Category World News

A Palestinian-American boy, 6, was stabbed in horrific October 2023 death and suffered serious injuries to his mother; a US landlord has passed away.

According to the Will County Sheriff’s Office, Joseph Czuba, 73, passed away on Thursday while the Illinois Department of Corrections was in charge of his care, the Chicago Sun-Times reported on Saturday. According to the Associated Press news agency, the law enforcement agency did not respond to a request for comment on the death.

One of the earliest and worst hate crime incidents in the US since Israel’s war on Gaza was the boy’s murder, Wadee Alfayoumi, and Hanan Shaheen’s attack on his mother, Hanan Shaheen.

Czuba received a 53-year prison sentence for the attack three months ago. He was found guilty in February of killing Alfayoumi and injuring Shaheen, along with other hate-crimes charges.

Because they were Muslims, Czuba attacked them on October 14, 2023, in response to the Hamas-led attacks on southern Israel on October 7.

The hate is still present and well, according to Ahmed Rehab, the executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations’ Chicago office, in a statement released on Saturday.

Shaheen’s terrifying 911 call, as well as bloody crime scene photos and a police video, were the evidence at trial. Before rendering a verdict, jurors had only 90 minutes to deliberate.

When the attack occurred, the family was renting out rooms at Czuba’s Plainfield home, which is 64 kilometers from Chicago.

The boy’s mother, who claimed Czuba attacked her before moving on to her son, insisting that they had to leave because they were Muslims, provided chilling testimony in the prosecution’s case.

In her testimony, Shaheen said, “You, as a Muslim, must die.”

According to Czuba’s ex-wife, Mary, the prosecution heard how angry he had become with Israel’s Gaza war, which has now resulted in the deaths of nearly 60, 000 Palestinians.

According to the police, Czuba allegedly stabbed the boy 26 times using a knife from a belt holder. The judge agreed to turn off the audience, which included Wadee’s relatives, when some of the bloody crime scene photos were so explicit.

In the wake of growing hostility toward Muslims and Palestinians in the US, the case deeply affected the large, well-established Palestinian community in the Chicago area. Authorities in Plainfield have created a park playground in his honor after watching Wadee’s funeral draw large crowds.

Other instances of similarly motivated events in the US include the shooting of two Israeli visitors in Florida and the attempted drowning of a three-year-old Palestinian-American girl in Texas, the stabbing of a Palestinian-American man in Texas, and the beating of a Muslim man in New York.

RSF leader Mohamed Hamdan “Hemedti” Dagalo will lead the government’s 15-member presidential council, which also includes regional governors, according to the group, which calls itself the Leadership Council of the Sudan Founding Alliance (TASIS).

Mohammed Hassan Osman al-Ta’ishi, a politician from Sudan, will be the prime minister, according to TASIS.

The leadership council extends its condolences and warm wishes to the Sudanese people, who have endured decades of bloody wars, in a statement from the coalition.

It also reiterates TASIS’s commitment to creating a free, just, and equal Sudan, as well as a new secular, democratic, decentralized, and voluntarily unified Sudan.

As the RSF and the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) battles rage on, the new self-proclaimed government could cause divisions and create competing institutions.

The Sudanese army claimed in May that it had completely displaced the RSF from Khartoum, the capital.

One of the worst humanitarian crises in history has been brought on by fighting since April 2023, which has resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands of people and the displacement of nearly 13 million people, according to UN estimates.

The RSF has been besieging the city of El-Fasher, adding to the region’s growing hunger, in recent months, in the western region of Darfur.

Rights organizations have charged rights abuses against both the RSF and SAF. RSF fighters were “inflicting widespread sexual violence” on women and girls earlier this year, according to Amnesty International, “asserting control and dislocating communities across the country.”

Hemedti was the subject of US sanctions earlier this year, accusing him of committing “serious human rights abuses” under his leadership, including executing civilians and blocking humanitarian aid.

Since Omar al-Bashir’s rule in Sudan was overthrown in 2019 following months of anti-government protests, there has been more instability there.

Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok resigned in early 2022 after the Sudanese military staged a coup against his civilian government in October of that year.

After the coup, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and Hemedti, Sudan’s army chief, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and both men had previously fought for supremacy in the region’s army.

Viktor Gyokeres, a Swedish international, has been signed by Arsenal, ending its years-long search for a prolific goalscorer.

Gyokeres signed a five-year contract with Sporting Lisbon on Saturday, signing a deal worth a rumored $63 million ($85 million).

Victor has consistently demonstrated that he has the qualities and winning mentality needed for a top-level center-forward. According to Andrea Berta, director of sports at Arsenal, “His physicality, intelligence, and work ethic make him a perfect fit for our vision.”

The 27-year-old striker makes his debut at Arsenal after establishing himself following two outstanding seasons in Portugal, where he led Lisbon to back-to-back league titles in 2024 and 2025, scoring 54 goals in 52 games played in all competitions alongside world leaders Mohamed Salah, Erling Haaland, and Kylian Mbappe.

