Month: February 2023

Diplomatic tensions continued to rise on Sunday as officials in Beijing blasted the U.S. for shooting a Chinese spy balloon out of the sky. Tan Kefei, a spokesperson for China’s Defense Ministry, described the move as “a clear overreaction,” saying in a statement Sunday that his country reserved “the right to use necessary means to deal with similar situations.” China’s Foreign Ministry also said in a statement it was “a serious violation of international customary practice.”  China described the balloon as a “civilian unmanned airship,” and previously said it was used for research and “meteorological purposes.”

The massive white orb was first spotted over Montana — home to Malmstrom Air Force Base, the site of one of America’s three nuclear missile silo fields. The orb was about the size of three school buses, and from Montana headed southeastward over Kansas and Missouri at around 60,000 to 65,000 feet.

The U.S. Defense Department confirmed on Saturday afternoon that an American F-22 Raptor shot down what they described as the “high-altitude surveillance balloon,” with a single missile off South Carolina. The U.S. military plans to salvage parts of the craft from a debris field that spans about 7 nautical miles. President Joe Biden told reporters after the orb was shot down that he gave the order after he was briefed about it Wednesday, but that the Pentagon “decided that the best time to do that was when it got over water.”

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Home evacuations remain in place for dozens in northeastern Ohio following a train derailment which ignited a massive fire.  Luckily, no one was killed or injured in the accident in East Palestine, Ohio.  Mayor Trent Conaway told reporters that a mandatory evacuation order was imposed around the scene of the derailment in the town, comprised of 4,700 people and located about 45 miles northwest of Pittsburgh along the Ohio-Pennsylvania border.

East Palestine Fire Chief Keith Drabick said the derailment happened around 9 p.m. Friday on a Norfolk Southern freight train traveling from Madison, Ill., to Conway, Pa. The train, he said, was carrying “multiple different quantities of products” and that several cars were still burning overnight. Video from the scene showed intense flames shooting from the derailed cars and thick smoke thousands of feet in the air over the accident scene, where frigid temperatures hindered the efforts of firefighters to contain the blaze. Officials state they know which type of products the train was carrying, however, Drabick declined to name the substances until it could be determined which cars were carrying what kind of cargo.

Columbiana County, Ohio, Emergency Management Agency Director Peggy Clark said that over 40 residents who reside near the scene were evacuated to a Red Cross shelter established in a city school.  According to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Coordinator Josh Peters, the situation will remain monitored, but no contamination of air or water with hazardous chemicals had been detected in the area.

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U.S. House of Representatives voted to remove Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., from the Foreign Affairs Committee on Thursday. The resolution to remove Omar passed 218 to 211. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said that Omar’s removal is in relation to past behavior the lawmaker has demonstrated, such as a tweet that was condemned by Democratic leadership as antisemitic and that compared the U.S. military with Hamas and the Taliban. McCarthy shared to Twitter: “She said Americans only like Israel because it’s all about the Benjamins. What does that say to other people around the world? It’s not right. We were right in our action and she can serve on other committees. It puts America in jeopardy and I’m not going to do that on my watch. And it’s fair in the process, unlike them.”

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy had repeatedly vowed to remove Omar and two other Democrats, California Reps. Eric Swalwell and Adam Schiff, once Republicans regained power. McCarthy rejected Schiff and Swalwell’s bids to return to the House Intelligence Committee.

Earlier Thursday, House Minority Leader Rep. Hakeem Jeffries said the vote was “all about political revenge” and called the resolution written to remove Omar “phony, fake and fraudulent.” Jeffries noted that Democrats immediately condemned Omar for her problematic statements after they were made and acted to condemn antisemitism globally, which Omar voted in favor of. Jeffries said: “This type of poisonous toxic double standard is going to complicate the relationship moving forward between House Democrats and House Republicans.”

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The Memphis Tennessee police department said on Thursday that one officer is in “extremely critical condition” and a second individual is dead following a midday shootout at a local library. The incident happened around 12:30 p.m. when cops responded to a call at the Poplar-White Station Library in East Memphis. Police said the wounded officer was taken to Regional One Hospital after the shooting, while the other individual was declared dead at the scene.

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation said: “The individual was pronounced dead at the scene. The scene is secure  This investigation is active and ongoing.”  The bureau said cops were initially called to the library around noon, and “according to initial reports, as the two officers attempted to talk to the individual he produced a weapon and shot one of the officers. The second officer returned fire, striking the individual. He was pronounced dead at the scene. TBI agents are working to independently determine the series of events leading to the shooting, including collecting evidence and conducting interviews. Throughout the process, investigative findings will be shared with the district attorney for his further review and consideration. The TBI acts solely as fact-finders in its cases and does not determine whether the actions of an officer were justified in these types of matters.”

The wounded officer and the dead man have not been identified.

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