Sayidina

Category: NEWS

  • French police hunt suspected killer of Muslim worshipper inside mosque

    French gendarmes block the access to a road at La Grand-Combe, southern France, on April 25, 2025, after a muslim worshipper was stabbed to death at the local mosque. (AFP)

    MARSEILLE – French Prime Minister Francois Bayrou on Saturday denounced the fatal stabbing of a Muslim worshipper inside a mosque as police hunted the killer, who filmed his victim as he lay dying.

    The attacker stabbed the worshipper dozens of times then filmed him with a mobile phone while shouting insults at Islam in Friday’s attack in the village of La Grand-Combe in the Gard region of southern France.

    “A worshipper was murdered yesterday,” wrote Bayrou in a message posted on X. “The Islamophobic atrocity was displayed in a video,” he added.

    “We stand with the victim’s loved ones, with the believers who are so shocked. State resources are mobilized to ensure the killer is apprehended and punished,” wrote Bayrou.

    Earlier Saturday, investigators said they were treating the killing as a possible Islamophobic crime.

    The suspect was still at large on Saturday, regional prosecutor Abdelkrim Grini told AFP.

    The footage taken by the killer showed him insulting “Allah,” the Arabic term for God, just after he carried out the attack.

    The alleged perpetrator sent the video he had filmed with his phone, showing the victim writhing in agony, to another person, who then shared it on a social media platform before deleting it.

    The killing itself was not shown on the images posted on social media but was filmed by security cameras inside the mosque. In his own footage the killer notices these cameras and is heard saying: “I am going to be arrested — that’s for sure.”

    According to another source, who also asked not to be named, the suspected perpetrator, while not apprehended, has been identified as a French citizen of Bosnian origin who is not a Muslim.

    “The individual is being actively sought. This is a matter that is being taken very seriously,” said the prosecutor Grini.

    “All possibilities were being considered, including that of an act with an Islamophobic dimension,” he added.

    He confirmed that the French anti-terror prosecutors’ office was considering whether to take over the case.

    The victim and the attacker were alone inside the mosque at the time of the incident.

    After initially praying alongside the man, the attacker then stabbed the victim up to 50 times before fleeing the scene.

    The body of the victim was only discovered later in the morning when other worshippers arrived at the mosque for Friday prayers.

    According to prosecutor Grini, the victim, between 23 and 24 years old, was a regular worshipper at the mosque. The killer had never been seen there before.

    According to several people AFP spoke to at the scene on Friday, the victim was a young man who arrived from Mali a few years ago and was “very well-known” in the village, where he was highly regarded.

    A former mining center about 10 kilometers (six miles) from the town of Ales, La Grand-Combe suffers one of the highest unemployment rates in France after the end of coal mining.

    On Friday, Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau described the murder as “appalling.”

    He expressed his “support for the victim’s family and solidarity with the Muslim community affected by this barbaric violence in their place of worship on the day of prayer.”

    AN-AFP

  • 2 Israeli soldiers killed in Gaza

    JERUSALEM – Two Israeli soldiers were killed on Friday in the northern Gaza Strip, according to separate statements issued by the Israel Defense Forces and the Israel Police on Saturday evening.

    The two are Ido Voloch, 21, an armored corps officer and platoon commander, and Neta Yitzhak Kahana, 19, an undercover officer in the Border Police.

    Israel’s state-owned Kan TV News reported that a Border Police ambush force encountered a squad of militants in the Shajaiyah neighborhood, eastern Gaza City, and Kahana was killed in the ensuing battle.

    According to the report, about 15 minutes later, during the rescue operations, militants fired an RPG rocket at the rescue force, resulting in an Israeli soldier being moderately wounded.

    About an hour later, militants fired an RPG at an Israeli tank in Shajaiyah, during which Voloch was killed and another soldier was moderately wounded.

    The channel added that in the Tel al-Sultan refugee camp in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, four Israeli armored fighters were injured, one seriously and three moderately, by explosive devices.

    XINHUA

  • Houthis say Russian sailors injured in U.S. airstrikes on Yemen’s Red Sea port

    SANAA – Three Russian sailors were injured when U.S. forces conducted airstrikes on a vessel at Yemen’s Ras Isa oil port in the country’s province of Hodeidah on the Red Sea, the Houthi group announced on Saturday.

