an automatic weapon before escaping.

The shooting happened as the team members were starting their shift.

Ambulance

Amid killings scandal a drunk-driving US sailor injures 2 in Okinawa car crash

US Navy sailor
© Reuters
Following two scandals involving the US military stationed on the Japanese island of Okinawa, a US Navy sailor was caught in a drunk-driving head-on collision with two other cars. The crash occurred off-base, despite tough new rules for personnel.

Aimee Mejia, 21, stationed at the Kadena Air Base, was driving in the opposite lane to the two vehicles, her blood alcohol level six times the legal limit, at about 11:40 pm local time on June 4, the Asahi Shimbun learned from the police. Two individuals in the other vehicles sustained injuries.

The incident comes at a troubled time for the US base in Okinawa. Already highly unpopular with locals, the US military found itself in the middle of two scandals involving a murder and a rape - both of the victims young Japanese women.

Faced with popular outrage, the US military put its servicemen on a short leash, with curfews, movement restrictions and a ban on drinking alcohol off base.

Family

The war on labor: Verizon strike brings win for workers

verizon strikers
© Agence France-PresseVerizon workers on strike
The six-week Verizon strike ended after tentative deals were reached between the company and the unions representing its workers. Those workers will still need to vote on the deals before things are set in stone, but it seems likely they will vote in favor. What does it mean?

From the New York Times:
Both sides claimed victory in the change.

"We only care that our members somewhere in the footprint are doing the work," said Robert Master, assistant to the District 1 vice president of the Communications Workers of America. "The push to outsource call center work was rebuffed."

Lending partial vindication to this claim was a commitment by the company to create over 1,000 unionized call center jobs over the next four years to accommodate new demand from customers. The company also agreed to reduce the number of call center closings.

The company also won the right to offer buyout incentives to employees once a year without first getting the union's blessing, making it easier to eliminate jobs that the new rule could eventually render obsolete.

Elsewhere, the outcome appeared more one-sided. The unions managed to beat back proposed pension cuts, including a cap on the accrual of pension benefits after 30 years of service.

The company also agreed to withdraw a proposal that would have allowed it to relocate workers for up to two months anywhere in its geographic coverage area, although it had already expressed an openness to withdrawing the proposal before the strike.

Proposals to change seniority rules and to make the company's sickness and disability policy more strict were also withdrawn, and the company agreed to change a performance review program in New York City that many workers considered abusive.

Significantly, the new contracts also cover some 65 unionized workers at Verizon Wireless stores, signaling the first time that retail wireless workers at the company have been included in a union contract, a potentially important precedent.

Comment: The solidarity of Verizon workers won this battle. They are an example for the many to come.


Bad Guys

Bodyguard of Syrian president's wife killed in terrorists attack on Damascus-Sweida road

syrian bodyguard killed
© Fars NewsAlaa Makhlouf, the bodyguard in charge of protecting Asma al-Assad, wife of the Syrian president Bashar al-Assad was killed in a terrorist attack on a road between Damascus and Sweida provinces.
Makhlouf was killed near the city of Shahba in a shooting and explosion of his car on Damascus-Sweida road on Wednesday, the Arabic-language media outlets announced.

Alaa Makhlouf was from the village of Marj Moirban in al-Qardaheh region in Lattakia. He was an activist of Asma al-Assad humanitarian group.

Since the start of the Syrian crisis in March 2011, the western countries, including the US, have delivered state-of-the-art weapons to the terrorists in Syria.