Emergency.Blog

Seven Teens Shot in Detroit by Unknown Masked men

June 30, 2009 - Updated at 7:50 p.m.

Gunfire wounds 7 Detroit teens; 3 critical

BY CHASTITY PRATT DAWSEY AND ZLATI MEYER, FREE PRESS STAFF WRITERS

DETROIT, MI: Seven teenagers were wounded -- three critically -- after they were sprayed with gunfire this afternoon by two masked men at a bus stop near Cody 9th Grade Academy on the city's west side.

Police later recovered a green minivan about a mile away that they believed the gunmen used to flee.

Five of the seven victims were taking classes at Cody. Two boys, ages 14 and 16, and a girl, 17, were in critical condition at Sinai-Grace Hospital.

Four other victims were taken to Henry Ford Hospital. A 17-year-old boy was in serious condition, a 17-year-old girl was in temporary serious condition, and a 15-year-old boy and a 16-year-old girl were in stable condition, Detroit police said.

It was the second shooting in as many weeks near a Detroit Public school offering free summer school classes.

Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call Detroit Police at 313-596-2260.

-- Source/continues: http://tinyurl.com/erri1843

The Guardian Council of Iran confirms the victory of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

17:46 GMT, Monday, 29 June 2009

Iran confirms Ahmadinejad victory
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was officially returned for a second term

(BBC) Iran's top electoral body, the Guardian Council, has confirmed the victory of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in the presidential election after a partial recount.

News of the decision, which comes after a series of protests by the opposition against what it says was a rigged ballot, was announced by state TV.

The 12-strong council is the most influential body in Iran and is currently controlled by conservatives.

Some 17 people are thought to have died during opposition street protests.

"The secretary of the Guardian Council in a letter to the interior minister announced the final decision of the Council... and declares the approval of the accuracy of the results of... the presidential election," the state broadcaster said.

A partial recount of the election carried out on Monday showed no irregularities in the vote, Iran's English-language Press TV television station added, according to Reuters news agency.

Mr. Ahmadinejad was officially re-elected with 63% of the vote on 12 June. His main challenger, Mir Hossein Mousavi, has said the whole election should be annulled and held again.

Reports say there were clashes on Monday in central Tehran between opposition demonstrators trying to form a human chain and security forces.

-- Source/continues:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8125284.stm

Riot Aftermath: Iran Arrests British Embassy Staff

10:11 CDT - 28 June 2009

Iran arrests British embassy staff for 'role in riots'

by Jay Deshmukh Jay Deshmukh/AFP via Yahoo News

TEHRAN, IRAN (AFP): Iran has arrested eight local British embassy staff, triggering London's fury on Sunday and further exacerbating tensions with the West over the post-election turmoil in the Islamic republic.

The latest backlash against what Iranian leaders have branded as foreign "meddling" came as opposition leaders continued to defy the regime, rejecting a panel set up to hold a partial recount in the hotly-disputed presidential vote.

More than 2,000 people are still in detention and hundreds more are missing across Iran since a government crackdown on protests, the Paris-based International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) said on Sunday.

Iran has repeatedly accused Britain and the United States of stoking the unrest that swept the country after the June 12 election that returned hardliner Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to power amid complaints it was rigged.

The Fars news agency said the eight staff members were arrested for having a "considerable role" in the riots.

British Foreign Secretary David Miliband said London has protested strongly to Tehran over the arrests, which he described as "harassment and intimidation of a kind which is quite unacceptable."

He said the release of the staff is Britain's "top priority" and dismissed claims the embassy was behind the demonstrations as "wholly without foundation..."

-- Source/continues: http://news.yahoo.com/s/
afp/20090628/ts_afp/iran_20090628150919

N. Korean Rhetoric Still Rising; Will Wipe U.S. Off Globe

Posted 14:45 CDT - 24 June 2008

NKorea threatens US; world anticipates missile

By Hyung-jin Kim, Associated Press/via Yahoo News

Wed Jun 24, 8:51 am ET

SEOUL, South Korea ? North Korea threatened Wednesday to wipe the United States off the map as Washington and its allies watched for signs the regime will launch a series of missiles in the coming days.

