Latest news with #fertilityclinic
Sky News
24-05-2025
- Sky News
FBI names suspect in California fertility clinic bombing as Guy Edward Bartkus
The FBI has named the suspect in the car bombing of a fertility clinic in California as 25-year-old Guy Edward Bartkus. One person was killed and four hurt in Saturday's blast in Palm Springs, which the FBI said was an "intentional act of terrorism". The bureau said Bartkus held "nihilistic" views, while the US attorney in Los Angeles said his writings were "anti pro-life". On Saturday evening, Akil Davies, head of the FBI's Los Angeles branch, said authorities were still working to confirm the identity of the person who died at the scene. While he did not directly say whether that person was the suspect, he said authorities were not searching for anyone. The city's mayor, Ron DeHarte, said the bomb was "either in or near" a vehicle - with the FBI later identifying the car a silver Ford Fusion. Dr Maher Abdallah, who runs the American Reproductive Centers clinic, said the facility was damaged but all staff were safe and accounted for. The explosion damaged the office space where the practice conducts patient consultations, but the IVF lab and stored embryos were unharmed, he added. "I really have no clue what happened," he said. "Thank God today happened to be a day that we have no patients." On Facebook, the clinic said it was "heartbroken" to learn someone died in the explosion and added: "Our deepest condolences go out to the individuals and families affected." It continued: "Our mission has always been to help build families, and in times like these, we are reminded of just how fragile and precious life is. "In the face of this tragedy, we remain committed to creating hope - because we believe that healing begins with community, compassion, and care." The clinic will be fully operational on Monday, it added. "This moment has shaken us - but it has not stopped us. We will continue to serve with strength, love, and the hope that brings new life into the world," the statement concluded. The Palm Springs city government said on Facebook that the explosion happened on North Indian Canyon Drive, near East Tachevah Drive, before 11am local time (6pm GMT). The burned-out car can be seen in a car park behind the building in aerial footage of the scene. The blast caved in the clinic's roof and blew debris across four lanes of the road. Another person said he was inside a cannabis dispensary nearby when he felt a massive explosion. Nima Tabrizi said: "The building just shook, and we go outside and there's massive cloud smoke." Investigators from the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives have travelled to the scene to help assess what happened. A White House official also told Sky's US partner network NBC News that US President Donald Trump was monitoring the situation.
CBS News
24-05-2025
- CBS News
Palm Springs bombing suspect had access to chemicals to make explosives, FBI says
As the investigation into the bombing of a Palm Springs fertility clinic continues, the FBI revealed that the suspect had access to a large amount of chemicals that could be used to make a homemade explosive. Agents identified Guy Edward Bartkus, 25, as the person suspected of detonating the car bomb in front of American Reproductive Centers on May 17. The FBI described the attack as an "intentional act of terrorism," which is now the largest bombing in Southern California history. The explosion nearly destroyed the IVF clinic, damaged surrounding buildings and wounded four people. Agents found human remains in the debris field. DNA testing confirmed it was the 25-year-old suspect. Investigators also recovered a weapon, ammunition, a tripod and a cell phone near remnants of Barkus' 2010 Ford Fusion. Agents believe he tried to livestream the bombing but haven't found evidence it ever aired. "The subject had nihilistic ideations and this was a targeted attack," Akil Davis, assistant director in charge of the FBI's Los Angeles field office, said on May 17. "We believe he was attempting to livestream it and yes, that is also part of our investigation." The FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force said the suspect posted and recorded "anti-natalist beliefs," where he found it morally wrong or unjustifiable to have children. While the explosion forced the American Reproductive Centers to close its Palm Springs location, authorities managed to save all of the embryos at the IVF lab. A few days after the bombing, the clinic's director Dr. Maheer Abdallah vowed to rebuild the facility and promised that "it will be better than before." In the meantime, his team will continue their reproductive work at the Desert Regional Medical Center. During a news conference on Thursday, Abdallah said he forgives Bartkus for the attack and wishes his staff would not speak poorly of him in the future. On Thursday, Amer Abdallah revealed that his cousin, Dr. Maheer Abdallah, even offered to pay for Bartkus' funeral services.
Times
21-05-2025
- Health
- Times
Antinatalist philosopher: The Palm Springs bomber proves my point
A philosopher whose beliefs on procreation are thought to have inspired the suspected bomber of a fertility clinic in Palm Springs told The Times the attack only 'underscored his point' that suffering is inevitable. David Benatar, a South African academic and author of one of the so-called antinatalist movement's most influential books, claimed suffering like that caused by Saturday's blast was a natural consequence of humans being born into 'misery'. Authorities in California are working to learn more about Guy Edward Bartkus's motives for the bombing, but have said the 25-year-old left behind nihilistic writings that suggested he held antinatalist views. In a manifesto published on his now-deleted website, Bartkus said he was going to bomb an in-vitro fertilisation clinic because he was angry
Fox News
21-05-2025
- Fox News
Video captures moment of deadly explosion at California fertility clinic
A newly released video shows the moment a car bomb detonated outside the American Reproductive Centers fertility clinic in Palm Springs, California, on Saturday. The footage, obtained by TMZ, shows the palm tree-lined building hit by a sudden blast followed by a towering plume of smoke. The exterior and interior parts of the fertility clinic were heavily damaged, including windows blown out and sections of the building's front facade destroyed. The blast resulted in the death of Guy Edward Bartkus, the 25-year-old suspect, and injured four others. Authorities are treating the incident as an act of domestic terrorism. Surveillance footage and online postings suggest Bartkus parked at the rear of the building, ingested drugs and then detonated an explosive device. The suspect, a resident of Twentynine Palms, reportedly held "pro-mortalism" beliefs and left behind writings expressing opposition to procreation. "Pro-mortalism," a radical offshoot of anti-natalism, views human reproduction as inherently immoral and embraces death as a moral corrective. Investigators said they believe Bartkus attempted to livestream the attack, and a tripod and camera were found at the scene. Despite significant damage to the clinic, all embryos and reproductive materials were preserved, and the facility has since resumed operations. "I received a call saying there was a massive explosion that destroyed a couple of our buildings. My biggest concern was obviously my staff and the embryos we have in storage," said Dr. Maher Abdallah, the clinic's director, after the attack. "Fortunately for us, our staff was unharmed and the IVF lab is intact, untouched, unharmed. The embryos are safe." Attorney General Pam Bondi said Saturday evening that she had been briefed on the explosion. "We are working to learn more, but let me be clear: the Trump administration understands that women and mothers are the heartbeat of America," she said in a post on X. "Violence against a fertility clinic is unforgivable." Bomb technicians scoured the blast site over the weekend as part of the ongoing investigation, which was led by the Joint Terrorism Task Force. Officials have said this is the first high-profile case linked to the pro-mortalist ideology and are now monitoring it as a potential emerging threat. Authorities have urged families and communities to remain vigilant for signs of ideological extremism, especially among those who may feel disenfranchised. As the investigation into the bombing continues, law enforcement is probing whether anyone assisted or encouraged the suspect in constructing the device.
