Manhunt for suspect, who posed as police officer, as US state politician and husband killed in attacks
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President Donald Trump has said 'such horrific violence will not be tolerated in the United States of America'.Killing of Democrat politician has been described as a politically motivated assassination.A second state lawmaker, John Hoffman and his wife, were shot multiple times.
Tim O'Sullivan, Associated Press
©Associated Press
Authorities in the US are searching for a 57-year-old man suspected of shooting two Minnesota lawmakers.
US politician Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark have been killed in a politically motivated assassination, according to a state governor.
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Sunday World
2 hours ago
- Sunday World
Manhunt continues for suspect in killings of US Democrat politician and husband
President Donald Trump has said 'such horrific violence will not be tolerated in the United States of America'.Killing of Democrat politician has been described as a politically motivated assassination.A second state lawmaker, John Hoffman and his wife, were shot multiple times. Police and law enforcement investigate the home of Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, who were shot multiple times earlier in Champlin, Minn., on Saturday, June 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Giovanna Dell'Orto) Law enforcement officers including local police, sheriffs and the FBI near the scene of a shooting in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, US (Alex Kormann/Star Tribune via AP) Minnesota Police and the FBI kept up a massive manhunt on Saturday evening for a gunman posing as a police officer who killed a senior Democratic state assemblywoman and her husband in what Governor Tim Walz called a "politically motivated assassination." The suspect, identified as 57-year-old Vance Luther Boelter, also allegedly shot and wounded a second lawmaker and his spouse, according to law enforcement officials and the FBI. He fled on foot after firing at police at the home of slain former Minnesota House speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark. Law enforcement officials said the suspect abandoned a vehicle that looked like a police SUV, in which officers found a "manifesto" and a target list of other politicians and institutions. Boelter should be considered armed and dangerous and is believed to still be in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension Superintendent Drew Evans told a news briefing, adding that it was too soon to determine a motive. The suspect had links to evangelical ministries and claimed to be a security expert with experience in the Gaza Strip and Africa, according to online postings and public records reviewed by Reuters. Boelter also described himself online as a former employee of food service companies and was appointed in 2016 by Walz' predecessor to the advisory Governor's Workforce Development Board, according to state records. David Carlson, 59, told Reuters that he has been sharing a house in Minneapolis with Boelter for a little more than a year and last saw him on Friday night. Then about 6 a.m. (1100 GMT) on Saturday, he received a text from Boelter. "He said that he might be dead soon," said Carlson, who called police. The list found in the vehicle abandoned by the suspect contained about 70 names, including abortion providers, and lawmakers in Minnesota and other states, CNN reported, citing law enforcement sources. Officials said the Hortmans and the other victims - state Senator John Hoffman and his wife - were on the list. ABC News, also citing law enforcement officials, said the list included dozens of Minnesota Democrats including Walz, U.S. Representative Ilhan Omar, Senator Tina Smith and Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison. Vance Luther Boelter News in 90 Seconds - 15th June 2025 POLITICAL MOTIVATION? Melissa Hortman, a 55-year-old mother of two who had served 20 years in the Minnesota House of Representatives, was remembered by Walz as someone with "grace, compassion and tirelessness." Walz, who was Kamala Harris' Democratic vice presidential running mate in last year's election, said the gunman went to the Hortmans' residence after shooting the Hoffmans multiple times in their home in the nearby town of Champlin. The Hoffmans underwent surgery, Walz said, adding that he was "cautiously optimistic" that they would survive "this assassination attempt." "This was an act of targeted political violence," he said. "Peaceful discourse is the foundation of our democracy. We don't settle our differences with violence or at gunpoint." The shootings prompted reactions of shock and horror from Republican and Democratic politicians across the country and calls for dialing back increasingly divisive political rhetoric. The incident comes on the heels of a heated hearing in Congress on