World
Mayor of Ecuadorian city of Manta assassinated in attack
The mayor of the Ecuadorian Pacific port city of Manta, Agustin Intriago, was shot dead on Sunday, authorities said, in a brazen attack that stunned the political establishment, Reuters reported.
Police said the 38-year-old Intriago, who was re-elected as mayor of Manta in February, had been inspecting public works in the city at the time of the attack.
Regional police commander Edwin Noguera told reporters a gunman got out of a stolen truck and opened fire on Intriago, hitting him and a woman described as a “collateral victim.” Both died of their injuries.
Security officials with the mayor returned fire and wounded the driver of the vehicle, who is now in police custody while receiving medical attention in hospital. Noguera said the man was a Venezuelan national without a prior criminal record.
Police said officers had secured the truck with a grenade inside it and a gun which was likely used in the attack.
It was not immediately clear why the mayor had been attacked, though police said that he had reported receiving threats to authorities, without providing more details, read the report.
Ecuador has faced an increase in violent crime that the government says is driven by power struggles between criminal gangs over the drug trafficking trade.
Manta, a city of well over 200,000 people, has been prey to such gangs, while widespread common crime fed by economic and social problems is adding to the country’s security woes, Reuters reported.
President Guillermo Lasso expressed his sorrow over Intriago’s “assassination” in a statement on Twitter and said he had ordered authorities to bring the killers to justice.
Former President Rafael Correa expressed his shock, saying on Twitter: “I can’t believe this has happened.”
In May, gunmen targeted the mayor of the city of Duran. He emerged unscathed from the attack but a policeman was killed and several other people were wounded, media reported.
Intriago belonged to a local political party in Manta.
Earlier, authorities said six people were killed at the weekend and 11 more injured in the latest outbreak of gang-fueled violence roiling Ecuador’s prisons.
World
Trump says United States will get uranium from Iran
One of Trump’s central objectives in launching military strikes against Iran was to ensure Tehran does not develop a nuclear weapon.
President Donald Trump said on Wednesday the United States would get enriched uranium from Iran, as the two countries struggle to reach an agreement on ending the Gulf war, Reuters reported.
“We’re going to get it,” Trump told a reporter as he left a White House event.
One of Trump’s central objectives in launching military strikes against Iran was to ensure Tehran does not develop a nuclear weapon. Iran has yet to hand over more than 900 pounds (408 kg) of highly enriched uranium.
World
Trump says Iran “should wave the white flag of surrender”
When asked what Iran would need to do to violate the ceasefire, Trump said: “Well, you’ll find out, because I’ll let you know … They know what not to do.”
President Donald Trump on Tuesday dismissed Iran’s military capability and said Tehran “should wave the white flag of surrender” but is too proud to do so, Reuters reported.
Trump told reporters in the Oval Office that Iran’s military has been reduced to firing “peashooters” and that Tehran privately wants to make a deal despite its public sabre-rattling.
“They play games, but let me just tell you, they want to make a deal. And who wouldn’t, when your military is totally gone?” he said.
Trump heaped praise on the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports in the region. “It’s like a piece of steel. Nobody’s going to challenge the blockade. And I think it’s working out very well,” he said, read the report.
When asked what Iran would need to do to violate the ceasefire, Trump said: “Well, you’ll find out, because I’ll let you know … They know what not to do.”
Trump said Iran “should save the white flag of surrender.”
“If this were a fight, they’d stop it,” said Trump.
World
Secret Service says it exchanged gunfire with armed suspect near White House
The suspect was not on the White House property, Quinn said.
The U.S. Secret Service said on Monday its officers confronted an armed and “suspicious individual” near the White House who later fired at them before fleeing on foot and being shot by law enforcement, Reuters reported.
The incident led to a brief lockdown at the White House.
Agents patrolling the outer perimeter of the White House complex identified a person who Secret Service Deputy Director Matthew Quinn said was a “suspicious individual that appeared to have a firearm.”
He briefly fled on foot after being approached by Secret Service officers and fired in their direction, Quinn said at a press conference.
Secret Service then fired at the suspect who was hit and subsequently hospitalized, Quinn added.
Vice President JD Vance’s motorcade transited through the area “not long before” the incident, Quinn said. There was no indication that the suspect intended to approach Vance’s motorcade, the Secret Service deputy director said.
A juvenile bystander was hit by the suspect but did not receive any life-threatening injuries and was being treated at a hospital, Quinn added.
Agents observed “visual print of a firearm” in considering the individual’s behavior as suspicious when he was spotted, Quinn told reporters.
The suspect was not on the White House property, Quinn said.
Law enforcement have been on alert in recent days in the U.S. capital following a shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner late last month over which a man has been arrested, read the report.
Quinn was asked if Monday’s incident was linked to “other recent attempts” on President Donald Trump’s life. Trump was in the White House when this incident unfolded.
“Whether or not it was directed to the president or not, I don’t know but we will find out,” Quinn said.
The Secret Service deputy director confirmed that a weapon was recovered from the suspect but did not elaborate.
The Secret Service said earlier its personnel were on the scene of the officer-involved shooting at 15th Street and Independence Avenue in Washington, D.C.
The DC Police Department was handling the probe.
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