Telegraph
21-05-2025
- Telegraph
A ‘pro-mortalist' burned down an IVF clinic – there are fears the movement is on the rise
As a child, Guy Edward Bartkus enjoyed playing with smoke bombs and model rockets, and once managed to burn down his family home with a box of matches. On Saturday, authorities believe the 25-year-old blew himself up with a car bomb in Palm Springs, California, outside a fertility clinic. Following the blast, which killed Bartkus and injured four other people, investigators unearthed writing online and what appears to be an audio manifesto justifying the attack, in which he describes himself as a 'pro-mortalist'. He appeared to subscribe to an ideology that humans should cease to exist to prevent future suffering, and that having children is fundamentally immoral because they could not consent to being born. Richard Bartkus, 75, the father of the suspect, has said that he believed the voice on the recording belonged to his son and suggested he had been 'brainwashed' from spending time online. Pro-mortalism is a 'twisted belief system that is anti-life', said Brian Levin, founder of the Centre for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University, San Bernardino. It primarily promotes suicide rather than terrorist attacks among its adherents, Mr Levin said, adding the 'philosophy itself is dangerous because it promotes the devaluation of life'. He said it was one of a number of fringe movements on dark corners of the internet that is infecting young men. Bartkus appeared to have posted a 30-minute recording online shortly before the attack, which begins with the words: 'I figured I would just make a recording explaining why I've decided to bomb an IVF building or clinic.' 'Basically, it just comes down to, I'm angry that I exist, and that's, you know, nobody got my consent to bring me here,' he continued, and compared the act of being born to raping an unconscious woman. He compared life to 'slavery to a DNA molecule' and declared himself sickened by 'so much wasted suffering' in the world. 'When you see innocent creatures getting completely f—d by life, you know, I'm not just talking humans, but even animals, right? How the hell can you sit there and call that an intelligent design?' said the 25-year-old, who was a vegan and seemingly used the username 'IndictEvolution' online. 'Parents were the real killers by creating life' Openly admitting he would cause 'death' and 'destruction' by bombing the fertility clinic, he declared in vitro fertilisation (IVF) was 'the epitome of pro-life ideology' and said: 'F— IVF, f— IVF clinics, and f— the people that work for them.' 'I'm only doing this because I feel like it's what I have to do to get people's f—ing attention and to let the world know, like, yes, I'm f—ing serious about this s—,' he continued. Parents were 'the real killers' by creating life in the first place, he said, arguing: 'All the pro-mortalist is saying is like, hey, let's make it, let's make the death thing happen sooner rather than later in life, right? We're just changing the date at which it happened.' The FBI said the explosion, which took place about 11am on Saturday morning, was the largest bombing ever in southern California. Although the bombing heavily damaged the clinic, authorities managed to rescue the medical records and embryos of patients who were trying to conceive. The online cult is an off-shoot of anti-natalism — the belief that it is always immoral to have children, Prof Levin said. 'There's a glorification of the dark side of the world and this blends into a nihilistic viewpoint,' he said, explaining that the group exists 'on the dark side of the dark web'. Anti-natalists on online forums sought to distance themselves from pro-mortalism in the wake of the attack. 'We empathise with suffering, we don't seek to cause suffering. If you have pro-mortalist thoughts and beliefs, then kindly direct yourself out of this sub,' one account wrote on Reddit. Prof Levin said the attack showed how the internet had allowed a range of extremist ideologies to proliferate. 'We look at multiple examples of young males, 17 to 25 ,who lash out against what they see as a degrading world. Sometimes it's done to stand for racial supremacy or nationalism,' he said. 'In this case though, he [Bartkus] boiled it down to the most central crux of his existence, which is that he had an unhappy and despaired life. 'It's a philosophy that says suicide is actually purposeful and accomplishing something beneficial for the world.' Bartkus is said to have posted videos of homemade explosive devices on multiple social media accounts, a law enforcement source told ABC News. An archived account shows videos dating back six years of what appeared to be tests of homemade explosive devices. YouTube has since deleted the channels because they are 'associated with the suspect'. Richard Bartkus told The New York Times he had not spoken with his son in 10 years, and recalled him as enjoying tinkering with small model rockets and 'stink bombs' and 'smoke bombs'. In September 2009, aged nine, he said he son was placed on juvenile probation after lighting the family home on fire while playing with matches