Thursday, in which Walz and two other Democratic governors defended their states' policies to maintain sanctuary for undocumented immigrants, drawing attacks from Republicans who support Trump's aggressive immigration crackdown. The Minnesota State Patrol chief, Colonel Christina Bogojevic, said police had found flyers in the suspect's vehicle with "No Kings" printed on them but that he had no direct links to the thousands of nationwide "No Kings" protests on Saturday against President Donald Trump's policies. The protests were timed to counter Trump's long-sought military parade in Washington. The organizing No Kings Coalition canceled all protests in Minnesota, citing a shelter-in-place order and the suspect's at-large status. Trump said he was briefed on the "terrible shooting that took place in Minnesota, which appears to be a targeted attack against State Lawmakers." "Such horrific violence will not be tolerated in the United States of America. God Bless the great people of Minnesota, a truly great place!" Trump said in a statement. POLICE IMPERSONATOR Hortman and her husband were shot dead in their home in Brooklyn Park, Walz said. The Minneapolis suburb is in the northern part of Hennepin County, a Democratic stronghold in a state where Republicans have made gains in recent years. Before Hortman's killing, the Minnesota House of Representatives she served in was evenly split 67-67 between Democrats and Republicans. The FBI released photos of Boelter wearing a rubber mask in a police-like uniform and offered a reward of up to $50,000 for information leading to his arrest and conviction. Law enforcement officials said the gunman attacked the Hoffmans around 2 a.m. CDT (0700 GMT), then drove about 5 miles (8 km) to the Hortmans' residence. Brooklyn Park Police Chief Mark Bruley said a "very intuitive" police sergeant who responded to the Hoffman attack asked colleagues to "proactively" check the Hortmans' home. The two officers arriving at the Hortmans' residence saw a police-like vehicle with lights on and were immediately fired upon by the suspect. Bruley said they returned fire, but the suspect ran. POLITICAL VIOLENCE SURGE The pre-dawn Minnesota killings come amid a surge in U.S. political attacks in recent years, underscoring the dark side of the nation's deepening political divisions. These include the attempted 2020 kidnapping of Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat, and a man who broke into Democratic Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro's residence in April and set it on fire. In July last year, then-candidate Trump escaped an assassination attempt by a gunman while speaking at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania. Trump has faced criticism from some opponents over his handling of incidents involving political violence. In one of his first moves in office earlier this year, Trump pardoned nearly everyone criminally charged with participating in the January 6, 2021, Capitol attack.
Sunday World
2 hours ago
- Sunday World
Israel and Iran trade strikes for third day as nuclear talks called off
Planned talks on Iran's nuclear programme, which could provide an off-ramp, were called off Israel has unleashed air strikes across Iran for a third day and threatened even greater force as some Iranian missiles evaded Israeli air defences to strike buildings in the heart of the country. Planned talks on Iran's nuclear programme, which could provide an off-ramp, were called off. The region braced for a protracted conflict after Israel's surprise bombardment of Iran's nuclear and military sites on Friday killed several top generals and nuclear scientists, and neither side showed any sign of backing down. Iran said Israel struck two oil refineries, raising the prospect of a broader assault on Iran's heavily sanctioned energy industry that could affect global markets. Israeli first responders work in a residential area near Tel Aviv, Israel, hit by a missile fired from Iran (Ariel Schalit/AP) The Israeli military, in a social media post, warned Iranians to evacuate arms factories, signalling what could be a further widening of the campaign. At around noon local time, explosions were heard again in the Iranian capital Tehran. US president Donald Trump has expressed full support for Israel's actions while warning Iran that it can only avoid further destruction by agreeing to a new nuclear deal. Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said on Sunday that if the Israeli strikes on Iran stop, then 'our responses will also stop'. He said the United States 'is a partner in these attacks and must take responsibility'. New explosions echoed across Tehran and were reported elsewhere in the country early on Sunday, but there was no update to a death toll put out the day before by Iran's UN ambassador, who said 78 people had been killed and more than 320 wounded. In Israel, at least 10 people were killed in Iranian strikes overnight and into Sunday, according to Israel's Magen David Adom rescue service, bringing the country's total death toll to 13. Israeli security forces inspect destroyed buildings near Tel Aviv that were hit by a missile fired from Iran (Ohad Zwigenberg/AP) The country's main international airport and airspace remained closed for a third day. Israeli strikes targeted Iran's Defence Ministry early on Sunday after hitting air defences, military bases and sites associated with its nuclear programme. The killing of several top generals and nuclear scientists in targeted strikes indicated that Israeli intelligence has penetrated Iran at the highest levels. News in 90 Seconds - 15th June 2025 In Israel, at least six people, including a 10-year-old and a nine-year-old, were killed when a missile hit an apartment building in Bat Yam, near Tel Aviv. Daniel Hadad, a local police commander, said 180 people were wounded and seven are still missing. An Associated Press (AP) reporter saw streets lined with damaged and destroyed buildings, bombed out cars and shards of glass. Responders used a drone at points to look for survivors. Some people could be seen leaving the area with suitcases. The Israeli Iron Dome air defence system fires to intercept missiles over Tel Aviv, Israel (Ohad Zwigenberg/AP) Another four people, including a 13-year-old, were killed and 24 wounded when a missile struck a building in the Arab town of Tamra in northern Israel. A strike on the central city of Rehovot wounded 42. The Weizmann Institute of Science, an important centre for research in Rehovot, said 'there were a number of hits to buildings on the campus'. It said no-one was harmed. Israel has sophisticated multi-tiered air defences that are able to detect and intercept missiles fired at populated areas or key infrastructure, but officials acknowledge it is imperfect. World leaders made urgent calls to de-escalate. The attack on nuclear sites sets a 'dangerous precedent', China's foreign minister said. The region is already on edge as Israel seeks to annihilate Hamas, an Iranian ally, in the Gaza Strip, where the war is still raging after Hamas's October 7 2023 attack. Flames rise from an oil storage facility after it appeared to have been hit by an Israeli strike in Tehran (AP/Vahid Salemi) Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu brushed off such calls, saying Israel's strikes so far are 'nothing compared to what they will feel under the sway of our forces in the coming days'. Israel, the sole though undeclared nuclear-armed state in the Middle East – said it launched the attack to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon. The two countries have been regional adversaries for decades. Iran has always said its nuclear programme was peaceful, and the US and others have assessed it has not pursued a weapon since 2003. But it has enriched ever larger stockpiles of uranium to near weapons-grade levels in recent years and was believed to have been able to develop multiple weapons within months if it chose to do so. The UN's atomic watchdog censured Iran last week for not complying with its obligations. Mr Araghchi said Israel had targeted an oil refinery near Tehran and another in the country's Bushehr province on the Persian Gulf. Smoke rises up from an oil facility after a Saturday explosion in southern Tehran, Iran (Vahid Salemi/AP) He said Iran had also targeted 'economic' sites in Israel, without elaborating. Mr Araghchi was speaking to diplomats in his first public appearance since the initial Israeli strikes. Semi-official Iranian news agencies reported that an Israeli drone strike had caused a 'strong explosion' at an Iranian natural-gas processing plant. Israel's military did not immediately comment. The extent of damage at the South Pars natural gas field was not immediately clear. Such sites have air defence systems around them, which Israel has been targeting. An oil refinery was also damaged in the northern Israeli city of Haifa, according to the firm operating it. Bazan Group said pipelines and transmission lines between facilities were damaged, forcing some downstream facilities to be shut down. It said no-one was wounded. The Arab Gulf country of Oman, which has been mediating indirect talks between the US and Iran over Tehran's nuclear programme, said a sixth round planned for Sunday would not take place. 'We remain committed to talks and hope the Iranians will come to the table soon,' a senior US official said. Mr Araghchi said on Saturday that the nuclear talks were 'unjustifiable' after Israel's strikes, which he said were the 'result of the direct support by Washington'. In a post on his Truth Social account early on Sunday, Mr Trump reiterated that the US was not involved in the attacks on Iran and warned that any retaliation directed against it would bring an American response 'at levels never seen before'. 'However, we can easily get a deal done between Iran and Israel, and end this bloody conflict!!!' he wrote.
