International

Hamas releases 4-year-old girl under Gaza ceasefire deal after 50 days

Published

1 year ago

November 27, 2023

Trends Admin

Hamas releases 4-year-old girl under Gaza ceasefire deal after 50 days

A four-year-old American girl released by the Islamist group Hamas has touched the hearts of many people.

Before being kidnapped and taken to the Gaza Strip, the little girl witnessed the murder of both her parents.

The Washington Post reported on Monday that on Oct. 7, the then three-year-old was at home with her two siblings, aged 10 and 6, in a kibbutz on the border with the Gaza Strip when Hamas terrorists invaded.

The two older children survived because they hid in a closet, where they held out for 14 hours before being rescued.

A gunman shot the children’s mother, and as her father lay protectively over Abigail, he too was shot dead.

Abigail, who was initially presumed dead, crawled out from under her father’s body and ran to a neighbour’s house, the Washington Post quoted a relative of the girl as saying.

The terrorists seized the girl, together with the family of five who were there and took them to the Gaza Strip with many other civilians.

Last Friday, the little girl turned four years old in captivity.

READ ALSO:

“What she endured is unthinkable,” U.S. President Joe Biden said, after the girl was released on Sunday – the first U.S. citizen among the hostages freed in the agreement between Israel and Hamas.

Abigail “has been through terrible trauma,” said Biden.

“What a joy it is to see her with us, but on the other hand it is also sad that she is returning to a reality in which she has no parents,” said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a video posted on social media platform X, formerly Twitter.

“She has no parents, but she has an entire nation that hugs her, and we will take care of all her needs,” Netanyahu said.

Abigail’s great-aunt, Liz Hirsh Naftali, said in a statement on Sunday after the girl had been released that they had “no words to express our relief and gratitude,” according to the Washington Post.

The little girl will be reunited with her siblings and live with her aunt, uncle and grandparents in Israel, a relative was further quoted as saying.

Since Friday, 58 of the approximately 240 hostages have been released from Hamas control.

Another 10 hostages are expected to be released this Monday.

Hamas releases 4-year-old girl under Gaza ceasefire deal after 50 days

(dpa/NAN)

International

Israeli strikes pound central Beirut, suburbs

Published

4 hours ago

November 26, 2024

Trends Admin

Israeli strikes pound central Beirut, suburbs

BEIRUT: Israeli strikes pounded a densely-populated part of the Lebanese capital and its southern suburbs on Tuesday, hours ahead of an anticipated announcement of a ceasefire ending hostilities between Israel and Lebanese armed group Hezbollah.

A strike on Beirut hit the Noueiri district with no evacuation warning and killed at least one person, Lebanon’s health ministry said in a preliminary toll.

READ ALSO:

Minutes later, at least 10 Israeli strikes hit Beirut’s southern suburbs. They began approximately 30 minutes after the Israeli military issued evacuation orders for 20 locations in the area, the largest such warning yet.

As the strikes were under way, Israel’s military spokesperson Avichay Adraee said the air force was conducting a “widespread attack” on Hezbollah targets across the city.

Israeli strikes pound central Beirut, suburbs

ARAB NEWS

International

Over $100m wasted, Trump mocks Democrats for targeting him

Published

5 hours ago

November 26, 2024

Trends Admin

President-elect Donald Trump

Over $100m wasted, Trump mocks Democrats for targeting him

Former U.S. President Donald Trump has fiercely criticised the legal cases brought against him, calling them “empty and lawless”.

He accused Democrats of weaponising the judicial system to target him as a political opponent.

In a strongly worded statement, Trump alleged that over $100 million in taxpayer money had been wasted in what he described as a politically driven effort to undermine his influence.

“Nothing like this has ever happened in our Country before,” he said, pointing to high-profile prosecutors, including Georgia’s Fani Willis and New York Attorney General Letitia James, as key figures in what he called a “political hijacking.”

READ ALSO:

Trump also accused Willis of colluding with Nathan Wade, whom he described as “her lover” and lacking the experience to handle such cases.

He claimed Wade was paid “millions,” allegedly enabling lavish trips and cruises.

Letitia James, who is pursuing a civil fraud case against Trump, was also criticised.

Over $100m wasted, Trump mocks Democrats for targeting him

International

US-based Nigerians get 30-year sentence over $3.5m romance scam

Published

6 hours ago

November 26, 2024

Trends Admin

US-based Nigerians get 30-year sentence over $3.5m romance scam

A United States federal jury sentenced two Nigerians, Anthony Ibekie and Samuel Aniukwu, to 30 years in prison for scamming certain US citizens $3,500,000.

This was mentioned in a news statement made public on the US Department of Justice website on Monday.

According to the statement, the Nigerians, Ibekie and Aniukwu mislead their victims by informing them that they had received big inheritances that required payment to claim.

The couple would then ask their victims to transfer money, promising to refund them after the inheritances were claimed.

It also stated that the duo carried out romance scams by establishing romantic relationships with their victims and demanding them to send money after they had built trust in their victims.

It read, “An undercover law enforcement investigation has resulted in federal prison sentences for two Nigerian nationals residing in the Chicago suburbs who conducted online inheritance scams and other fraud schemes.

“Using aliases, Anthony Emeka Ibekie and Samuel Aniukwu communicated with victims throughout the United States, convincing them they had received substantial inheritances and needed to send money to individuals associated with the defendants in order to claim it.

“In addition to the inheritance scam, the pair carried out an online romance scam that involved communicating with victims via social media and dating websites, building trust with the victims through a purported online romance, and convincing them to send money to a predetermined recipient. Aniukwu and Ibekie also orchestrated a ‘business email compromise’ scam that targeted corporate email accounts.

READ ALSO:

“The fraud schemes were uncovered by a covert law enforcement investigation. The scams resulted in losses to victims of at least $3.5 million.”

According to the statement, after being arraigned on 14 charges, the duo pleaded guilty to their different alterations.

Following their guilty pleas, Ibekie was sentenced to 20 years in prison on Thursday, and Aniukwu was sentenced to 10 years in prison on November 8.

The statement continued, “A federal jury earlier this year convicted Ibekie, 59, of Oswego, Illinois, on all 14 counts of wire fraud, mail fraud, money laundering, making false statements to a bank, and passport fraud. U.S. District Judge Steven C. Seeger on Thursday sentenced Ibekie to 20 years in federal prison.

“Aniukwu, 50, of Romeoville, Illinois, pleaded guilty last year to wire fraud and money laundering charges. Judge Seeger on Nov. 8, 2024, sentenced Aniukwu to 10 years in prison.”

Meanwhile, Jennifer Gosha, an accomplice of the Nigerians and a US citizen, is expected to be sentenced on December 18 after pleading guilty.

“A third defendant, Jennifer Gosha, 52, a U.S. citizen from Oak Park, Ill., pleaded guilty earlier this year to charges of wire fraud and making false statements to a federal agent. Gosha is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Seeger on December 18, 2024,” the statement concluded.