Arsenal, which finished second in each of its previous three Premier League seasons, has long been mistaken for a top-notch striker. Its attempts to challenge Liverpool for the title last term were severely undermined by the failure to add one during the January transfer window.

Manager Mikel Arteta praised the consistency he showed in his performances and availability, which are outstanding. He has incredible goalscoring numbers at club and international levels, according to his quick and powerful presence up front.

Gyokeres makes his debut in England after starting out at Brighton as a youth player and moving up to second-tier Coventry, where his 22 goals helped the team reach the 2023 playoff final.

Lisbon was interested in his 40 goals in 97 Coventry games, which earned him a 25 million pound move to the Portuguese club.

There has been much rumor about a move to one of Europe’s biggest clubs, including Manchester United, based on his explosive form over the past two seasons. However, Arsenal has already scoured his market for his signature, making the deal a remarkable improvement for a player who was first developed at Brommapojkarna, a Swedish club known for guiding the development of some of the country’s best emerging players.

At the age of 16, 17, 18, and 19, Dalibor Savic, his former youth coach at the Swedish club, told The Associated Press in November, “He was a late developer.” He said, “He will accomplish something if he sets his intention.”

After failing to break through at Brighton, a club known for finding players like Moises Caicedo and Alexis Mac Allister in recent years, Gyokeres will need to show he can move up to the Premier League. Before making a permanent move to Coventry, he was only allowed to play eight games for the club and was then sent to St Pauli in Germany and Swansea on loan.

His performances at Arsenal suggest he can keep that kind of form, both for Sweden and in the Champions League.

He made six Champions League appearances for Lisbon last season and was the top scorer in the Nations League, surpassing Cristiano Ronaldo and Haaland.

According to the Greek Fire Service, a wildfire that has reportedly burned through a northern suburb of Athens has caused some residents to flee.

According to Fire Service spokesman Vassilis Vathrakoyannis, residents of the town of Kryoneri, which is located 20 kilometers (12. 5 miles) northeast of Athens, received three text messages on Saturday as they drove to safe locations.

“Damages have been reported. When the fires are extinguished, the spokesperson said, “We will take stock.”

Houses were depicted in Greek media.

According to Vathrakoyannis, “the real difficulties are ahead of us,” adding that Greece requested six firefighting planes from the Civil Protection Mechanism of the European Union.

The fire, whose origin is unknown, is being put out by 145 firefighters, 44 fire engines, 10 firefighting planes, and seven helicopters on-site. At least five residents, the majority elderly and suffering from respiratory issues, are being treated by four ambulances.

The flames are being fanned by high winds, dry conditions, and temperatures exceeding 38 degrees Celsius (100 degrees Fahrenheit).

According to Vathrakoyannis, wildfires “expand very quickly and become dangerous” under such circumstances, which are expected to persist in the upcoming days.

In addition to the two largest islands in southwest Greece, Crete in the south and Evia north of Athens, and Kythera on the island of Kythera in the northwest of the island.

Although only operating during daytime, there are at least 335 firefighters, 19 aircraft, and 13 helicopters. According to the spokesperson, 52 wildfires have erupted nationwide in the past 24 hours.

In recent years, wildfires have become a common sight in Greece, many of which are very destructive. In the last month, several incidents occurred.

In recent years, scientists have noticed a rise in the frequency of heatwaves and dry conditions in the world.

During a heatwave in southern Europe, the temperature reached 42 degrees Celsius (107 degrees Fahrenheit) last month.

The World Health Organization (WHO) states that the fire season begins earlier and ends later because of warmer temperatures, drier weather, and rural areas’ growing urbanization.

The electoral commission’s chief, ELECAM, made the announcement at a press conference on Saturday, reading out a list of 13 candidates who had not already been chosen. The exclusion was not justified, and those who were not on the list had two days to appeal.

Kamto, 71, was Biya’s most formidable rival in previous elections when he officially declared his candidacy last week. In an election marred by allegations of fraud and low voter turnout, he won with more than 70% of the vote, while Biya, who appears on the electoral list, came in second with 14 percent of the vote.

Kamto contested the party’s candidate, the communist group MANIDEM. Kamto contested the Cameroon Renaissance Movement (MRC), which he founded in 2012, in the 2018 election.

Kamto had been chosen by MANIDEM for this year’s election.

Following the release of the list of candidates approved on Saturday, there were heightened fears of protests and unrest. The electoral council had received 83 names.

Security personnel were stationed close to the ELECAM headquarters, along major thoroughfares in Yaounde, the capital, and in Douala, the economic hub.

On Friday, the UN Department of Safety and Security warned that the announcement might cause protests in the capital.

In the days following any objections to the provisional list, the final list of candidates will be released.

Despite rumors that his health is failing, Biya, 92, the oldest head of state in the world, announced last month that he would run for re-election on October 12. He has almost half of his life spent in power since 1982.

Cameroon has been affected by Biya’s rule forever. His administration has faced a number of challenges, including allegations of corruption and a deadly secessionist conflict in the country’s English-speaking provinces, which have forced thousands of students away from school.