Off China's coast, a U.S. destroyer was tailing a North Korean ship suspected of transporting illicit weapons to Myanmar in what could be the first test of U.N. sanctions passed to punish the nation for an underground nuclear test last month.

The Kang Nam left the North Korean port of Nampo a week ago with the USS John S. McCain close behind. The ship, accused of transporting banned goods in the past, is believed bound for Myanmar, according to South Korean and U.S. officials.

The new U.N. Security Council resolution requires member states to seek permission to inspect suspicious cargo. North Korea has said it would consider interception a declaration of war and on Wednesday accused the U.S. of seeking to provoke another Korean War.

"If the U.S. imperialists start another war, the army and people of Korea will ... wipe out the aggressors on the globe once and for all," the official Korean Central News Agency said.

The warning came on the eve of the 59th anniversary of the start of the three-year Korean War, which ended in a truce in 1953, not a peace treaty, leaving the peninsula in state of war...

-- Source/continues: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/
20090624/ap_on_re_as/as_koreas_nuclear_91

D.C. Metro Trains Collide; At least Six Dead

ESR13-173a: Supplemental to ERRI Daily Emergency Service Report

Dispatched: 20:00 CDT - 22 Jun 2009

D.C. Metro Trains Collide; At least Six Dead

WASHINGTON, DC: (EmergencyNet News): According to emergency service reports, as many as six people have been killed and 60 others injured in a train crash near the Fort Totten Metro station just after 5 p.m. EDT. Preliminary reports say that both trains were on the same line and going in the same direction when one train rear-ended the other.

The crash happened on the red line on the Langley Park Bridge near the intersection of 3rd and Oglethorpe N.E., authorities said.

Emergency Medical Service (EMS) units described the accident as a Mass Casualty incident (M.C.I.). Paramedics said that six of the victims had sustained life-threatening injuries, 14 others have less threatening injuries and more than 50 people have what some officials call "walking wounded."

A joint investigation will be conducted into the presently unknown cause of the crash, officials said.

Watch EmergencyNet News for more on this still emerging incident, as circumstances warrant.

Clashes in Iran; Explosion at Khomeini shrine

10:00 CDT - 20 Jun 2009

Iranian police beat, fire tear gas at protesters
Outside Tehran, suicide bomber reportedly injures 8 at Khomeini shrine

From: NBC News and news services

TEHRAN, Iran - Police beat protesters and fired tear gas and water cannons at thousands who rallied in Tehran Saturday in open defiance of Iran's clerical government, sharply escalating the most serious internal conflict since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Eyewitnesses described fierce clashes near Revolution Square in central Tehran after some 3,000 protesters chanted "Death to the dictator!" and "Death to dictatorship!"

Police responded with tear gas, water cannons and guns but it was not immediately clear if they were firing live ammunition.

Police and militia barred people from entering Freedom Street, which runs from Freedom Square to Revolution Square, to prevent a mass gathering, the witnesses said.

NBC News Iran bureau chief Ali Arouzi said he had never ever seen so many police on the streets at once.

Witnesses said between 50 and 60 protesters were seriously beaten by police and pro-government militia and taken to a hospital. People could be seen dragging away comrades bloodied by baton strikes.

Some protesters appeared to be fighting back, setting fire to militia members' motorcycles, witnesses said.

Helicopters hovered overhead, as ambulance sirens echoed through the streets and black smoke rose over the city...

-- Source/continues:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31457916/ns/world_news-mideastn_africa/

Thaad Anti-Ballistic Missiles Deployed in Hawaii

Thu Jun 18, 18:26 pm ET

U.S. ready for possible NKorean missile launch to Hawaii: Gates

WASHINGTON, DC (AFP): The United States has concerns about a possible North Korean missile launch towards Hawaii and has taken steps to ensure the protection of US territory, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said on Thursday.

