By Isabelle Gustafson
- Central Dubai Hotel Fire Injured 16
A 63-story Dubai hotel caught fire on New Year’s Eve Thursday. Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.
16 people were injured on New Year’s Eve when a 63-story Dubai hotel caught fire.
Everyone was evacuated, and the area around the hotel was cleared. Most injuries were minor, but one person suffered a heart attack. Firefighters managed to subdue the flames, but part of the Address Downtown Hotel suffered major damages, according to BBC News.
Authorities are still unsure of what caused the fire.
The Address Downtown Hotel is located in the city center, and despite the fire, the fireworks display at the nearby Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world, started as planned at midnight.
- Obama, Attorney General to Discuss Executive Action on Guns
President Obama will discuss gun control with Attorney General Loretta Lynch, pictured. Photo courtesy of Flickr.
President Barack Obama announced in his weekly address that he will meet with Attorney General Loretta Lynch on Monday to discuss plans for the introduction of gun controls.
The White House released the address on Friday, one day earlier than usual. One of the main proposals Obama is likely to adopt would require gun dealers to get licenses and conduct background checks on potential buyers, according to The Washington Post.
“I get too many letters from parents, and teachers, and kids, to sit around and do nothing,” Obama says in his address. “I get letters from responsible gun owners who grieve with us every time these tragedies happen; who share my belief that the Second Amendment guarantees a right to bear arms; and who share my belief that we can protect that right while keeping an irresponsible, dangerous few from inflicting harm on a massive scale.”
The president says he is moving unilaterally because Congress has failed to address the growing problem of gun violence.
- 2 Killed, 7 Injured in Tel Aviv Shooting
The suspect in Friday’s Tel Aviv shooting is still large. Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.
Police are searching for the suspect in a deadly shooting that killed two people and wounded at least seven near a pub in Tel Aviv Friday.
The gunman fired an automatic weapon near the Simta pub on Tel Aviv’s Dizengoff Street before fleeing, according to CNN.
After seeing video broadcast by Israeli media, family members identified the suspect as a 29-year-old Arab-Israeli man who was previously sentenced to five years in prison for attempting to steal an Israeli soldier’s weapon. His name has not been released. But a statement released Saturday suggested authorities were still open to the possibility that the man had help.
A police spokesperson told CNN “it is not possible to determine if this is a criminal or terror attack.”
- Saudi Arabia Executes 47 Men
Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr was one of 47 executed in Saudi Arabia Saturday. Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.
Saudi Arabia executed 47 men Saturday in firing squads and beheadings, the Saudi Press Agency say.
Among those executed was dissident Shiite cleric, Nimr al-Nimr, who had spoken out against the government and the Saudi royal family, according to CNN.
The Iranian government and religious leaders throughout the Middle East condemned al-Nimr’s execution and warned of the potential for widespread backlash.
European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs Federica Mogherini also issued a statement, saying Nimr’s case raised “serious concerns regarding freedom of expression and the respect of basic civil and political rights.”
- Al Qaeda Group Uses Donald Trump Footage in Recruitment Video
Pictured: Donald Trump. Photo courtesy of Flickr.
Footage of Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump is featured in a terrorist recruiting video for Al-Shabab, a Somali-based group affiliated with al Qaeda.
The group released the video as a documentary about racial injustice in the United States featuring Trump’s recent call to ban all Muslims from the country, according to The Guardian.
“So remember this, so listen, Donald J. Trump is calling for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country’s representatives can figure out what the hell is going on,” Trump says in the clip.
Trump has also called for surveillance of mosques and has said he is open to establishing a database for all Muslims living in the U.S.
The Missouri Atlas 