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13 dead in Chile amid struggle to contain raging wildfires
At least 13 people were reported dead as of Friday night as a result of the more than 150 wildfires burning across Chile that have destroyed homes and thousands of acres of forest while the South American country is in the midst of a scorching heat wave.
Four of the deaths involved two separate vehicles in the Biobío region, around 560 kilometers (348 miles) south of the capital of Santiago.
“In one case they were burned because they were hit by the fire,” Interior Minister Carolina Tohá said. In the other case, she said, the victims died in a crash, “probably trying to escape the fire.”
The fifth victim was a firefighter who was run over by a fire truck while combatting a blaze in the area.
Later in the afternoon, a helicopter that was helping combat the flames crashed in the Araucanía region, killing the pilot, a Bolivian national, and a mechanic, who was Chilean.
At nightfall, the national agency responsible for emergencies raised the death toll to 13 without giving details on the latest deaths.
As of midday Friday, 151 wildfires were burning throughout Chile, including 65 declared under control. The fires had blazed through more than 14,000 hectares (34,595 acres).
Most of the wildfires are in Biobío and neighboring Ñuble, where the government has declared states of catastrophe that allows greater coordination with the military and the suspension of certain constitutional rights.
The heat wave hitting Chile is set to continue with high temperatures and strong winds that could make the wildfires more challenging.
President Gabriel Boric suspended his vacation to travel to the affected areas on Friday and said there is “evidence” that some of the wildfires were sparked by unauthorized burnings.
“The full force of the state will be deployed to, first of all, fight the fires and to accompany all the victims,” Boric said.
It remained unclear how many homes and other structures had been burned.
“Families are having a very difficult time,” Ivonne Rivas, the mayor of Tomé in Biobío, told local radio. “It’s hell what they are living through, the fire got away from us.”
The wildfires caused the suspension of a highly anticipated announcement by forensic experts who were expected to give the cause of death of Chilean poet Pablo Neruda, winner of a Nobel Prize for literature.
The experts were set to give their view on whether Neruda died of complications from prostate cancer or whether he was poisoned, potentially settling one of the great mysteries of post-coup Chile.
The doctor in charge of delivering the report’s findings was unable to connect to the internet because he is in a region affected by the wildfires, a spokesman for the country’s judiciary said.
At least 22 dead in Benin bus crash
At least 22 people were killed and nearly two dozen injured when a public bus crashed into a truck in the center of Benin, the government on Monday.
The president’s director of communications posted on Facebook that first responders had immediately been dispatched to the scene of the crash that occurred near the town of Dassa-Zoume on Sunday.
“In this painful circumstance, the government expresses its sympathy to the whole nation and presents its deepest condolences to all the grieving families. This tragedy has once again reminded us that safety on our roads remains a constant challenge and urges us to take even stronger actions for a more effective safety of people and goods,” the director said. A crisis unit has been set up for relatives to get information.
The cause of the crash was not immediately known. An investigation has been opened into the circumstances of the crash, said authorities.
Images and videos of the crash shared on social chat groups and seen by The Associated Press show the bus in flames and a charred body on the ground as one man tried to put out the fire with a jerry can of water.
About 21 people had burn injuries to varying degrees, said Benjamin Hounkpatin, the health minister during an interview with state television on Sunday. Speaking outside the hospital in Cotonou where the injured had been taken, he said they were alerted about the crash early evening Sunday and that health staff were doing everything they could.
“For the people who were burned we can't guarantee what will happen to them,” said Hounkpatin.
Transport accidents occur in Benin due to narrow roads in parts of the country, however, the death toll is not usually so high, according to locals. In July, three people were killed in a crash between a bus and a car near the town of Parakou, according to local media.
Suicide bomber kills 59, wounds over 150 at Pakistan mosque
A suicide bomber struck a crowded mosque inside a police compound in Pakistan on Monday, causing the roof to collapse and killing at least 59 people and wounding more than 150 others, officials said.
Most of the casualties were police officers. It was not clear how the bomber was able to slip into the walled compound, which houses the police headquarters in the northwestern city of Peshawar and is itself located in a high-security zone with other government buildings.
