
Eight Killed in Nightclub Shooting in Ecuador: Police
The attackers arrived in two pickup trucks and began shooting at patrons gathered outside the venue around 1:15 a.m. local time (0615 GMT), police colonel Javier Chango told reporters. Seven people were pronounced dead at the scene, and an eighth died later in hospital.
Among the victims was nightclub owner Jorge Urquizo, the brother of Santa Lucia's mayor, Ubaldo Urquizo.
Authorities recovered approximately 800 shell casings from the area. The suspects fled in their vehicles along an unknown route, Chango said.
Police detained a man carrying a revolver while driving a truck nearby, but have not confirmed any link to the shooting. The motive remains under investigation.
The bodies were transferred to a morgue in the nearby city of Daule.
The mayor's office offered condolences in a statement, saying, 'We unite in sorrow and prayer for this violent attack that has struck our community.'
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Leaders
10-08-2025
- Leaders
Eight Killed in Nightclub Shooting in Ecuador: Police
Eight people were killed and two others injured early Sunday when gunmen opened fire outside a nightclub in the southwestern Ecuadorian town of Santa Lucia, police said. The attackers arrived in two pickup trucks and began shooting at patrons gathered outside the venue around 1:15 a.m. local time (0615 GMT), police colonel Javier Chango told reporters. Seven people were pronounced dead at the scene, and an eighth died later in hospital. Among the victims was nightclub owner Jorge Urquizo, the brother of Santa Lucia's mayor, Ubaldo Urquizo. Authorities recovered approximately 800 shell casings from the area. The suspects fled in their vehicles along an unknown route, Chango said. Police detained a man carrying a revolver while driving a truck nearby, but have not confirmed any link to the shooting. The motive remains under investigation. The bodies were transferred to a morgue in the nearby city of Daule. The mayor's office offered condolences in a statement, saying, 'We unite in sorrow and prayer for this violent attack that has struck our community.' Short link : Post Views: 3 Related Stories


Saudi Gazette
08-08-2025
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Convicted rapist quits Australian parliament after losing legal bid to stay
SYDNEY — An Australian politician and convicted rapist has resigned from parliament moments before he was to be kicked out, after losing a legal challenge to remain. Gareth Ward, 44, was last month found guilty of sexually assaulting two young men, aged 18 and 24, between 2013 and 2015, and is now in custody pending sentencing. Earlier this week, Ward launched a legal bid to stop the New South Wales (NSW) parliament from expelling him, but it was dismissed on Thursday after the court rejected arguments that the move was an "affront" to democracy. Plans to expel him on Friday were thwarted when, less than two hours before a vote to remove him was due, Ward quit as the independent member for Kiama. Ward's resignation letter was received by parliament at 09:08 local time on Friday (00:08 GMT), shortly before a vote at 10:30 was due to expel him. His resignation - which comes years after the sexual assault accusations first emerged - means Ward will no longer receive a parliamentary salary. It also triggers a by-election in the south-coast NSW electorate Ward has held since 2011. In 2021, Ward quit as a state government minister and left the Liberal Party, but refused to leave parliament and was re-elected in 2023. During his legal challenge, Ward's lawyers argued that attempts to kick him out of parliament before the appeals process was finished was "an affront to the foundations of representative democracy". NSW Premier Chris Minns told the media on Friday that Ward's resignation "should have come earlier". "If you are convicted of some of the most serious charges - sexual assault in NSW - you can't sit as a serving member of parliament drawing a parliamentary salary," the Labor leader said. "How can you represent your community from behind bars?" Opposition leader Mark Speakman labelled Ward's legal bid to stay in parliament "disgraceful", and accused the former MP of "playing games" with the public and parliament. Ward, due to be sentenced next month, has said he intends to appeal the guilty verdict. — BBC


Saudi Gazette
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Two Ghanaian ministers die in helicopter crash, along with six others
ACCRA — Ghana's ministers of defence and environment have died in a military helicopter crash in the central Ashanti region, along with six other people, a government spokesperson says. Defence Minister Edward Omane Boamah and Environment, Science and Technology Minister Ibrahim Murtala Muhammed, 50, were killed in the crash, which Chief of Staff Julius Debrah described as a "national tragedy". Earlier, the Ghana Armed Forces said the Z9 helicopter, which was carrying three crew and five passengers, had gone "off the radar". It had taken off from the capital, Accra, at 09:12 local time (and GMT) and was heading to the town of Obuasi for an event to tackle illegal mining. Images purportedly showing the charred remains of the helicopter are circulating on social media. The authorities have not confirmed the cause of the crash. The chief of staff has directed the country's flags to fly at half-mast. He extended condolences to "the servicemen who died in service to the country," on behalf of President John Dramani Mahama and the government. Ghana's Deputy National Security Coordinator and former Agriculture Minister Alhaji Muniru Mohammed was also among the dead, along with Samuel Sarpong, Vice-Chairman of the governing National Democratic Congress party. The crew members were named as Squadron Leader Peter Bafemi Anala, Flying Officer Manin Twum-Ampadu, and Sergeant Ernest Addo Mensah. President Mahama was feeling "down, down emotionally", Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu was cited as saying by news agency AFP. Boamah served under Mahama's previous government as communications minister and before that he was minister of environment. As defence minster he tackled jihadist activity that was brewing in the northern border in Burkina Faso. In 2022, a France-based NGO, Promediation, said its research showed that jihadist groups had recruited between 200 and 300 young Ghanaians. Violence in the area has also been on the rise, with concerns that jihadists may be trying to exploit communal in-fighting between rival communities in northern Ghana. Boamah's book A Peaceful Man In An African Democracy, about former president John Atta Mills, was due to come out later in the year. Muhammed was at the forefront of the battle against illegal gold mining, which has wrecked the environment and contaminated rivers and lakes. Protests against the practice, known locally as Galamsey, peaked during Mahama's run for the presidency last year. — BBC