    In a statement posted on the social media platform X, Jamal Amer, foreign minister of the unrecognized Houthi government in Sanaa, condemned the “U.S. aggression” against a ship attempting to unload oil cargo at the port.

    “The U.S. airstrikes yesterday targeted a ship anchored in Ras Isa port to prevent it from unloading an oil shipment, resulting in the injury of three Russian sailors,” Amer said. “Our Coast Guard personnel intervened immediately to rescue them and transport them for medical treatment.”

    Amer said the incident undermined U.S. claims about targeting military installations and revealed the falsehood behind U.S. President Donald Trump’s assertions that U.S. airstrikes “are aimed at Sanaa’s military capabilities.”

    Meanwhile, Houthi-controlled health authorities said in a statement that at least eight people were wounded on Saturday night when a U.S. airstrike hit a house in a residential neighborhood in Sanaa.

    Two children were among the injured from the airstrike at the house in the Al-Rawda neighborhood in northern Sanaa, the authorities said.

    Houthi-run al-Masirah TV reported more than 20 U.S. airstrikes on other locations in Sanaa, and the provinces of Saada, Marib, Hodeidah, as well as Al-Jawf throughout Saturday.

    The U.S. airstrikes come as the Houthis claimed responsibility early on Saturday for attacking three targets in Israel, using a ballistic missile and two drones.

    The Israel Defense Forces said in a post on X earlier in the day that a projectile fired from Yemen triggered sirens in southern Israel, but didn’t comment on the alleged drone attacks.

    Also on Saturday, the Houthis claimed they launched a fresh drone attack against the USS Harry S. Truman in the northern Red Sea.

    The Houthis said the attack against the aircraft carrier was in response to the ongoing U.S. airstrikes on the group’s positions. The U.S. military has yet to comment on the attack.

    The United States has intensified airstrikes against Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen since mid-March.

    In response, the Houthi group launched multiple attacks on the U.S. aircraft carriers and other U.S. warships in the Red Sea.

    XINHUA

  • Suspected chemical blast at Iran’s Bandar Abbas port kills 14, injures hundreds

    DUBAI – A huge blast probably caused by the explosion of chemical materials killed at least 14 people and injured more than 700 on Saturday at Iran’s biggest port, Bandar Abbas, Iranian state media reported.

    The explosion, which hit the Shahid Rajaee section of the port, occurred as Iran began a third round of nuclear talks with the United States in Oman, but there was no indication of a link between the two events.

    Hossein Zafari, a spokesperson for Iran’s crisis management organisation, appeared to blame the explosion on poor storage of chemicals in containers at Shahid Rajaee.

    “The cause of the explosion was the chemicals inside the containers,” he told Iran’s ILNA news agency.

    REUTERS

  • A massive explosion at an Iranian port linked to missile fuel shipment kills 5, injures over 700

    In this photo provided by Iranian Students’ News Agency, ISNA, a helicopter drops water on the fire after a massive explosion rocked a port near the southern port city of Bandar Abbas, Iran, Saturday, April 26, 2025. AP

    MUSCAT, Oman – A massive explosion and fire rocked a port Saturday in southern Iran purportedly linked to a shipment of a chemical ingredient used to make missile propellant, killing five people and injuring more than 700 others.

    Mehrdad Hasanzadeh, a provincial disaster management official, gave the updated casualty figure in an interview on state television. The previous toll was four dead and more than 500 others injured.

    The blast at the Shahid Rajaei port happened as Iran and the United States met Saturday in Oman for the third round of negotiations over Tehran’s rapidly advancing nuclear program.

    AP

  • Pakistan calls for neutral probe into Kashmir attack India blames it for

    Gudder village, Kulgam district, Kashmir April 26, 2025. REUTERS

    SRINAGAR/ISLAMABAD – Pakistan called on Saturday for a “neutral” investigation into the killings of mostly Indian tourists in Kashmir that New Delhi has blamed on Islamabad, saying it was willing to cooperate and favoured peace.

    India has identified two of the three suspected militants as Pakistani, though Islamabad has denied any role in the attack on Tuesday that killed 25 Indian and one Nepali tourists.

    “Pakistan is fully prepared to cooperate with any neutral investigators to ensure that the truth is uncovered and justice is served,” said Pakistan’s interior minister, Mohsin Naqvi.

    “Pakistan remains committed to peace, stability and the following of international norms but will not compromise on its sovereignty,” he told a press conference.

    Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has vowed to pursue the attackers to “the ends of the earth” and said that those who planned and carried it out “will be punished beyond their imagination”. Calls have also grown from Indian politicians and others for military retaliation against Pakistan.

    After the attack, India and Pakistan unleashed a raft of measures against each other, with Pakistan closing its airspace to Indian airlines, and India suspending the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty that regulates water-sharing from the Indus River and its tributaries.

    The two sides, who both fully claim Kashmir while partly ruling it, have also exchanged fire across their de facto border after four years of relative calm.

    The Indian Army said it had responded to “unprovoked” small arms fire from multiple Pakistan Army posts that started around midnight on Friday along the 740-km (460-mile) de facto border separating the Indian and Pakistani areas of Kashmir.
    It reported no casualties.

    The Pakistani military did not respond to a request for comment.

    DEMOLISHING HOUSES

    Indian security forces have continued their hunt for the suspects and have demolished the Kashmir houses of at least five suspected militants, including one they believe took part in the latest attack.

    Pieces of broken glass littered the site of one such house in Murram village in Pulwama district on Saturday. Locals said they had not seen Ehsan Ahmed Sheikh, a suspected militant whose house got destroyed, in the past three years.

    His family declined to speak with reporters.

    “Nobody knows where he is,” said neighbour Sameer Ahmed. “Ehsan’s family have lost their home. They will suffer for this, not him.”

    The rising tensions have had business implications too.

    Indian airlines such as Air India and IndiGo are bracing for higher fuel costs and longer journey times as they reroute international flights.

    The Indian government has asked airlines to actively communicate to passengers about re-routing and delays, while ensuring enough stocks of food, water and medical kits for extended journeys.

    REUTERS

  • 49 killed by Israeli strikes in Gaza over 24 hours, as mediators scramble to restart ceasefire

    DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip – At least 49 people were killed by Israeli strikes in the last 24 hours, according to health officials, as Arab mediators scrambled to restart a ceasefire.

    An airstrike in a neighborhood in western Gaza City early Saturday morning, flattened a three-story house, killing 10 people, according to a cameraman cooperating with The Associated Press. The number was confirmed by Gaza’s Health Ministry, along with three more people who were killed in the Shati refugee camp along the city’s shoreline.

    There was no immediate comment from Israel on the strikes.

    The attacks come as Hamas said on Saturday that it sent a high-level delegation to Cairo to try and get the stalled ceasefire back on track.

    Israel ended a ceasefire with Hamas last month and has vowed to continue the war until all the hostages are returned and Hamas is destroyed, or disarmed and sent into exile. It says it will hold parts of Gaza indefinitely and implement President Donald Trump’s proposal for the resettlement of the population in other countries, which has been widely rejected internationally.

    Hamas has said it will only release the dozens of hostages it holds in return for Palestinian prisoners, a complete Israeli withdrawal and a lasting ceasefire, as called for in the now-defunct agreement reached in January.

    Hamas said Saturday that the delegation will discuss with Egyptian officials the group’s vision to end the war, which includes the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza and reconstruction.

    Earlier this week, other Hamas officials arrived in Cairo to discuss a proposal that would include a five-to-seven year truce and the release of all remaining hostages, officials said.

    Egypt and Qatar are still developing the proposal, which would include the gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza and the release of Palestinian prisoners, according to an Egyptian official and a Hamas official who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief media.

    Meanwhile, Israel has continued its nearly two-month blockade on Gaza even as aid groups warn that supplies are dwindling.

    On Friday, the World Food Program said its food stocks in Gaza had run out, ending a main source of sustenance for hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in the territory. The WFP said in a statement that it delivered the last of its stocks to charity kitchens that it supports around Gaza. It said those kitchens are expected to run out of food in the coming days.

    About 80% of Gaza’s population of more than 2 million relies primarily on charity kitchens for food, because other sources have shut down under Israel’s blockade, according to the U.N. The WFP has been supporting 47 kitchens that distribute 644,000 hot meals a day, WFP spokesperson Abeer Etefa told The Associated Press.

    AP

  • Suspected chemical blast at Iran’s Bandar Abbas kills 4, injures hundreds

    Smoke from the explosion is seen at the Shahid Rajaee port in Bandar Abbas, Iran, April 26, 2025. REUTERS

    DUBAI – A huge blast on Saturday likely caused by the explosion of chemical materials stored at Iran’s biggest port, Bandar Abbas, killed at least four people and injured more than 500, Iranian state media reported.