Sarbakaf Mohmand, a commander for the Pakistani Taliban, claimed responsibility for the attack on Twitter. The main spokesman for the militant group was not immediately available for comment.
"The sheer scale of the human tragedy is unimaginable. This is no less than an attack on Pakistan,” tweeted Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, who visited the wounded in Peshawar and vowed “stern action” against those behind the bombing. He expressed his condolences to families of the victims, saying their pain ”cannot be described in words."
Pakistan, which is mostly Sunni Muslim, has seen a surge in militant attacks since November, when the Pakistani Taliban ended their cease-fire with government forces.
Earlier this month, in another attack claimed by the Pakistani Taliban, a gunman shot and killed two intelligence officers, including the director of the counterterrorism wing of the country’s military-based spy agency Inter-Services Intelligence. Security officials said Monday the gunman was traced and killed in a shootout in the northwest near the Afghan border.
Monday's assault on a Sunni mosque inside the police facility was one of the deadliest attacks on security forces in recent years.
The militant group, also known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan or TTP, is separate from but a close ally of the Afghan Taliban. The TTP has waged an insurgency in Pakistan in the past 15 years, seeking stricter enforcement of Islamic laws, the release of its members in government custody and a reduction in the Pakistani military presence in areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province it has long used as its base.
More than 300 worshippers were praying in the mosque, with more approaching, when the bomber set off his explosives vest. Many were injured when the roof came down, according to Zafar Khan, a police officer, and rescuers had to remove mounds of debris to reach worshippers still trapped under the rubble.
Meena Gul, who was in the mosque when the bomb went off, said he doesn’t know how he survived unhurt. The 38-year-old police officer said he heard cries and screams after the blast.
Mohammad Asim, a spokesman at the main government hospital in Peshawar, put the death toll at 59, with 157 others wounded. Police official Siddique Khan the bomber blew himself up while among the worshippers.
Senior police and government officials attended the funerals of 30 police officers and arrangements to bury the rest were being made. Coffins were wrapped in the Pakistani flag their bodies were later handed over to relatives for burials.
Read more: Roadside bomb kills 6 people in north Afghanistan: Taliban
Peshawar is the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, where the Pakistani Taliban have a strong presence, and the city has been the scene of frequent militant attacks.
The Afghan Taliban seized power in neighboring Afghanistan in August 2021 as U.S. and NATO troops pulled out of the country after 20 years of war.
The Pakistani government's truce with the TTP ended as the country was still contending with unprecedented flooding that killed 1,739 people, destroyed more than 2 million homes, and at one point submerged as much as a third of the country.
Mohmand, of the militant organization, said a fighter carried out the attack to avenge the killing of Abdul Wali, who was widely known as Omar Khalid Khurasani, and was killed in neighboring Afghanistan’s Paktika province in August 2022.
Afghanistan’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement that it was “saddened to learn that numerous people lost their lives and many others were injured by an explosion at a mosque in Peshawar” and condemned attacks on worshippers as contrary to the teachings of Islam.
Condemnations also came from the Saudi Embassy in Islamabad, as well as the U.S. Embassy, adding that "The United States stands with Pakistan in condemning all forms of terrorism.”
Cash-strapped Pakistan faces a severe economic crisis and is seeking a crucial installment of $1.1 billion from the International Monetary Fund — part of its $6 billion bailout package — to avoid default. Talks with the IMF on reviving the bailout have stalled in the past months.
Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan called the bombing a “terrorist suicide attack.” He tweeted: “My prayers & condolences go to victims families. It is imperative we improve our intelligence gathering & properly equip our police forces to combat the growing threat of terrorism.”
Sharif’s government came to power in April after Khan was ousted in a no-confidence vote in Parliament. Khan has since campaigned for early elections, claiming his ouster was illegal and part of a plot backed by the United States. Washington and Sharif dismiss Khan's claims.
3 dead, 1 missing as rain pounds New Zealand’s largest city
Authorities said Saturday that three people had died and at least one was missing after record levels of rainfall pounded New Zealand's largest city, causing widespread disruption.
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins flew to Auckland on a military plane after a state of emergency was declared in the region.
