Nearly 70 killed in attack on Somalia military base

Nearly 70 killed in attack on Somalia military base

MOGADISHU, Somalia

Heavily armed al-Shabab extremists stormed a military base in Somalia’s semiautonomous state of Puntland, killing close to 70 people and wounding dozens more, officials said Thursday. Residents said civilians, including women, were beheaded during the rampage.

Officials called it the region’s deadliest attack in years, highlighting the twin challenges facing security forces from the al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab and the growing presence of fighters linked to the Islamic State group.

The attack began with a blast at the remote Af-Urur camp, about 62 miles west of the commercial hub of Bossaso, before the extremists overran the base and killed soldiers at close range, said Ahmed Mohamed, a senior military official.

Appeals court says chimps don’t have rights of people

NEW YORK

Two chimpanzees that were caged at a trailer lot and at a primate sanctuary don’t have the legal rights of people in New York, an appeals court said Thursday.

Nonhuman Rights Project attorney Steven Wise had argued to the appeals court in March that adult male chimps Tommy and Kiko should be granted a writ of habeas corpus, which for people relates to whether someone is being unlawfully detained or imprisoned and should be taken to see a judge.

Wise argued that the chimps, which were caged in a trailer lot in Gloversville, outside Albany, and at a primate sanctuary in Niagara Falls, should be moved to a large outdoor sanctuary in Florida.

Supermarket massacre shooter left online trail

A man who police say trapped and killed three co-workers inside a closed northeast Pennsylvania grocery store overnight Thursday left an online trail behind that includes praise for the 1999 Columbine High School shooters and expressions of deep frustration about the world around him.

Wyoming County District Attorney Jeff Mitchell said a Twitter feed that includes a 42-minute film about a violent massacre, posted about the time of the killings, is believed to have belonged to 24-year-old Randy Stair of Dallas, Pa.

In that film, Stair praised Columbine shooters Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold as heroes and kissed and fondled a loaded shotgun.

Seattle police: Trio arrested in random thrill shootings

SEATTLE

Three people have been arrested and charged in what police describe as a series of thrill-shootings in the Seattle area, including one that left a newspaper carrier with life-threatening injuries.

Investigators say the first shooting took place April 24, when two defendants – a 23-year-old woman and a 17-year-old boy – tested out an AK-47 by firing about 19 bullets at a couple and their young daughters as they walked to the front door of their home in Kent.

Prosecutors say the defendants, who also include an 18-year-old man, participated in at least four more shootings. Among them: Gunfire hit a teacher’s home April 30, an occupied car May 3, and a car carrying a couple delivering newspapers May 4. The man delivering papers was struck twice.

The defendants are due to be arraigned Monday.

Associated Press