The wife and five children of the man charged with fire-bombing 12 people at a Colorado event held in support of Israeli hostages have been arrested by US immigration authorities and are being processed to be deported.
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said federal officials are looking into whether the family of the suspect, Mohamed Soliman, were involved in the June 1 attack. They are being processed for expedited removal, according to Tricia McLaughlin, a spokeswoman at the department.
The agency is “investigating to what extent his family knew about this horrific attack, if they had any knowledge of it, or if they provided support to it”, Ms Noem said in a video posted on social media.
Mr Soliman, 45, has been charged with throwing two Molotov cocktails into a pro-Israel crowd and using a makeshift flamethrower at the event in Boulder. The suspect yelled “free Palestine” during the attack, according to law enforcement.
He faces a federal hate crime charge and dozens of state charges of attempted murder and attempted use of incendiary devices. An FBI special agent involved in the case said the suspect told investigators he “wanted to kill all Zionist people and wished they were all dead".
Boulder police said Mr Soliman was born in Egypt and lived in Kuwait for 17 years. He and his family moved to Colorado Springs three years ago. He allegedly told authorities he had been planning the attack for a year, but waited for his daughter to graduate from high school before striking.
Mr Soliman allegedly told law enforcement that he had left an iPhone and a journal behind for his family. An FBI official said agents had executed a search warrant at his home after the attack and that his family members were co-operative.
The Department of Homeland Security said on Monday that Mr Soliman applied for asylum in September 2022, the month after he arrived on a tourist visa. As part of the application process he was approved for a work permit in March 2023, the same month his tourist visa expired.
The department declined to provide the status of his asylum case or whether he had previously faced deportation. The agency did not respond to a request for comment on where his wife and children would be sent.
The specs: 2018 Maxus T60
Price, base / as tested: Dh48,000
Engine: 2.4-litre four-cylinder
Power: 136hp @ 1,600rpm
Torque: 360Nm @ 1,600 rpm
Transmission: Five-speed manual
Fuel consumption, combined: 9.1L / 100km
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Libya's Gold
UN Panel of Experts found regime secretly sold a fifth of the country's gold reserves.
The panel’s 2017 report followed a trail to West Africa where large sums of cash and gold were hidden by Abdullah Al Senussi, Qaddafi’s former intelligence chief, in 2011.
Cases filled with cash that was said to amount to $560m in 100 dollar notes, that was kept by a group of Libyans in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
A second stash was said to have been held in Accra, Ghana, inside boxes at the local offices of an international human rights organisation based in France.
Coffee: black death or elixir of life?
It is among the greatest health debates of our time; splashed across newspapers with contradicting headlines - is coffee good for you or not?
Depending on what you read, it is either a cancer-causing, sleep-depriving, stomach ulcer-inducing black death or the secret to long life, cutting the chance of stroke, diabetes and cancer.
The latest research - a study of 8,412 people across the UK who each underwent an MRI heart scan - is intended to put to bed (caffeine allowing) conflicting reports of the pros and cons of consumption.
The study, funded by the British Heart Foundation, contradicted previous findings that it stiffens arteries, putting pressure on the heart and increasing the likelihood of a heart attack or stroke, leading to warnings to cut down.
Numerous studies have recognised the benefits of coffee in cutting oral and esophageal cancer, the risk of a stroke and cirrhosis of the liver.
The benefits are often linked to biologically active compounds including caffeine, flavonoids, lignans, and other polyphenols, which benefit the body. These and othetr coffee compounds regulate genes involved in DNA repair, have anti-inflammatory properties and are associated with lower risk of insulin resistance, which is linked to type-2 diabetes.
But as doctors warn, too much of anything is inadvisable. The British Heart Foundation found the heaviest coffee drinkers in the study were most likely to be men who smoked and drank alcohol regularly.
Excessive amounts of coffee also unsettle the stomach causing or contributing to stomach ulcers. It also stains the teeth over time, hampers absorption of minerals and vitamins like zinc and iron.
It also raises blood pressure, which is largely problematic for people with existing conditions.
So the heaviest drinkers of the black stuff - some in the study had up to 25 cups per day - may want to rein it in.
Rory Reynolds
TRAP
Starring: Josh Hartnett, Saleka Shyamalan, Ariel Donaghue
Director: M Night Shyamalan
Rating: 3/5
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
