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About The skanner. (Portland, Or.) 1975-2014 | View Entire Issue (June 17, 2015)
News World News Briefs Nasir Al-Wahishi, al-Qaida’s No. 2 leader and head of its Yemen branch, killed in US strike spilling 13 people about 50 feet onto the pavement. Six people were killed and seven seriously injured. Police and fire and building officials were working to figure out why the roughly 5-by-10-foot concrete-floor balcony broke loose from the side of the stucco apartment building, situated a couple of blocks from the campus of the University of California, Berkeley. High school student Jason Biswas’ family nearby was awakened by the noise. Asked by Matt Lauer if she is an “an Af- rican-American woman,” Dolezal said: “I identify as black.” Dolezal’s career as a civil rights activist in the Pacific Northwest crumbled in the past few days. She resigned Monday as president of the Spokane, Washington, branch of the NAACP, lost her position as a part-time Af- rican studies instructor at a local university, was fired as a freelance newspaper colum- nist and is being investigated by the city Ethics Commission over wheth- er she lied about her race on her application when she landed an appointment to Spokane’s police oversight board. (AP PHOTO/JEFF CHIU) CAIRO (AP) — A U.S. airstrike has killed al-Qaida’s second-most-powerful figure, the head of its Yemeni branch, dealing the terror network its biggest blow since the killing of Osama bin Laden at a time when it is vying with the Islamic State group for the mantle of global jihad. Nasir al-Wahishi was the lat- est in a series of senior figures from al-Qaida’s powerful Yemeni branch eliminated by U.S. drone attacks over the past five months, including its top ideologue and a Delegation including senior military commander. The U.S. has intensified its campaign, Yemen’s Houthi rebels trying to push back the group as it arrives for Geneva has captured new territory in Ye- talks after delay in men by taking advantage of the southern Arabian nation’s chronic Djibouti chaos. GENEVA (AP) — Fighting in In confirming the killing of Yemen raged on Tuesday, with al-Wahishi in a June 9 drone attack, dozens reported killed even as the the White House said Tuesday that country’s Shiite Houthi rebels ar- his death “removes from the battle- A crew begins work on the Library Gardens apartment rived in Geneva for U.N.-brokered building balcony below the remaining wood from field an experienced terrorist lead- peace talks. U.N. figures reported abalcony that collapsed in Berkeley, Calif., Wednes- er and brings us closer to degrad- an increasing number of civilians ing and ultimately defeating these day, June 17, 2015. The balcony broke loose from the killed in a conflict that is showing building during a 21st birthday party early Tuesday, groups.” little sign of abating. killing several people and seriously injuring others. The U.S. activity against al-Qa- The Geneva talks are aimed at ida has not been limited to Yemen. ending months of fighting that Over the weekend, a U.S. air- prompted a Saudi-led coalition to strike in Libya targeted an al-Qa- launch an air campaign against the “They thought there was an earthquake, ida-linked militant commander, Mokhtar but then we looked out the window and saw Houthis and their allies nearly three months Belmokhtar, who led a 2013 attack on an Al- seven or eight people on the ground,” the ago. Still, neither side has shown desire to gerian gas complex that killed 35 hostages, 16-year-old said. “There were piles of blood compromise even as dozens died in renewed including several Americans. U.S. officials fighting in the southern city of Aden. everywhere.” are still trying to confirm whether he was Following initial meetings with the U.N. Five of the dead were 21-year-olds from killed in the raid. Ireland who were in the country on so- envoy, delegate Ghaleb Mutlak said that the Al-Wahishi was a former aide to bin Lad- called J-1 visas that enable young people to rebels are trying to achieve a truce for the en who, after the al-Qaida affiliate in Saudi work and travel in the U.S. over the sum- Muslim holy month of Ramadan, and that Arabia was crushed in the mid-2000s, re- mer, while the sixth victim was from Cali- their delegation is willing to stay in Switzer- built it in his Yemeni homeland and turned land as long as it takes to end the bloodshed. fornia, authorities said. it into the terror network’s most dangerous branch. He also served as deputy to Ayman al-Zawahri, who succeeded bin Laden in Ex-NAACP leader Rachel 2011 as the network’s leader. The U.S. had Dolezal says she identifies put a bounty of up to $10 million on al-Wa- as black, drew self with hishi. U.N. special envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed said nothing will be settled unless the two sides can be persuaded to sit down together, but that just getting them both to Geneva was a “great achievement.” “We should not underestimate the signifi- cance of this event,” he told reporters after meeting with the Houthi delegation. “It is the important start toward the return to a po- litical process. Let us be realistic, it will be a difficult path, but the important issue is that we start addressing the crisis.” Hunt for escaped murderers near NY prison hindered by cool, rainy weather on 11th day DANNEMORA, N.Y. (AP) — Search teams hindered by cool, rainy weather combed through woods for an 11th day try- ing to track down two escaped murderers on Tuesday as one official raised doubts the escapees relied solely on a now-jailed pris- on worker to help them get away after their breakout. More than 800 law enforcement offi- cers who are searching for convicts David Sweat and Richard Matt shifted their focus eastward along Route 374 leading from the village of Dannemora, home of the Clinton Correctional Facility, in far northern New York. State police said Tuesday the manhunt will be expanded beyond where it’s been most intense, 16 square miles of woods, fields and swamps around a road where search dogs caught the scent of both men and searchers found evidence indicating they may have spent time there. Clinton County Sheriff David Favro said rain has been washing away any scent dogs might find and interfering with thermal im- aging devices being used to detect body heat. See BRIEFS on page 10 brown crayon at 5 6 killed in California balcony collapse; victims mostly college students from Ireland BERKELEY, Calif. (AP) — A 21st-birth- day party thrown by a group of visiting Irish college students turned tragic early Tues- day when the fifth-floor balcony they were crowded on collapsed with a sharp crack, NEW YORK (AP) — The NAACP chap- ter president who resigned after her parents said she is white said Tuesday that she start- ed identifying as black around age 5, when she drew self-portraits with a brown crayon, and she “takes exception” to the contention she tried to deceive people. Rachel Dolezal said on NBC’s “Today” show that some of the discussion about her has been “viciously inhumane.” June 17, 2015 The Portland and Seattle Skanner Page 9
