Latest news with #OperationUnity
Yahoo
06-05-2025
- Yahoo
Columbus targeting certain neighborhoods to crack down on crime
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – Columbus leaders are cracking down on crime in the Hilltop. Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther announced the results of the latest Clean and Safe Corridor Initiative on Monday. The initiative takes city resources and focuses them on a certain area, beyond the general services from Columbus. This is a more concentrated approach to really hone in on issues reported by the community. 'We want children, seniors, families to feel safe in these corridors. And that's what this is all about,' Ginther said. East Columbus development sparks resident concerns Over the last two weeks, city resources have focused on Sullivant Avenue in the Hilltop neighborhood. 'This is a very much focused approach where we have all hands on deck for a set period of time, but what we're going to follow up on this with is investing more in neighborhood and community groups that can kind of keep our momentum going,' Ginther said. City services picked up almost 18 tons of litter, patched potholes, and refreshed crosswalks. In the first week of the initiative, Columbus police recovered nine firearms, impounded 26 cars, worked 66 331 complaints, and conducted dozens of arrests. Rare Civil War flag sold at Columbus auction for $468,000 'They went out and made a lot of traffic stops, made a lot of arrests on-view and on warrants, and we were able to get some dangerous people off the roads,' Columbus Division of Police Deputy Chief Robert Sagle said. Drugs were taken off the street. including some that police described as fentanyl related. Now, the Clean and Safe Corridor initiative will expand with the next focus on the Driving Park area and the Short North. 'These initiatives just show when we work together how much can be accomplished,' Sagle said. The city said the services provided during this time are valued at $142,000 for labor, materials and equipment. Trial begins for truck driver charged in I-70 bus crash that killed six The full list of what the city said was accomplished can be found below: Safety April 30 Zone 3 Operation Unity Results 69 on-view arrests, meaning arrests made by police officers who personally observed a crime being committed. Of the arrests, 41 were on-view felony arrests and 28 were on-view misdemeanor arrests. 40 wanted person arrests Six arrests for engaging in prostitution Two stolen vehicles recovered Four firearms recovered 9.6g Methamphetamine, 3.6g Cocaine, 40g Crack Cocaine and 28g Marijuana recovered Four search warrants executed One Nuisance Abatement Group inspection 42 vehicles impounded 108 traffic citations issued 87 parking citations 38 311 complaints worked 146 crime prevention citizen contacts April 21 – April 27 Sullivant Avenue commercial corridor law enforcement activities 21 on-view felony arrests 24 on-view misdemeanor arrests 40 wanted person arrests Three soliciting arrests Seven stolen vehicles recovered Nine firearms recovered 1.1g Methamphetamine, 151.47g Cocaine, 4.62g Crack Cocaine and 1,882.07g Marijuana recovered One search warrant executed 15 Nuisance Abatement Group inspection 26 vehicles impounded 43 traffic citations issued 90 parking citations 66 311 complaints worked 84 crime prevention citizen contacts April 28 – May 4 Sullivant Avenue commercial corridor law enforcement data will be available on May 7 Cleanliness and Beautification 17.82 tons of litter and bulk refuse, 1.4 tons of trash and 14 tires collected 73.5 man-hours of pothole patching 79.5 man-hours of ADA ramp cleaning 50 ground-mounted and overhead signs replaced All eight intersections along the corridor had crosswalks, stop bars and lane control arrows refreshed 19 trees planted, 141 trees pruned, 3 dying and damaged trees removed, 785 feet of brush cut back and one tree grate leveled Property Inspections 327 building inspections 55 friendly code enforcement letters issued, informing building owners how they may bring their properties up to code compliance 5 buildings referred for graffiti removal by the city Small Business Support 47 businesses canvassed by the Office of Violence Prevention and Columbus Public Health to understand safety perceptions and concerns Four days of office hours held at the Columbus Metropolitan Library Hilltop branch to consult with small business owners and share funding and support resources available Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Asharq Al-Awsat
22-03-2025
- Politics
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Ethiopia's Army Says It Killed More than 300 Fano Militiamen in Two Days of Fighting
Ethiopia's army said on Friday its troops had killed more than 300 fighters from the Fano armed group in two days of clashes in the northern Amhara region, as fears have emerged of a wider regional war. The Fano militia fought alongside the army and Eritrean forces in a two-year civil war that pitted Addis Ababa against the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), which controls the northern region of Tigray. Since then Eritrea and Ethiopia have fallen out, the former was excluded from peace talks to end that war in November 2022. Fears of a new war emerged in recent weeks after Eritrea reportedly ordered a nationwide military mobilization and Ethiopia deployed troops toward their border. Fighting between Ethiopia's army and Fano - a loose collection of militias with no centralized leadership - broke out in July 2023, fueled in part by a sense of betrayal among many Amharas about the terms of the 2022 peace deal. The army said in a statement on Friday: "The extremist group calling itself out attacks in various (zones) of the Amhara region under the name of Operation Unity, and has been destroyed." It said 317 Fano fighters were killed and 125 injured. Abebe Fantahun, spokesperson of Amhara Fano in Wollo Bete-Amhara, contradicted the tally, telling Reuters late on Friday the army had not killed even 30 of their fighters. Yohannes Nigusu, spokesperson for Fano in Gondar, Amhara region, said 602 federal army soldiers were killed in the fighting and 430 wounded, while 98 soldiers had been captured and weapons had been seized by the militia. Abebe also described as a "lie" the national army's claim that Brigadier General Migbey Haile, a senior military official allied with one of TPLF's factions, supported Fano's Operation Unity and denied he had any links to the militia. Reuters was unable to independently verify the number of those killed in the fighting. Getnet Adane, the army spokesperson, and Legesse Tulu, the federal government spokesperson, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the toll shared by Fano. Amanuel Assefa, a senior official in Debretsion Gebremichael's faction of the TPLF Migbey belongs to, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Yahoo
07-03-2025
- Yahoo
Dozens arrested after Columbus police's ‘Operation Unity' in two neighborhoods
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — The Columbus Division of Police is sharing stats from a successful 'Operation Unity' in the South Linden and King-Lincoln Bronzeville neighborhoods this week. Police said the operation was aimed at fixing needs specific to each community in order to make it safer for those who live there. Officers made 12 felony arrests, three misdemeanor arrests, four juvenile arrests, 11 adult arrests, seized eight firearms – two of which had Glock switches on them. They also executed two search warrants and served 26 arrest warrants. Cold case suspect extradited to Columbus after DNA links him to 1992 rape, murder Columbus Police commander Scott Evers said they also cleared out nearly 90 complaints from junk motor vehicles to parking complaints to narcotics houses to just anywhere along the spectrum. 'So the focus is, you know, the prevention stuff. We made contact with 30 citizens to try to do some prevention discussions with them to make people safer,' Evers said. Among those complaints included: 33 traffic stops 6 traffic citations 16 warnings 111 parking citations 30 citizens contact prevention efforts. He said they also use this operation to talk with community members about prevention efforts. 'What are the deep root issues that are causing the crimes and how do we affect those things? And a lot of that's connecting with resources. So we work with the different city entities, we work with churches, we work with nonprofits. And a lot of it just depends on what the community needs for that specific area based on the issues that we're seeing,' Evers said. Multiple drugs were seized as well including more than 260 grams of cocaine, more than 30 grams of methamphetamine, 62 pills, 50 grams of fentanyl and $4,960 in cash. 10 vehicles were also impounded. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
