Jew hater Robert Bowers opens fire in US synagogue; 11 killed, many injured

Agencies
October 28, 2018

Pittsburgh, Oct 28: 46-year-old Robert Bowers on Saturday opened fire at the Tree of Life synagogue in the US city of Pittsburgh, killing at least 11 people and injuring several others including four policemen, in the deadliest "anti-Semitic attack" in America in years.

Pittsburgh Public Safety Director Wendell Hissrich told reporters that there were 11 fatalities and six injuries including four policemen. "This does not include the shooter," he said, adding that there were no children among fatalities or injured.

The shooter surrendered after he was injured during an exchange of fire with the police, according to local media reports.

Who is Robert Bowers?

Robert Bowers described as a white, heavy set with a beard, was being questioned and treated at a hospital. The FBI is investigating this as a "hate crime". Before opening fire, he reportedly yelled, "All Jews must die!"

The suspect is in "fair condition" with multiple gunshot wounds and is being treated at Allegheny General Hospital, according to Pittsburgh's public safety director.

According to NBC news, shooter Bowers was armed with an AR-15 style rifle in addition to multiple handguns.

Bowers appears to have no past criminal record, and a Federal Bureau of Investigation official said he was not previously known to law enforcement.

Bob Jones, special agent in charge of the FBI's Pittsburgh office, said law enforcement authorities believe he was acting alone but had not identified his full motive.

Bowers has a license to carry a firearm and has made at least six firearm purchases since 1996, CNN reported, quoting a law enforcement official.

In his multiple social media accounts, Bowers showed his anti-Jew sentiment in particular vented his anger against Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society or HIAS.

"HIAS likes to bring invaders to kill our people. I can't sit by and watch my people get slaughtered. Screw your optics, I am going in," he said on the social media platform Gab, an alternative version of Twitter.

In another Gab message, Bowers said he did not vote for Trump, nor did he ever wore a cap of MAGA (make America great again).

A quote atop the Bowers page said "jews are the children of satan," according to screenshots of the now-suspended account released by the SITE Intelligence Group, which monitors extremist movements.

Bowers posted on Gab just hours before the shooting: "HIAS likes to bring invaders in that kill our people. I can't sit by and watch my people get slaughtered. Screw your optics, I'm going in."

Suspect shooter charged with Hate Crime and total of 29 federal charges: Justice Dept

US prosecutors slapped the gunman who killed 11 people in a synagogue with 29 counts of federal crimes of violence and firearms offenses on Saturday, after he carried out the deadliest anti-Semitic attack in recent US history.

The charges against shooter Robert Bowers include 11 counts of obstruction of exercise of religious beliefs resulting in death; and 11 counts of use of a firearm to commit murder during a crime of violence, the US Attorney's Office of the Western District of Pennsylvania said in a statement.

"The crimes of violence are based upon the federal civil rights laws prohibiting hate crimes," the statement said.

Cops clueless on motive

FBI agents reached the 'Tree of Life' Congregation Synagogue at Squirrel Hill area in Pittsburgh, where a large number of people had gathered for a baby naming ceremony when the shooting took place. The motive was not immediately known.

FBI Pittsburgh Special Agent in Charge Bob Jones said the investigation was in its early stages and there was no knowledge if the shooter was known to the law enforcement till this date.

"Gunman targeted (people) because of their faith. At this time, we believe that he was acting alone," he said.

Trump calls shooting evil, reccomends death penalty for the shooter

Describing the mass shooting as "pure evil", US President Donald Trump said the nation and the world are shocked by the unimaginable incident.

"This wicked act of mass murder is pure evil, hard to believe, and frankly something that is unimaginable. Our nation and the world are shocked and stunned by the grief. This was an anti-Semitic act," said Trump.

"We just don't seem to learn from the past," he said at a farmers' event in Indianapolis.

"Our minds cannot comprehend the cruel hate and the twisted malice that could cause a person to unleash such terrible violence during a baby naming ceremony. This was a baby naming ceremony at a sacred house of worship," the US President said.

"We must all rise above the hay, move past our divisions and embrace our common destiny as Americans. It doesn't mean that we can't fight hard and be strong and say what's on our mind, But we have to always remember those elements of love and dignity and respect," Trump said.

"This evil Anti-Semitic attack is an assault on all of us," Trump told supporters at an election rally in Illinois where he began by addressing the attack at length -- drawing loud cheers as he vowed to fully enforce the death penalty for such crimes, AFP reported.

US flags to be flown at half-staff after synagogue shooting: Trump

All flags at the White House, public grounds, military posts, naval stations and ships will be flown at half-staff through October 31 as a mark of "solemn respect" for the victims, Trump ordered.

Benjamin Netanyahu in shock

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, "I was heartbroken and appalled by the murderous attack on a Pittsburgh synagogue today".

The shooting came days after recovery of a series of package bombs sent to several current and former high-ranking officials.

Israel's Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon said: "We all feel the pain of the murder of Jews at a Shabbat service. We will stand together like a rock against hatred and against those who try to harm Jews all over the world. I send condolences to the families of the murdered and a speedy recovery for the wounded. The entire Jewish people now stands alongside the Jewish community of Pittsburgh".

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News Network
April 29,2024

JDSBJP.jpg

Congress leader Pawan Khera on Monday, April 29, shared a letter purportedly written by BJP leader Devaraj Gowda to the Karnataka state president of the saffron party expressing concern about the pendrive containing sleazy videos of JD(S) leader and Lok Sabha MP Prajwal Revanna.

The letter was apparently written on December 8, 2023.

