‘That's on your hands': US senator Cruz confronted at dinner over Texas shooting
Days after 21 people were killed in a shooting at an elementary school in Texas, US senator Ted Cruz was confronted over the incident after he addressed an event of the National Rifles Association. A video put up by a group of activists - the Invisible Houston - shows the senator being questioned over the incident.
In a 20-second widely shared video, a man can be heard saying: “Nineteen children died! That’s on your hands! Ted Cruz, that’s on your hands!” By the end of the video, security officials can be seen forcibly escorting the citizen out. The man - Benjamin Hernandez - is a board member of the Invisible Houston.
"#BREAKING: Several hours after #NRAconvention, Indivisible Houston board member @TheBenjaminHdz challenges Ted Cruz to support background checks & other measures during a dinner break at Uptown Sushi. #TedCruzHasBloodOnHisHands #TedCruzChildMassacre #TedCruzLovesDeadKids (sic)" the Invisible Houston wrote on Twitter.
Also read: Trump backs gun lobby, targets Biden: 'If US has $40 bn to send to Ukraine…'
Hernandez, according to reports, said that he was in Houston to livestream the protests outside the NRA convention. He saw Cruz walk into the same restaurant and decided to confront him.
The US witnessed one of the worst mass shootings this week when an 18-year-old gunman - identified as Salvador Ramos, opened fire, killing 19 children and two teachers at a Texas elementary school in the heavily Latino town of Uvalde.
Also read: ‘I had an uneasy feeling sometimes’: Texas school shooter's mother in first reaction
Ramos reportedly had an argument with his grandmother and shot at and injured her critically on May 24. After shooting her, he drove his car to Robb Elementary School and opened fire there. The accused was later killed by the police.
A top Texas official revealed that students trapped inside a classroom of the elementary school repeatedly called 911, but officers waited for almost over an hour to breach the door. Steven McCraw, the head of the Texas Department of Public Safety, told a news conference that the commander at the scene in Uvalde believed the gunman was barricaded inside adjoining classrooms alone, with no survivors. Meanwhile, young survivors of the attack have said that they pretended to be dead while waiting for help.
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Two Indo-Canadian academics honoured with Order of Canada
Two Indo-Canadian academics, working on research to advance the betterment of mankind, have been honoured with one of the country's most prestigious awards, the Order of Canada. Their names were in the list published by the office of the governor-general of Canada Mary Simon. Both have been invested (as the bestowal of the awards is described) into the Order as a Member. They are professors Ajay Agrawal and Parminder Raina.
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Elon Musk's Twitter hiatus, in 2nd week now, generates curiosity
The world's richest person, Elon Musk, has not tweeted in about 10 days and it can't go unnoticed. The 51-year-old business tycoon has 100 million followers on the microblogging site, which he is planning to buy. Since April, he has been making headlines for the $44 billion deal and his comments and concerns about the presence of a large number of fake accounts on Twitter.
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Taliban's reclusive supreme leader attends gathering in Kabul: Report
The Taliban's reclusive supreme leader Haibatullah Akhundzada joined a large gathering of nationwide religious leaders in Kabul on Friday, the state news agency said, adding he would give a speech. The Taliban's state-run Bakhtar News Agency confirmed the reclusive leader, who is based in the southern city of Kandahar, was attending the meeting of more than 3,000 male participants from around the country, aimed at discussing issues of national unity.
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July 1: Canada to mark 155th anniversary of its formation
As the country prepares to celebrate the 155th anniversary of the formation of the Canadian Confederation, Canada Day, the traditional centre of festivities, Parliament Hill in Ottawa, will be off limits as protesters linked to the Freedom Convoy begin gathering in the capital for the long weekend. Various events have been listed by protesters including a march to Parliament Hill on Friday.
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Bulgaria's ‘Crypto Queen’ Ruja Ignatova added to FBI's most-wanted list
A Bulgarian woman dubbed the "Crypto Queen" afteIgnatovahe raised billions of dollars in a fraudulent virtual currency scheme was placed on the FBI's 10 most wanted list Thursday. The Federal Bureau of Investigation put up a $100,000 reward for Ruja Ignatova, who disappeared in Greece in October 2017 around the time US authorities filed a sealed indictment and warrant for her arrest.