Donald Trump supporters turn rowdy in protests over still-undecided election

News Network
November 6, 2020

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Phoenix, Nov 6: Backers of President Donald Trump ramped up demonstrations on Thursday night against an election they believe was rigged or being stolen, in some cases bringing guns or clashing with counter-protesters as they rallied in battleground states.

In Arizona, one of five US battleground states where votes were still being counted in the too-close-to-call race between Trump and Democratic challenger Joe Biden, Trump supporters massed outside the Maricopa County Elections Department in Phoenix.

Some briefly chased a man who held up a sign depicting the President as a Nazi pig behind a stage where right-wing talk-radio host Alex Jones was speaking.

Police intervened and broke up the altercation after the man and his small group of counter-demonstrators were surrounded by Trump activists, according to a Reuters witness. There were no reports of injuries.

"They are trying to steal the election but America knows what happened and it’s fighting back," Jones told the throng of some 300 people. "1776 is the answer to 1984," he said, an apparent reference to the US Declaration of Independence and the dystopian George Orwell novel.

In Milwaukee, some 50 Trump supporters gathered in front of a city building where votes were being counted, blasting country music, waving flags and carrying signs reading "Recount" and "Rigged".

Roughly a dozen counter-protesters arrived after an hour, shouting "Black lives matter" and "say their names," referring to the victims of police brutality. Others threw eggs at the Trump supporters from a passing car.

"My country's future is what brings me out here tonight," said Mitchell Landgraf, a 21-year-old construction worker who cast his first vote in a presidential election for Trump. "I’m afraid if it goes one way that this country will go downhill fast."

Trump's campaign has called for a recount in Wisconsin, where news organizations have pronounced Biden the winner by a razor-thin margin.

'Count every vote'

Protests have been scattered, small and largely peaceful since Americans went to the polls on Tuesday.

Facebook Inc said it had taken down a rapidly growing group the social media site said pro-Trump activists had posted with violent rhetoric calling for "boots on the ground" to protect the integrity of the election.

Biden supporters have adopted the slogan "count every vote," saying a complete and accurate tabulation in the remaining battleground states would show the former vice president had won the 270 electoral votes needed to win.

Both sides held rallies in Philadelphia on Thursday, where election staffers slowly counted thousands of mail-in ballots that could award Biden or Trump Pennsylvania's crucial 20 Electoral College votes.

Trump activists waved flags and carried signs saying: "Vote stops on Election Day" and "Sorry, polls are closed" as Biden supporters danced to music behind a barricade across the street.

"We can't allow the ballot counters to be intimidated," said retired social worker Bob Posuney, a 70-year-old Biden supporter wearing a "count every vote" T-shirt as Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" filled the air.

In Harrisburg, about 100 Trump supporters gathered on the steps of the Pennsylvania State Capitol Building on Thursday afternoon as part of a "Stop the Steal" demonstration organized by Virginia conservative activist Scott Presler.

"This is not a rally supporting a particular candidate," Presler said. "This is a rally fighting for two things: truth and justice." He said in an interview that he planned to raise funds for an audit of the state's vote count.

Republican US Representative Jim Jordan of Ohio, an outspoken supporter of Trump, said at the state capitol building he was concerned about ballots arriving in the mail without a clear postmark.

Earlier on Thursday, a state appellate court ruled more Republican observers could enter the building in Philadelphia where poll workers were counting ballots.

At least 400 protesters gathered outside the Clark County Election Department in Las Vegas. Loud patriotic anthems blared over speakers as scores waved giant Trump and American flags. Biden has a lead of just over 11,000 votes in Nevada as counting continued.

In Washington, DC, a procession of cars and bicycles sponsored by activists from a group called Shutdown DC paraded slowly through the streets of the capital to protest what they called "an attack on the democratic process" by Trump and his "enablers," according to its website.

Trump has said repeatedly without evidence that mail-in votes are prone to fraud, although election experts say that is rare in US elections.

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News Network
September 16,2024

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In a heart-breaking incident, 19-year-old Shaun D'Souza, a native of Vittalwadi in Udupi's Kundapur taluk, tragically lost his life in the UAE due to heat stroke.