    The explosion, which hit the Shahid Rajaee section of the port, occurred as Iran began a third round of nuclear talks with the United States in Oman, but there was no immediate indication of a link between the two events.

    Hossein Zafari, a spokesperson for Iran’s crisis management organisation, appeared to blame the explosion on poor storage of chemicals in containers at Shahid Rajaee.

    “The cause of the explosion was the chemicals inside the containers,” he told Iran’s ILNA news agency.

    “Previously, the Director General of Crisis Management had given warnings to this port during their visits and had pointed out the possibility of danger,” Zafari said.

    An Iranian government spokesperson, however, said that although chemicals had likely caused the blast, it was not yet possible to determine the exact reason.

    Iran’s official news channels aired footage of a vast black and orange cloud of smoke billowing up above the port in the aftermath of the blast, and an office building with its doors blown off and papers and debris strewn around.

    Bandar Abbas is Iran’s largest port and handles most of its containers in transit.

    The blast shattered windows within a radius of several kilometres and was heard in Qeshm, an island 26 kilometres (16 miles) south of the port, Iranian media said.

    The semi-official Tasnim news agency posted footage of injured men lying on the road being tended to amid scenes of confusion.

    State TV earlier reported that poor handling of flammable materials was a “contributing factor” to the explosion. A local crisis management official told state TV that the blast took place after several containers stored at the port exploded.

    As relief workers tried to put out fires, the port’s customs officials said trucks were being evacuated from the area and that the container yard where the explosion occurred likely contained “dangerous goods and chemicals.” Activities at the port were halted after the blast, officials said.

    REUTERS

  • North Korea unveils new ‘Kim Jong Un style’ 5,000-tonne warship

    A view of a “new multipurpose destroyer,” as per state media KCNA’s reports, in Nampo, North Korea, in this handout picture released on April 26, 2025, by the Korean Central News Agency. KCNA via REUTERS

    SEOUL – North Korean leader Kim Jong Un attended a ceremony for the launch of a “new multipurpose destroyer,” state media KCNA reported on Saturday.

    The 5,000-tonne warship was equipped with the “most powerful weapons” and built “within 400-odd days perfectly with our own strength and technology,” Jo Chun Ryong, a secretary in the ruling Workers’ Party, was quoted as saying.

    Kim, in a speech from the launch reported by KCNA, said the warship would be handed over to the navy and go into service early next year.

    The launch took place on Friday at the military shipbuilding dockyard of Nampho, and marked a new era of the “great Kim Jong Un-style fleet building,” KCNA said quoting Vice-Admiral Pak Kwang Sop. The ship was graded as the “Choe Hyon-class” named after anti-Japanese revolutionary fighter Choe Hyon, the report added.

    REUTERS

  • Indian military says Pakistani troops fired at positions along border in disputed Kashmir overnight

    SRINAGAR, India – Pakistani soldiers fired at Indian posts all along the highly militarized frontier in disputed Kashmir for a second consecutive night, the Indian military said Saturday, as tensions continued to escalate between nuclear-armed rivals following a deadly attack on tourists.

    The Indian army said in a statement on Saturday that soldiers from multiple Pakistani army posts overnight opened fire at Indian troops “all across the Line of Control” in Kashmir. “Indian troops responded appropriately with small arms,” the statement said, calling the firing “unprovoked.”

    There were no casualties reported, the statement added.

    On Friday, the Indian army said Pakistani soldiers had fired at an Indian post in Gurez sector with small arms late the previous night.

    There was no immediate comment from Pakistan, and the incidents could not be independently verified. In the past, each side has accused the other of starting border skirmishes in the Himalayan region, which both claim in its entirety.

    India has described the massacre in which gunmen killed 26 people, most of them Indian, as a “terror attack” and accused Pakistan of backing it.

    Pakistan denied any connection to the attack near the resort town of Pahalgam in India-controlled Kashmir, and the attack was claimed by a previously unknown militant group calling itself the Kashmir Resistance.

    AP

  • A bomb threat prompted a plane evacuation at a Florida airport. No explosives were found

    ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – A bomb threat note found Friday on a plane at a Florida airport prompted the evacuation of the aircraft and a temporary closure, but no explosives were found, officials said.