"We do have some concerns if they were to launch a missile ... in the direction of Hawaii," Gates told a news conference.

Gates said he had approved the deployment of THAAD missile defense weaponry to the US state and radar "to provide support" in case of a possible North Korean missile attack.

And he said that ground-based defenses in Alaska were also at the ready.

"I would just say I think we are in a good position should it become necessary to protect American territory," he said.

The Theatre High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) weaponry is designed to shoot down ballistic missiles.

US and South Korean officials have said North Korea might be readying another ballistic missile test after three previous launches in 1998, 2006 and this year.

Pyongyang said its latest April 5 launch put a satellite into orbit, while the United States and its allies labeled it a disguised test of a Taepodong-2 missile theoretically capable of reaching Alaska.

Tensions on the Korean peninsula have mounted after Pyongyang carried out its second nuclear test last month...

-- Source/continues: http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/
20090618/pl_afp/nkoreanuclearweaponsusmissiles

Ayatollah Khamenei Orders End to Election Protests; Warns of Crackdown

June 19, 2009 - Last updated 11:41 a.m. Eastern

Khamenei's Warning Stokes Fear Of Violence
Ayatollah Says Protesters Will Be "Held Responsible For The Chaos And The Consequences" Of Defiance

TEHRAN, IRAN (CBS/AP): Iran's supreme leader sternly warned of a crackdown if protesters continue days of massive street rallies, escalating the government's showdown with demonstrators demanding a new presidential election.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's rhetoric has prompted worries that a violent clash between pro-government forces and protesters is inevitable.

Khamenei said in his first response to the protests that the country's disputed presidential vote had not been rigged, siding with hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and offering no concessions to the opposition. He effectively ruled out any chance for a new vote, lauding the June 12 election as an expression of the people's will.

"Some of our enemies in different parts of the world intended to depict this absolute victory, this definitive victory, as a doubtful victory," Khamenei said at Friday prayers at Tehran University. "It is your victory. They cannot manipulate it."

CBS News correspondent Elizabeth Palmer reports that Friday prayers are usually a religious ceremony, but today, the thousands massed to hear Khamenei were waiting for a political message. And when it came, it was crystal clear.

The speech created a stark choice for candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi and his supporters: Drop their demands for a new vote or take to the streets again in blatant defiance of the man endowed with virtually limitless powers under Iran's constitution.

"So far there's no reaction from the leaders of the opposition movement," reported Palmer from Tehran, "and no word on whether they have the will to do what only weeks ago would have been unthinkable - to defy the supreme leader himself..."

-- Source/continues:
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/06/19/world/main5097363.shtml

*FLASH* - U.S. Military Reportedly Tracking Suspect N. Korean Ship

06/18/2009 - 13:00:22 PM CDT

EmergencyNet News *FLASH* Report

U.S. Military Reportedly Tracking Suspect N. Korean Ship

OFF COAST OF KOREA: According to normally reputable sources at the Pentagon in Washington, the U.S. Navy is reportedly tracking a Democratic People?s Republic of Korea (DPRK) ship that is suspected of carrying nuclear and/or missile parts in contradiction of United Nations resolution #1874.

U.N. Resolution #1874 imposed a series of measures on the DPRK that include tougher inspections of cargo suspected of containing banned items related to the country?s nuclear and ballistic missile activities. In response, the N. Koreans issued a statement saying, "if US and its followers attempted to blockade the DPRK," the DPRK will oppose it with "resolute military actions."

Resolution #1874 does not authorize U.S. or other forces to forcefully board ships suspected of proliferation. Instead, Obama Administration has reportedly directed the U.S. Navy to "hail and request" permission to inspect North Korean ships suspected of carrying arms and technology related to developing nuclear weapons.

