Escape From Tarkov Next Wipe is Days Away
Battlestate Games released a series of tweets over the past few days that has the community buzzing. The developer started
2023-04-10 15:38
After $85 Billion Tab, AMLO Requests Weekly Updates From Pemex
Petroleos Mexicanos has been ordered to provide weekly updates on its spending to the head of the country’s
2023-11-15 03:19
A top lawyer’s son, a FBI raid and ‘weapons of mass destruction’: How a Philly teen allegedly turned ‘aspiring terrorist’
Armored trucks descended on a Philadelphia neighbourhood on Friday, releasing a flood of FBI agents who stormed and raided a house in search of a suspected aspiring terrorist. There were no adults home when agents arrived; they found three minors in the home. But one of them was their suspect, a 17-year-old with alleged ties to a Syrian extremist group. Reporters outside captured the scene as agents marched a cuffed teenager, wearing only his undergarments, out into the street and into federal custody. Days later, the Philadelphia District Attorney's Office made clear what had happened; they had arrested someone they claim was engaged in "the most serious alleged terrorist activity prosecuted in Philadelphia County court in recent history”. The suspect The suspect is a minor, and his name has not been released to the public. Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner called the teenager an "aspiring terrorist" during a press conference after his arrest. "The young man who is under arrest is – was, an aspiring terrorist who was not merely thinking, but was doing things that are deeply disturbing and presented a grave danger to everyone," he said. FBI Special Agent in Charge Jacqueline Maguire also spoke at the conference, and revealed the suspect allegedly took steps to build a weapon of mass destruction. "Among the items he purchased were tactical equipment, wiring, chemicals and devices often used as remote detonators," she said. "He had not only taken steps in acquiring those items and materials that are commonly used in improvised explosive devices, but that he had also taken steps to start putting potential devices together," She also noted that the suspect allegedly had access to a "significant number of firearms." "He is currently charged with the following offenses: weapons of mass destruction, criminal conspiracy, arson, causing or risking catastrophe, attempt to commit criminal mischief, possession of an instrument of crime, and reckless endangerment of another person," she said. He is being tried as a juvenile, according to Mr Krasner. The investigation The 17-year-old landed on the FBI's radar after the agency learned of his alleged communication with members of Katibat al Tawhid wal Jihad, a Syria- based extremist group that the US classifies as a global terror organisation. The group has ties to al-Qaeda, the organisation formerly led by Osama Bin Laden that carried out the 9/11 terrorist attacks in New York, Washington DC and Pennsylvania. The FBI believes the organisation was responsible for the bombing of metro station in St Petersburg, Russia, in 2017, which killed 15 people. The agency also believes the group carried out a suicide car bombing in 2016 that injured three members of the Chinese Embassy in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. Federal officials believe the teenager was communicating with the terror organisation between March and April of this year. The FBI also discovered a WhatsApp account allegedly linked to his phone number that used a banner of the Riyad-us-Saliheen Brigade of Martyrs, a terror group based in Chechnya. On 6 August, the banner was reportedly changed to that of Isis. The agency eventually began surveilling the teenager, and allegedly witnessed him purchasing bomb-making materials on 7 August. The following day the US Customs and Border Protection agency said the suspect had 14 international shipments of military and tactical gear delivered to their home. Mr Krasner said that the FBI "potentially thwarted a catastrophic terrorist attack in the name of a perverted ideology that in no way, shape, or form represents the beliefs of the overwhelming majority of peace-seeking people of faith, including Muslims.” The suspect's family While the suspect's name has not been released as he is a minor, his father has commented on the shocking raid that ended with his child in FBI custody. Qawi Abdul-Rahman, a prominent criminal defence attorney in Philadelphia, told The Daily Beast that he was "shocked and devastated" to learn on Monday that his 17-year-old child was facing terror allegations. He recalled receiving a phone call at work from his children as the raid was ongoing. They told him the FBI had swarmed the home. At the time, only his three children — the 17-year-old included — were home, as both Mr Abdul-Rahman and his wife were at work. The attorney rushed home to find his child in FBI custody. He said he was "shocked" and "devastated" to learn about his child's alleged involvement with terror organisations. In the aftermath of the arrest, Mr Abdul-Rahman said he was struggling to discuss the incident and its implications with his two younger children. He said he doesn't know "how to even address it," asking how one could even explain such a concept to a child. "Your job as a father is to protect," he told The Daily Beast. "But I couldn't do a thing." Read More Philadelphia defense attorney ‘devastated’ to learn his son is FBI terror suspect Teen accused of plotting potentially ‘catastrophic terrorist attack’ Man held on suspicion of having information likely to be useful to terrorists after police data breach
2023-08-17 09:25
Mark Jackson Left Nikola Jokic Off His MVP Ballot Entirely
Bad!
