Louisiana boy, 11, charged in double murder of relatives.
4 dead in Georgia school shooting; suspect in custody.
Major NATO member Turkey to join BRICS in snub to West.
American-Israeli hostage families ask Biden to deal directly with Hamas.
NATIONAL NEWS
Louisiana boy, 11, charged in double murder of relatives
Police in Minden, LA, say that an 11-year-old boy shot dead two of his relatives on Sunday. The boy has not been named, but the victims have been identified as Joe Cornelius, Sr., 82, and Keisha Miles, 31. Police would not say exactly how the suspect is related to the victims, but Miles mother is the boy’s grandmother. Cornelius, Sr., was a longtime mayor of the town and is remembered fondly by locals and those who worked with him.
Two different handguns were used in the assault and their magazines were emptied. Mendon Police Chief Chris McIver said that when authorities responded to the scene on Sunday, the boy initially told them “a story that just didn’t add up”. Later that day, he confessed to the murder. The boy’s grandmother was present during questioning. McIver said that the child did not appear emotional or remorseful.
It is not clear what the circumstances of the shooting are. However, a neighbor says that just before the shooting, the boy was arguing with Cornelius, Sr., about credit charges for video games. The boy has been charged with two counts of first degree murder.
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4 dead in Georgia school shooting; suspect in custody
Georgia authorities have charged a 14-year-old student with murder after four people, two teachers and two students, were gunned down at Apalachee High School in Winder, GA, about 50 miles northeast of Atlanta. At least nine other people were injured and are being treated at area hospitals. Law enforcement received the first calls about the shooting around 10:20 a.m. this morning. It’s not clear how long the rampage took place.
Unusually, authorities have already named the suspect, Colt Gray. Chris Hosey, director of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, said Gray was taken into custody alive after local police and school resource officers confronted him. Hosey also said that Gray would be charged with four counts of murder as an adult. Gray apparently was an attendee at this high School, but a fellow student says that Gray only attended infrequently.
Details are still sparse at this time. We do not know the names or ages of the victims. An anonymous law enforcement official told CNN that the weapon used was an AR-15 style rifle, but that is unconfirmed. It is not clear how the suspect obtained the weapon.
Gray was apparently questioned by local law enforcement last year regarding anonymous threats to commit a school shooting at an unspecified time and place. He denied making the threats, but authorities did alert local schools to continue monitoring Gray.
According to the gun violence archive, there were 384 mass shootings in the US this year before today’s incident. There have been at least 45 other school shootings so far this year.
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INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Major NATO member Turkey to join BRICS, seen as snub to West
Turkey will soon be the first NATO member to join BRICS, an international economic bloc. BRICS stands for the major founding members, Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, but there are several other members, including the UAE, which are not named in the acronym. BRICS is more welcoming to developing countries than rival Western-oriented blocs such as the US-dominated G7.
Turkey maintains the second-largest standing military in NATO, after the US. While BRICS is a rival economic bloc, the alliance does not maintain security agreements, so there is no inherent conflict in Turkey being a member of both NATO and BRICS. Sinan Ülgen, a former Turkish diplomat, said that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s application to join BRICS signals his belief that “US hegemony is waning”. Ülgen says that Erdogan believes he can strengthen his relationships with the developing world “without a political cause that would be attached to this realignment”.
Ankara’s turn away from the West follows decades of unsuccessful lobbying by Turkey to join the EU. Additionally, there have been increasing tensions between Turkey and the West in recent years. Firstly, Turkey maintains good relations with Russia, in spite of the West’s attempt to isolate Russia following the Ukraine invasion. Turkey’s relationship with Russia has at times made it a valuable mediator. Secondly, Erdogan has repeatedly expressed frustrations with the US over its overly deferential Israel policy.
American-Israeli hostage families ask Biden to deal directly with Hamas
In a sign of waning confidence in Israel’s seriousness about reaching a hostage release and ceasefire deal in Gaza, the Biden administration is reportedly weighing a prisoner swap with Hamas to recover American citizens held hostage. Family members of seven American-Israeli hostages believed to be in Gaza have renewed calls for Biden to cut a separate deal with Hamas that does not involve Israel. It’s unclear at this time how many of these hostages are still living.
Earlier this year, the Biden administration was considering a separate deal with Hamas to recover American hostages, but that plan was shelved. Thinking has apparently shifted at the White House since the death of American-Israeli hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin this weekend. Now, the administration is reportedly assembling a list of prisoners in US custody that Hamas might be interested in cutting a deal for. These include several workers at a charity accused of sending 12 million to Hamas. One of these workers is serving a 65-year sentence.
It is not clear whether Hamas is open to such a deal with the US. Hamas’ consistent demands for releasing hostages includes a permanent ceasefire and the release of at least 1,000 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli custody.
The Biden administration protests that only Israel is capable of meeting those demands. However, it is worth remembering that the US is the chief arms supplier to Israel. Without continued US weapons shipments, which accelerated in August, Israel would be forced to wrap up its various military offensives in a matter of days. This includes the nearly 11-month long military assault in Gaza, Israel’s newly embarked upon invasion of the West Bank, and its continuous exchanges of rocket fire with Hezbollah in Lebanon. Biden could use this leverage at any time, but has repeatedly resisted calls to do so, even from members of his own party and voices within his administration.
It’s also by no means certain that these hostages could be safely recovered without a ceasefire, given that they are scattered all over Gaza. Hamas itself has difficulty in keeping track of the location and status of its hostages while under continuous bombardment from Israel.
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