According to diplomatic sources, if North Korean ships refuse to be inspected by the U.S. Navy, they will at some point, have to stop by a port for fuel. At that point, the U.S. government will seek diplomatic efforts to elicit cooperation from the country of that port so that the North Korean ships can be searched.

It is not presently known where the DPRK ship is going or what port might be involved in a potential diplomatic request to search the vessel. Developing...

EmergencyNet News is monitoring the reports coming from Korean waters closely and we will bring you additional developments as they occur.

IRAN: Basij Militiamen Reportedly Open Fire on Mousavi Supporters

June 15, 2009

One dead as hardline militiamen open fire on protesters in Tehran

By Jenny Booth and David Byers, The Times of London

IRAN: Hardline militiamen allied to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad shot one protester dead this afternoon and wounded many more in what appeared to be the beginning of a toughened crackdown against demonstrators protesting against the Iranian President's disputed election victory.

The Basij militiamen used live bullets after their building was attacked by furious supporters of Mir Hossein Mousavi, an Iranian photographer at the scene who witnessed the shooting said.

Members of Iran?s security forces have at times fired into the air during two days of the Iranian capital?s most violent unrest since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, and used batons to beat protesters who have pelted police with stones. But witnesses said that the Basij resorted to live fire this afternoon, and people fled the area as police fired tear gas. As well as one death, several were said to be wounded in the incident.

The violent upsurge took place on the day tens of thousands of reformists defied a ban to protest against last week?s hotly disputed presidential election result to gather in central Tehran and hear an address by Mr. Mousavi.

Taking what appeared a considerable risk to his personal safety, the defeated candidate in Friday's poll got to the scene as he moved slowly through the streets on the back of a four-wheel drive car. Scufflles broke out as supporters of Mr Ahmadinejad, riding motorbikes and armed with sticks, attacked the demonstrators along the route.

"The vote of the people is more important than Mousavi or any other person!" said Mr. Mousavi, standing on the car roof in Revolution Square and speaking through a loudhailer.

The crowds of young and old who packed several miles of his route, shouted back: "Mousavi we support you! We will die but retrieve our votes!"

They took up protest chants: "Where are the 63 per cent who voted for Ahmadinejad? If Ahmadinejad remains president we will protest every day."

Both Mr. Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, another defeated candidate who appeared alongside him today, have lodged complaints that the vote was rigged.

Some of the results ? which awarded a record-breaking 25 million votes and 63 per cent of the electorate to President Ahmadinejad ? were announced before the ballot boxes had even been opened...

-- Source/continues:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article6505842.ece

ERRI crisis analyst comment: Regardless of who wins any election in Iran, be it Mr. Ahmadinejad or Mr. Mir Hossein Mousavi, the winner will not really be in control of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The real power in Iran is Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the Guardian Council, which he appoints. Iran is a theocracy, ruled by Mullahs, and Mr. Khamenei is the Supreme religious leader and directs the Mullahs. The 12-man Guardian Council, whose chairman, Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati, publicly endorsed Mr. Ahmadinejad before the vote of the citizenry. It is unlikely that street protests will change the minds (or previous decision) of the Mullahs.

Instead, it is believed that the unrest will soon be brutally repressed by the police, Revolutionary Guard and Basiji militiamen. The question then will become whether or not the people of Iran are willing to "go all the way" to try to overthrow the theocracy and take back their lives.

If they are ready to do that...it will undoubtedly be a bloody affair with the eventual outcome largely in doubt. If they are not prepared to contest the apparently corrupt clerics...life will go on as in the past and Ayatollah Khamenei will continue to run the country, with the hardline Mr. Ahmadinejad acting as his public mouthpiece and chief belligerent.

Either way, life in the near term will likely prove very difficult for the people of Iran. The question now is how badly the common citizens of Iran want true freedom and a real democracy in their country. Our hopes and prayers for the best go with them as they make these momentous decisions.