“Our priority is to ensure that Aucklanders are safe, that they're housed and that they have access to the essential services that they need,” Hipkins said.
He said the city was in for a big cleanup and that people should remain indoors if possible. He said a break in the weather could prove temporary, with more heavy rain forecast.
“This is an unprecedented event in recent memory," Hipkins said.
Friday was the wettest day ever recorded in Auckland, according to weather agencies, as the amount of rain that would typically fall over the entire summer hit in a single day. On Friday evening, more than 15 centimeters (6 inches) of rain fell in just three hours in some places.
The rain closed highways and poured into homes. Hundreds of people were stranded at Auckland Airport overnight after the airport stopped all flights and parts of the terminal were flooded.
Police said they found one man's body in a flooded culvert and another in a flooded carpark. They said fire and emergency crews found a third body after a landslide brought down a house in the suburb of Remuera. One person remained missing after being swept away by floodwaters, police said.
Hipkins said power had been restored to most places, although about 3,500 homes remained without electricity.
Video posted online showed chest-deep water in some places.
Lawmaker Ricardo Menéndez posted a video of water surging into houses. “We’ve just had to evacuate our home as the water was already rising rapidly and coming in aggressively,” he tweeted.
Fire and Emergency New Zealand said crews had responded to more than 700 incidents across the region and staff had taken more than 2,000 emergency calls.
“We had every available career and volunteer crew on the road responding to the most serious events,” said district manager Brad Mosby.
Mosby said crews had rescued 126 people who were trapped in houses or cars, or who had been involved in vehicle crashes.
Air New Zealand said it resumed domestic flights in and out of Auckland on Saturday afternoon, but wasn't yet sure when international flights would resume.
“The flooding has had a huge impact our Auckland operations," said David Morgan, the airline's chief operational integrity and safety officer. “We’re working on getting customers to their final destinations and getting our crew and aircraft back in the right place. It might take a few days to get everything back on track.”
In a series of updates on Twitter, Auckland Airport said people were able to leave the airport early Saturday for their homes or accommodation after hundreds spent the night in the terminal.
“It’s been a long and challenging night at Auckland Airport, we thank everyone for ongoing patience,” the airport wrote.
“Unfortunately, due to earlier flooding in the baggage hall, we are currently unable to return checked luggage to you,” the airport wrote. “Your airline will make arrangements for its return at a later time.”
The storm also caused an Elton John concert to be canceled just before it was due to start Friday night. A second concert by John that was planned at the stadium on Saturday night was also canceled.
About 40,000 people were expected to attend each concert at Mt Smart Stadium. Thousands were already at the venue Friday night when organizers decided to cancel not long before John was due to take the stage at 7:30 p.m.
Many concertgoers who had braved the conditions were frustrated the decision hadn't been made hours earlier.
Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown defended criticism that his office did not communicate the seriousness of the situation well and held off on declaring an emergency until about 9:30 p.m. Friday.
He said the timing of the emergency declaration was guided by experts.
“We will review everything that took place,” Brown said. “We've got to make sure we had the coordination, and the consultation with the public, correct.”
Man's throat-slit body found in Gaibandha
Police recovered the throat-slit body of a man from Sadullapur upazila of Gaibandha district on Saturday morning.
The deceased was identified as Surat Ali, of Puran Lakshipur village in the upazila.
Family members said Surat went to a local market on Friday evening but did not return at night.
On Saturday morning, locals spotted his body lying under the Collegepara Ghaghat Bridge and informed police.
Also Read: Unidentified man's body found in city
On information, police recovered the body and sent it to a hospital morgue for an autopsy, said Enayet Kabir, officer-in-charge (OC) of Sadullapur Police Station.
Police suspected that miscreants might have killed him over previous enmity.
2 dead, four wounded in Sylhet road crash
Two people were killed and other four injured as a speeding truck crashed into a CNG-run autorickshaw in Dakshin Surma upazila of the district Friday afternoon, police said.
The deceased—autorickshaw driver Babul Miah, 65, and passenger Anhar Miah, 45, were from Charlapur area of Balaganj upazila in the district.
On the other hand, the injured passengers are Rezaul, Sona Miah, Rozina and Alamin. Details about them could not be known immediately.