    A flight attendant on Allegiant Airways Flight 2006, heading from the St. Petersburg-Clearwater International Airport to Cincinnati, Ohio, found the note about a bomb threat on a bathroom door, Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office officials said. The pilot then stopped the plane and evacuated passengers on the tarmac.

    Deputies were investigating the bomb threat, and no injuries were reported, officials said.

    The threat came as recent polling by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research shows that fewer Americans report feeling safe about flying this year.

    AP

  • Fresh U.S. airstrike on Yemen’s Saada kills 1

    SANAA – A woman was killed and a man wounded late Friday night when a U.S. airstrike struck a house in Yemen’s northern Saada province, according to Houthi-run al-Masirah TV.

    The strike targeted a home in the Sahar district, and the Houthi television reported that a total of 32 U.S. airstrikes hit several locations across northern Yemen throughout the day.

    No additional casualties were reported.

    Tensions between the Houthi group and the U.S. military have sharply risen since Washington resumed airstrikes on Houthi positions in Yemen on March 15. The strikes were intended to deter the Houthis from targeting Israel and international shipping in the Red and Arabian Seas.

    On Friday, the Houthi group claimed that U.S. warplanes had carried out over 1,200 air raids on Yemen since mid-March, causing hundreds of civilian casualties and extensive damage to infrastructure.

    XINHUA

  • At least 21 Palestinians killed in Israeli attacks on Gaza: civil defense

    GAZA – At least 21 Palestinians were killed on Friday in Israeli airstrikes across the Gaza Strip, according to Gaza’s civil defense authorities.

    Mahmoud Basal, spokesperson for the civil defense, reported that nine people were killed and several others injured when Israeli aircraft struck a house east of al-Fakhari town, southeast of Khan Younis in southern Gaza.

    Additional airstrikes were reported in Gaza City and other areas around Khan Younis, Basal added. The Israeli army has not issued a comment regarding these incidents.

    In Gaza City, heavy clashes erupted between Palestinian armed factions and Israeli forces in the Shuja’iyya and Tuffah neighborhoods. The confrontations were accompanied by intense Israeli air and artillery bombardments, as well as smoke shells. Multiple explosions were heard, with thick plumes of smoke rising over the area, according to Palestinian sources.

    In a statement on Friday, Israeli army spokesperson Avichay Adraee said that troops from the 401st Brigade of the 252nd Division had been operating in the area for several weeks, targeting “terrorist organizations.” He noted that an Israeli drone had killed the members of a Palestinian cell responsible for firing an anti-tank missile from a building. No Israeli casualties were reported in that incident.

    Meanwhile, in southern Gaza, six Israeli soldiers were wounded during what was described as a “security incident,” with one in serious condition, according to Israel’s state-owned Kan TV. Adraee confirmed that a reservist from the 5250th Battalion was seriously wounded during clashes in the southern Gaza Strip.

    Abu Obeida, spokesperson for the al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, said in a separate statement that their fighters carried out ambushes and targeted Israeli troops.

    Since Israel resumed its intensified military campaign on March 18, at least 2,062 Palestinians have been killed and 5,375 injured, bringing the overall death toll in Gaza since the war began in October 2023 to 51,439, with a total of 117,416 people injured, according to health authorities in Gaza.

    XINHUA

  • Indonesia’s Mt. Lewotobi erupts, safety advisory issued

    JAKARTA – Mount Lewotobi in Indonesia’s East Nusa Tenggara province erupted on Friday, prompting the Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation Center to issue an aviation warning and a safety advisory.

    The eruption sent a column of ash up to 3,500 meters into the sky, with thick grey-to-black clouds drifting westward and northwestward from the crater.

    To mitigate risks to aviation from volcanic materials, a volcano observatory notice for aviation was issued at the orange level, the second-highest alert, prohibiting aircraft from flying below 5 km near the volcano. Pilots were also cautioned about ash clouds, which can disrupt flights.

    A safety advisory was issued to address potential risks to nearby communities, visitors, and tourists. People on the volcano’s slopes were warned against engaging in any activities within a 6 km radius of the crater.

    Those living near rivers originating from Mount Lewotobi’s peak were alerted to the possibility of lava floods during heavy rainfall.

    Local communities were advised to wear face masks and mouth-nose coverings to protect against respiratory hazards from volcanic ash.