RTÉ News
4 hours ago
- RTÉ News
Waves of protesters flooded US streets against 'king' Trump
A giant orange balloon depicting Donald Trump in a nappy towered over one "No Kings" protest as hundreds of thousands thronged streets across the United States to decry the president's policies. Protest organisers expected rallies in all 50 US states, calling them the largest since Mr Trump returned to office in January, with the aim of "rejecting authoritarianism, billionaire-first politics, and the militarisation of our democracy." Wielding signs with messages like "No KKKings" and "No crown for the clown," the protests stood in stark contrast to a massive military parade in Washington. The parade was meant to commemorate the founding of the US Army, but also fell on the president's 79th birthday. As thousands of soldiers marched and tanks rumbled through Washington's streets, protesters across the country slammed Trump as a "fascist." "We have a dictator," said Robin Breed, a 56-year-old retired nurse, in Austin, Texas, where thousands demonstrated while surrounded by hundreds of police and state troopers. "He is trampling on people's lives, he's militarising our streets, he is terrorising our communities," he said, insisting it was important "to push back and say it's our country, not his." In New York, tens of thousands of people, many wearing raincoats and carrying colourful umbrellas, marched down Fifth Avenue in a downpour to the sounds of drums, bells and chants of "Hey hey, ho ho, Donald Trump has got to go!" Actors Susan Sarandon and Mark Ruffalo were seen getting drenched among the protesters. 'Outraged' "I'm miserable and outraged about how this administration is destroying the ideals of the American Constitution," Polly Shulman, a 62-year-old museum employee, said. Holding a sign reading "Protect the Constitution," she said the most shocking thing was "the illegal deportations of law-abiding residents. They were "being kidnapped and disappeared and sent to torture prisons in foreign countries." In March, the Trump administration expelled more than 250 Venezuelans to a mega-prison in El Salvador after accusing them of being members of the Tren de Aragua criminal gang, which it has declared a terrorist organisation. At least four protesters in New York were arrested at a separate, smaller protest against the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency, police said. 'Mad as hell' "I think people are mad as hell," said Lindsay Ross, a 28-year-old musician who urged others to show "the administration that we're not going to take this." Bill Kennedy, a retired psychologist from Pennsylvania, was in Washington protesting a few hours before Mr Trump's $45 million parade. "I'm tired of the current administration. I think they're a bunch of fascists," he said, describing the military parade as "ridiculous." Suzanne Brown in Boston also lamented the money spent on the parade "for one man's vanity." Massive "No Kings" protests also took place in Los Angeles, which in recent days has been rocked by demonstrations over the Trump administration's immigration crackdown, as federal agents swept up even law-abiding undocumented people. Protesters shouted "You are not welcome here" at some of the 4,000 National Guard troops and 700 Marines that Mr Trump dispatched to the city against the wishes of local and state authorities. With a giant orange Trump-in-a-nappy balloon towering above them, thousands filled the city streets, sporting slogans like "No faux-king way" and "Impeach Trump." Members of Russian feminist protest and performance art group Pussy Riot held up a large banner in front of city hall warning: "It's beginning to look a lot like Russia." After a day of largely peaceful protests, police yesterday evening unexpectedly began moving people away from the protest area, igniting confusion and anger among demonstrators caught off guard and unsure of where to go. Police on horseback pushed crowds back as law enforcement fired tear gas and flash-bang grenades hours ahead of an 8pm local time curfew. A police spokeswoman said a "small group of agitators" had begun throwing rocks, bottles and fireworks at officers, prompting the decision to order the crowd to disperse. If people refused to leave, "we will make arrests," she said, adding: "We have been patient all day." Police say one 'critically injured' in shooting at US protest There was unrest elsewhere, too, with at least one person "critically injured" in a shooting at a demonstration in the western US city of Salt Lake City, police said, with local media reporting the incident took place at a "No Kings" rally. Police said the incident occurred during the protest that drew about 10,000 people. Police Chief Brian Redd stressed during a news conference that the events leading up to the shooting "were very peaceful," adding that the first person taken in custody had a gunshot wound and was transported to the hospital. Two other individuals involved in the incident were also taken into custody, he said. "At this time, there is... no ongoing threats to the public," Mr Redd said, adding that it was too early in their investigation to say if the shooting was politically motivated. City Mayor Erin Mendenhall said "this act of violence does not define" Salt Lake City - a Democratic bastion in the deep-red Republican state of Utah. "The purpose of today's demonstration was a powerful and peaceful expression until this event and that cannot be overshadowed or silenced by a single act meant to harm," she said. "We are a nation that needs our First Amendment right, we deserve to protest in peace. And what happened today I hope will not silence the voices of the public who deserve to have their voices heard." In Virginia, police said a man in Culpeper "intentionally" rammed his car into a group of demonstrators as they left an anti-Trump event. No injuries were reported.