Rezaul Karim, officer-in-charge of Moglabazar police station under the Dakshin Surma upazila, said the accident happened around 4.30pm when the speeding truck hit the autorickshaw from the opposite direction on Sultanpur-Gaharpur Road in the Battala area, leaving the duo dead on the spot and others injured.
The injured were rushed to Sylhet Osmani Medical College Hospital where they are undergoing treatment, he said.
Of them, the condition of Rozina was stated to be critical, the OC said quoting physicians.
Caretaker couple found dead at Dinajpur house after owner's 999 call
A couple was found dead in a house in Dinajpur town early Friday, police said.
The deceased were identified as Mojibor Rahman and his wife Suraiya Begum, 55, from the town. They used to work as caretakers in the Munshipara area at Advocate Nilufar Rahim's house.
Read more: Unidentified man found dead in Dinajpur
Earlier, suspecting that something went wrong at her house in Dinajpur, Nilufar, who lives in Dhaka, called the national emergency service 999 for help, Additional Superintendent of Police of Dinajpu Mominul Karim said.
Next police found Mujibur hanging from the ceiling in the bedroom and the body of his wife in the kitchen with her throat slit this morning, he added.
The bodies have been sent to Abdur Rahim Medical College and Hospital morgue for autopsies, the police officer said.
Read more: Cop's wife found dead in Khulna, suicide suspected
"The cause of the deaths can be confirmed when we get the autopsy reports. We are also investigating whether there was a domestic dispute between the couple," Mominul added.
Narail boat capsize: Death toll climbs to 5
The death toll from the boat capsize in the Nabaganga River in Narail rose to five with the recovery of one body on Monday.
Sheikh Tasmim Alam, officer-in-charge of Kalia Police Station, said the divers from local fire service fished out the body of Royel Par, son of Imamul Mandal of Bahirdanga village around 3:30 pm.
Another victim identified as Mahmud Sheikh, 41, son of Khalek Sheikh of Kalia village and son-in-law of Enamul Mandal, still remained missing since the boat capsized.
Efforts are on to find Mahmud, he added.
Also Read: Narail boat capsize: Death toll rises to 4
Two people drowned and five others went missing after a boat capsized in the river off the coast of Kalia upazila on Friday night.
The bodies of Labu, 32, son of Tuku Chowkidar of Babupur village, and Khanze Sheikh, 55, son of Matiar Sheikh of Jokar Char village, were recovered on Sunday.
The boat with 17 people on board capsized around 8:30 pm while heading towards Bahirdanga from Baghbari of Kalia municipality. Ten of them managed to swim to ashore.
Magura road accident leaves one dead
A man was killed and another injured in a collision among a motorcycle, a three-wheeler and an auto-rickshaw in Mohammadpur upazila of the district on Monday.
The accident occurred on Magura-Mohammadpur road in the morning when the motorcycle carrying the duo and two other vehicles collided, leaving the biker dead on the spot and pillion rider injured
Also Read: JUST student among 3 killed as truck rams rickshaw van
Police recovered the body and sent it to a hospital morgue for autopsy. A case was filed in this connection.
Narail boat capsize: Death toll rises to 4
The death toll from the boat capsize in the Nabaganga River in Narail rose to four with the recovery of two bodies Sunday noon.
Two people drowned and five others went missing after their boat capsized in the river off the coast of Kalia upazila on Friday night.
The bodies of Labu, 32, son of Tuku Chowkidar of Babupur village, and Khanze Sheikh, 55, son of Matiar Sheikh of Jokar Char village, were recovered today.
Fire service divers fished out the bodies from the Nabaganga River in Kalia upazila, said Sheikh Tasmeem Alam, office-in-charge (OC) of Kalia police station.
Also Read: Mother, son drown as boat capsizes in Narail
“The bodies were handed over to the Naval Police. They will take necessary legal steps,” said OC Tasmeem.
Efforts are on to find the others who went missing after the accident, he added.
The boat with 17 people on board capsized around 8:30 pm while heading towards Bahirdanga from Baghbari of Kalia municipality. Ten of them managed to swim to ashore.