Shaun, the beloved son of Elias Cyril D'Souza and Pramila D'Souza, originally from Hosabettu, Moodbidri, had been pursuing his college education in the UAE.

He was admitted to a hospital in Ras Al Khaimah, approximately 115 km from Dubai, after collapsing from heatstroke. Despite receiving immediate medical attention, Shaun breathed his last on Sunday, September 15. 

He is deeply mourned by his parents and two siblings. The family, who had been residing near St. Mary's Church in the UAE, are grappling with the profound loss. Shaun’s father, Elias, works as a manager for a private company, while his mother, Pramila, is an accountant.

The local community has come together to offer their support and condolences in this time of sorrow.

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News Network
September 13,2024

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NRI professionals hailing from the coastal and Malnad regions of Karnataka, now based in Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and Australia, have been urging the Indian government and airlines to introduce a direct flight between Mangalore International Airport (MIA) and Singapore’s Changi Airport.

These professionals argue that Singapore’s strategic location as a hub connecting India with East Asia makes this flight essential. They highlight that this route would serve over 12 million people from the coastal and hill regions of southern India, fostering stronger ties with East Asian economies.

The group, consisting of individuals from Dakshina Kannada, Uttara Kannada, Udupi, Chikkamagaluru, Kodagu, Shivamogga, and Hassan, is spearheaded by Rajesh H Acharya, director of HQ Connections Pte Ltd, Singapore, and coordinator of the Singapore Tuluver community. Acharya emphasized the significance of the Indian government’s Act East policy, which aims to strengthen relationships between India and ASEAN, East Asia, and the Asia-Pacific region.

“This flight will open new doors for cultural, trade, tourism, and technological exchanges between these regions,” Acharya said.

The Mangalore Chapter of IndUS Entrepreneurs (TiE) has also proposed positioning the region as the 'Silicon Beach of India.' A direct flight would provide greater opportunities for entrepreneurs and investors from both Singapore and Mangaluru, boosting business exchanges.

Moreover, Singapore’s Changi Airport could see increased tourism from the Karnataka coast, while Coastal Karnataka would benefit from a surge in visitors from ASEAN countries, the Far East, Australia, New Zealand, and the US West Coast.

While a similar attempt in 2017 did not succeed, Acharya and his team are hopeful that this time their appeal will be taken seriously, tapping into the immense growth potential of the eastern half of the globe.

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News Network
September 10,2024

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The Israeli regime has attacked displaced Palestinians in the southern part of the Gaza Strip with US-provided 2,000-pound bombs, killing at least 40 civilians, mostly women and children.

As many as 60 others were injured in the attack that targeted an area previously declared by the Israeli military as a “humanitarian zone” at the al-Mawasi refugee camp in the city of Khan Younis on Tuesday.

The military alleged that it had struck members of the Hamas resistance movement, who were “operating a command and control center” inside the targeted area, a claim that was rejected by the group as a “blatant lie.”

“The resistance has repeatedly confirmed the absence of any of its members among civilian gatherings or the use of such areas for military purposes,” Hamas said.

The bloodletting took place as part of the regime’s ongoing genocidal war on Gaza, which began on October 7 in response to a retaliatory operation staged by the territory’s resistance groups.

So far, close to 41,000 Palestinians have been killed and more than 94,800 others wounded in the brutal military onslaught.

The Tuesday massacre came after the refugee camp witnessed an influx of homeless Palestinians, who had fled there from the death and destruction spree caused by the war elsewhere across the coastal sliver. Between 30,000 and 34,000 people were living upon each square kilometer of the camp at the time of the attack, the United Nations estimates show.

The weapons deployed during the massacre have been identified as American-made MK-84 bombs, which carry 900 pounds of explosives. 

The payload can create a crater about 15 meters wide and over 10 meters deep, besides being capable of causing deadly damage around it within a radius of approximately 73 meters. 

This is not the first time when the regime deploys the ammunition against civilian targets during the war. 

More than 70 Palestinians were killed after it struck the refugee camp with the same bombs in July.

As part of its unbridled military support for the regime, the United States has armed it with as many as 14,000 of the bombs since the onset of the war.

Hamas also called the US “complicit” in such massacres that “are being deliberately carried out without regard for international law, humanitarian law, or resolutions calling for an end to the aggression.”

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