2023-05-12 05:17
Disgruntled Harden no-show at 76ers' media day, training camp status unclear after trade demand
James Harden skipped the Philadelphia 76ers’ media day and his status for training camp this week in Colorado is unclear because the franchise has yet to meet the disgruntled guard’s demand for a trade
2023-10-02 23:55
Fed seen sticking to current policy rate through year end
The Federal Reserve is seen as less likely to lift its policy rate any further this year than
2023-08-04 20:53
That creepy story Snapchat's My AI posted was just a glitch
Snapchat users can rest easy with the knowledge that the erratic behavior they may have
2023-08-17 23:17
Marjorie Taylor brands Nato ‘not a reliable partner’ as she calls for US to withdraw
Far-right Rep Majorie Taylor Greene has introduced an amendment to the National Defense Authorisation Act that “directs the president to withdraw the US from Nato.” “They are not a reliable partner whose defense spending should be paid for by American citizens. For the better part of the last decade, Germany has contributed only around one per cent of its GDP to finance Nato obligations while the United States is paying around four per cent of our GDP to defend Nato countries,” Ms Greene said in announcing the amendment. She added that the US “has been financing and promising to defend Nato countries for decades and paying more than its fair share.” “Western European countries could and should be stepping up their financial contributions to ensure the security of Nato. Instead, they are entirely beholden to Russia and US taxpayers expected to foot the bill,” Ms Greene concluded. The Georgia congresswoman’s amendment comes the same day that President Joe Biden expressed the US’ “ironclad commitment to NATO” in a tweet amid a Nato summit in Lithuania. Earlier on Tuesday, Nato leaders wrote in a declaration that “Ukraine’s future is in NATO,” adding, “We will be in a position to extend an invitation to Ukraine to join the alliance when allies agree and conditions are met.” Read More Biden news – live: President skips Nato leadership dinner as White House blames ‘big speech’ prep Turkey's pledge of support for Sweden's NATO entry is tied to goals on security and EU membership Biden blames busy schedule for skipping Nato leadership dinner
2023-07-12 17:49
Biggest explosion ever seen spotted in space – and scientists don’t know what it is
The biggest explosion ever seen has been spotted in space – and scientists don’t know for sure where it came from. The blast was brighter than almost anything ever seen and has been going on for years, making it by far the most powerful such event witnessed by scientists. It has been ongoing for more than three years, and took place nearly 8 billion years away. Astronomers have proposed a host of possible explanations for the blast: it may be a vast cloud of gas that was torn apart by a black hole, for instance. But nothing on such a scale has ever been seen before and the explosion may have come from something else entirely. It is more than 10 times brighter than any known supernova and three times brighter than the brightest tidal disruption event, where a star falls into a supermassive black hole. The explosion, known as AT2021lwx, took place when the universe was around six billion years old, and is still being detected by a network of telescopes. The astronomers, led by the University of Southampton, believe the explosion is a result of a vast cloud of gas, possibly thousands of times larger than our sun, that has been violently disrupted by a supermassive black hole. Fragments of the cloud would be swallowed up, sending shockwaves through its remnants, as well as into a large dusty “doughnut” surrounding the black hole. Such events are very rare and nothing on this scale has been witnessed before, the researchers say. Last year, astronomers witnessed the brightest explosion on record – a gamma-ray burst known as GRB 221009A. Although this was brighter than AT2021lwx, it lasted for just a fraction of the time, meaning the overall energy released by the AT2021lwx explosion was far greater. AT2021lwx was first detected in 2020 by the Zwicky Transient Facility in California, and subsequently picked up by the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS) based in Hawaii. But until now the scale of the explosion had been unknown. Dr Philip Wiseman, research fellow at the University of Southampton, who led the research, said: “We came upon this by chance, as it was flagged by our search algorithm when we were searching for a type of