    Standing at 1,584 meters, Mount Lewotobi is one of Indonesia’s 127 active volcanoes. The country, situated along the Pacific Ring of Fire, frequently experiences volcanic activity.

    XINHUA

  • Thai prime minister discharged from hospital after high fever

    BANGKOK – Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra was discharged from hospital after recovering from a high fever, a government official said on Friday.

    Paetongtarn, 38, was admitted to hospital after returning from a two-day visit to Cambodia on Thursday evening, government spokesperson Jirayu Houngsub said.

    After a thorough medical examination, doctors confirmed her condition had improved and allowed her to rest at home, he said, adding that she would return to duties on Monday.

    REUTERS

  • 6.3 magnitude earthquake in the Pacific Ocean rattles Ecuador

    QUITO, Ecuador – A strong 6.3 earthquake off Ecuador’s Pacific coast shook the northern part of the country Friday, with some initial reports of some damages to houses. No injuries were reported.

    The earthquake was centered in the Pacific Ocean 13 miles (20.9 kilometers) northeast of the city of Esmeraldas, and it had a depth of 21.7 miles (35 kilometers), according to the United States Geological Survey.

    Ecuador’s risk management office said on X that the earthquake was felt in at least 10 provinces, but it’s still monitoring and assessing the situation.

    Some local media showed images of Esmeraldas, the coastal town in the Pacific closest to the epicenter, where the facades of some houses suffered damage.

    Esmeraldas is more than 183 miles (296 kilometers) northwest of Quito, Ecuador’s capital.

    Ecuadorean authorities initially issued a tsunami alert for the Pacific coast, but it was cancelled a little later.

    AP

  • 1 killed and 2 injured as driver loses control during a parade in an Italian town

    ROME – A man was killed and two women injured when a driver lost control of his car in Italy’s central town of Lanciano on Friday during celebrations for Italy’s 80th Liberation Day, local media and rescuers said.

    The driver, an 80-year-old man, reportedly fell ill before hitting the crowd, firefighters said. An investigation was underway.

    An 81-year-old man died immediately after being hit by the car, while two women were injured and transferred to the hospital, local media reported.

    Italy celebrates its Liberation Day, known as “Festa della Liberazione,” with a national public holiday on April 25. In addition to the closure of schools, public offices and most shops, the day is marked with parades and demonstrations across the country.

    The accident in Lanciano happened at the end of the local parade organized by ANPI, the Italian partisans’ association that preserves the memory of the Resistance movement against the Fascists.

    The ceremonies are held in commemoration of the end of the Fascist rule and the Nazi occupation during World War II, as well as the victory of Italy’s partisans movement.

    This year the 80th anniversary of the liberation coincides with the five-day period of national mourning for the death of Pope Francis, with the right-wing government urging organizers to carry out celebrations with due “sobriety.”

    AP

  • Powerful explosion rocks coastal area in Syria’s Latakia, cause unknown: war monitor

    DAMASCUS – A powerful explosion shook the al-Mina al-Bayda area in Syria’s Latakia countryside on Friday, the Britain-based war monitor Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported.

    Ambulances rushed to the scene following the blast. There were no immediate official reports on the casualties or damage. The cause and source of the blast remained unknown.

    The al-Mina al-Bayda area has been targeted by Israeli airstrikes twice since the fall of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

    XINHUA

  • Worshipper stabbed to death in mosque in France

    PARIS – A worshipper was stabbed to death on Friday by another worshipper inside a mosque in the southern French town of La Grand- Combe, local press reported, citing judicial sources.

    The incident took place on Friday morning when there were only two people in the mosque, the victim and the attacker. The assailant stabbed the victim before fleeing. Around midday, other worshippers discovered the crime scene, according to reports by local news website Objectif Gard.

    The identity of the victim is not yet known, and the police are actively seeking the suspect. The public prosecutor’s office has opened a murder investigation, French news channel BFMTV reported.

    XINHUA

  • Senior Russian army officer killed in car explosion

    MOSCOW – Russian Lieutenant General Yaroslav Moskalik, deputy chief of the General Staff’s main operations directorate, was killed Friday in a car explosion in Balashikha, Moscow region, said the Russian Investigative Committee.

    Preliminary findings indicated that the blast was caused by a homemade explosive device planted in the vehicle.

    A criminal case has been opened.

    XINHUA