The letter, written in Kannada by the Hassan BJP leader states that 2,976 clips were already with Congress leaders and would be ammo for the grand old party during the Lok Sabha elections. The letter also states that if Revanna is allowed to contest under the NDA banner, it is likely to negatively impact the BJP's image in the state.

Sharing this letter, Khera launched an attack on the BJP, asking why the party had chosen to enter into an alliance with JD(S) despite knowing about the pendrive. He also questioned the lack of action, sharing the stage with Prajwal Revanna, and asked who helped him 'escape to Germany'.

Khera also questioned PM Narendra Modi's silence on the matter. Notably, the PM has been vocal about women suffering sexual abuse elsewhere in the country, when a leader of the opposition party has been involved. Modi attacked the TMC government over Sheikh Shahjahan's actions in Sandeshkhali, which allegedly involve sexual harassment and illegal land grabbing.

The Congress leader, however, remained confident that Modi would stay mum on the Hassan sex scandal issue.

"Modi ji will be in Karnataka the entire day today. I can guarantee that he won’t find the courage to utter even a single word on this horrific case in the state wherein his alliance’s politician went around recording thousands of sex videos of several women in his pen drive, and has now absconded abroad!," Khera said on X (formerly Twitter).

While Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah has ordered a special probe into the incident, the JD(S) has distanced itself from Prajwal with H D Kumaraswamy saying that while he wanted to wait for facts to come out after the probe, there was no question of forgiving someone who had committed a crime as per the law.

A sexual harassment and stalking case has been filed against former Karnataka Minister H D Revanna and his son Prajwal, who is at the centre of the Hassan scandal.

A woman complainant said that she worked in Revanna's house from 2019 for three and a half years. During her time there, Revenna allegedly misbehaved with her, as did Prajwal, according to the woman's claims. She also claimed Prajwal sexually assaulted her repeatedly.

She also claimed the MP had used obscene language with her daughter during video calls, forcing her to block the number and quit her job.

H D Revanna is the elder son of JD(S) supremo and former PM H D Deve Gowda, and Prajwal is the party patriarch's grandson.

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News Network
May 4,2024

Mangaluru, May 4: The Mangaluru International Airport was besieged with a harrowing message of terror recently, when an email, purportedly from malevolent elements, menacingly declared the planting of bombs within the airport premises. 

Addressed to the office of the airport authority, the missive, steeped in ominous overtones, bore the ominous signature of a terrorist faction, ominously named 'Terrorizers 111'.

The communication, disseminated in English, ominously detailed the clandestine emplacement of explosives in areas eluding facile detection, accompanied by a chilling warning of their imminent detonation. The threat, ominously looming over not only the infrastructure but also the airborne vessels, portended a catastrophic deluge of bloodshed and loss.

In response to this dire communiqué, airport authorities swiftly engaged the apparatus of law enforcement, dispatching urgent alerts to the vigilant guardians of public safety. Acting upon the dictates of higher echelons, a formal dossier of this menacing correspondence was meticulously compiled, cloaked in the veil of confidentiality to thwart any premature dissemination.

Mangaluru International Airport found itself in grim camaraderie with more than 30 counterparts under the aegis of the Airport Authority of India (AAI) and private domains, all recipients of this chilling electronic diatribe. A comprehensive net of precautionary measures was swiftly cast, fortifying the bastions of security in anticipation of any nefarious designs lurking within the shadows.

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News Network
May 3,2024

Bengaluru: In a fresh development in the alleged Hassan sex abuse case, JD(S) MLA H D Revanna, who was accused of sexually harassing his house help, has been booked for kidnapping a victim allegedly sexually assaulted by his son, Hassan MP Prajwal Revanna. The case was filed late Thursday evening at the KR Nagar police station in Mysuru.

The 20-year-old complainant from KR Nagara accused one Sathish Babanna of taking his mother away forcibly and keeping her in an unknown location at the behest of Revanna.

As per the FIR, Revanna has been named as accused 1 while Babanna was accused 2. The duo were booked under IPC Sections 364A (kidnapping for ransom), 365 (kidnapping or abducting with intent secretly and wrongfully to confine a person) and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention).

The complainant claimed that his mother, whose name and age were not revealed, had worked as a help in Revanna’s house and farm in Holenarasipura for six years, quit the job three years ago and returned to KR Nagara. She then worked for daily wages.

“Nearly three to four days before the Lok Sabha election, Sathish Babanna, who is known to us and hailed from our native place, took my mother to Holenarasipura after saying that Bhavani Revanna, the wife of MLA Revanna, had asked for her,” the complainant alleged, adding that Babanna dropped her back on the day of the polls.

Babanna allegedly told the victim’s mother and father to remain silent and evade the police if they came looking for them and to inform him of the developments.

On April 29, at around 9 pm, when the complainant was home, the suspect Babanna arrived, told the complainant’s mother that Revanna had asked for her and took her away on his motorcycle. The complainant claimed that he wasn’t aware of where Babanna took his mother and he had told him that if the police found her, a case would be registered and they would all go to jail.

On May 1, two of the complainant’s relatives called him on the phone and told him that there was a video of his mother being sexually assaulted by Prajwal and that it was a huge case, the FIR noted. He was also informed by his two friends of his "mother's videos being circulated".

When he asked Babanna later that night, he was allegedly told that there was a photo of his mother standing with a stick when Prajwal had quarrelled with someone earlier and an FIR had been registered. Babanna told the complainant that his mother would have to be released on bail, the FIR noted.

“Babanna told me not to speak on the matter on my phone and asked me to talk from a different phone,” he said, seeking action from the police.

The case has been transferred to the Special Investigation Team (SIT) set up to probe the Hassan sex scandal as per the government order.

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