supernova. “Most supernovae and tidal disruption events only last for a couple of months before fading away. For something to be bright for two plus years was immediately very unusual.” The Southampton-led team believe the most feasible explanation for what caused the explosion is an extremely large cloud of gas (mostly hydrogen) or dust that has come off course from its orbit around the black hole and been sent flying in. Dr Wiseman added: “With new facilities, like the Vera Rubin Observatory’s Legacy Survey of Space and Time, coming online in the next few years, we are hoping to discover more events like this and learn more about them. “It could be that these events, although extremely rare, are so energetic that they are key processes to how the centres of galaxies change over time.” The findings are published in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. Additional reporting by agencies Read More Biggest explosion ever seen spotted in space – and we don’t know what it is Scientists think they have explained a ‘mysterious structure in the universe’ Astronomers spot the largest cosmic explosion ever seen Astronomers spot the largest cosmic explosion ever seen Astronomers see ‘objects that no one has ever seen before’ in incredible observations ‘Meteorite? shooting star? missile?’: Officials explain strange ‘fireball’ over Japan
2023-05-12 12:54
Deion Sanders profits majorly from Colorado-Colorado State trash talk
Deion Sanders was able to turn a profit off the trash talk that happened before Colorado's double-overtime win over rival Colorado State.
2023-09-19 07:28
Officials say jet crash in Russia kills 10. Wagner chief was on passenger list
Officials say a private jet has crashed over Russia, killing all 10 people on board
2023-08-24 01:52
Celebrities are offering bizarre hang outs and services to raise money for the SAG-AFTRA strikes
Famous actors and writers have come together to raise funds for the Union Solidarity Coalition's new eBay auction to held crew members who have lost their healthcare due to SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes. Actos and writers such as Adam Scott, Sarah Silverman, Bob Odenkirk, Lena Dunham, Liz Feldman, Natasha Lyonne and John Lithgow, are offering unique experiences to the highest bidder in order to raise money for the Coalition. Some of the offers up for grabs include: Adam Scott walking your (LA-based) dog, dinner with Bob Odenkirk and David Cross, a mural in your home painted by Lena Dunham, a watercolour portrait of your dog by John Lithgow, and Natasha Lyone will help you solve The New York Times Crossword. Currently, the highest bid is a watercolour dog portrait by John Lithgow, which has 28 bids with the highest being $3,550. Other high bids include The Bear apron signed by the cast of the series for $1,525, Natasha Lyonne's crossword help for $2,132, and a Zoom with the cast of New Girl for $3,050. Over on social media, many couldn't believe what celebrities were offering and wished they had the funds to donate. Film and TV journalist Hannah Strong tweeted "never been sadder to be a poor person": Others shared what they would bid on if they had the money: Others praised those taking part to raise money for the crew that need it: The movie and television industry has been at a standstills since May when the WGA went on strike after the union failed to agree on a new contract with streamers and studios. In July, the SAG-AFTRA union joined writers on the picket line after it failed to negotiate a contract with streamers and studios. The Union Solidarity Coalition was founded by Hollywood writers/directors to help crew members who have lost their healthcare as a result of the strikes. Proceeds from the auction will benefit these crew members. The auctions will close on September 22. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.
2023-09-14 17:48
You Might Like...
Journalists at the nation's largest newspaper chain are walking off the job in a showdown with its CEO
Heat vs. Celtics referee trend: Scott Foster assignment is bad sign for Miami
Wales defeat Croatia thanks to Harry Wilson double to boost Euro 2024 qualification hopes
India contacts Thai cave experts in bid to free trapped tunnel workers
Iceland volcano – live: Met Office issues magma warning as likelihood of imminent eruption remains
Trump's lawyers propose 2026 trial date in election case
Finland's conservative party picks ministers for right-wing coalition government
Arrest of suspect in Long Island serial killings brings both pain and relief to victims' families