A boy, 8, had his spinal cord severed when he was shot in the chest during the attack on a Chicago-area Fourth of July parade that left seven dead, a family spokesman said on Thursday, while his twin brother and mother were also wounded.
Cooper Roberts was one of the most gravely wounded among dozens of people who survived gunshots and other injuries in the Highland Park Independence Day assault, underscoring physical and emotional devastation that goes beyond the lives lost in such violence.
He was listed on Thursday in critical but stable condition while still breathing on a ventilator, family spokesman Anthony Loizzi said.
Cooper's twin brother, Luke, was admitted to hospital with shrapnel wounds in the lower body but discharged after doctors removed some of the debris. The boys' mother, Keely Roberts, suffered gunshot wounds to her legs and feet, Mr Loizzi told reporters during a Zoom call.
The twins attended the parade with both parents, with the father, Jason Roberts, unhurt.
Due to the severity of his spinal cord injury, doctors are unsure whether Cooper will ever walk again, said Mr Loizzi, a colleague of the mother, who is superintendent of a Lake County elementary school district.
Cooper, normally a "very active" child with a passion for baseball and other sports, has remained unconscious and under sedation since he was airlifted to the University of Chicago Comer Children's Hospital, Mr Loizzi said.
The mother, who underwent at least two surgeries herself, was so distraught at Cooper's condition that she insisted on being released on Wednesday, sooner than doctors felt was best until her bleeding was under greater control, to be with her son at the children's hospital, Mr Loizzi said.
The boy has undergone several operations, including one on Wednesday night in which surgeons "finally closed his belly," the spokesman said.
"He's fighting as hard as he can," Mr Loizzi said of the boy's recovery. The family as a whole, including four adult sisters, were "devastated but focusing their energy on Cooper," he said.
"It's been a very emotional time for everyone in their circle," he said, adding he did not know whether Luke had yet been told of the severity of his twin's condition.
Friends of the family established a GoFundMe page seeking to help cover their medical bills.
GIANT REVIEW
Starring: Amir El-Masry, Pierce Brosnan
Director: Athale
Rating: 4/5
David Haye record
Total fights: 32
Wins: 28
Wins by KO: 26
Losses: 4
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EA Sports FC 24
FA Cup quarter-final draw
The matches will be played across the weekend of 21 and 22 March
Sheffield United v Arsenal
Newcastle v Manchester City
Norwich v Derby/Manchester United
Leicester City v Chelsea
23-man shortlist for next six Hall of Fame inductees
Tony Adams, David Beckham, Dennis Bergkamp, Sol Campbell, Eric Cantona, Andrew Cole, Ashley Cole, Didier Drogba, Les Ferdinand, Rio Ferdinand, Robbie Fowler, Steven Gerrard, Roy Keane, Frank Lampard, Matt Le Tissier, Michael Owen, Peter Schmeichel, Paul Scholes, John Terry, Robin van Persie, Nemanja Vidic, Patrick Viera, Ian Wright.
Super 30
Produced: Sajid Nadiadwala and Phantom Productions
Directed: Vikas Bahl
Cast: Hrithik Roshan, Pankaj Tripathi, Aditya Srivastav, Mrinal Thakur
Rating: 3.5 /5
INFO
Western Region Asia Cup T20 Qualifier
Sun Feb 23 – Thu Feb 27, Al Amerat, Oman
The two finalists advance to the Asia qualifier in Malaysia in August
Group A
Bahrain, Maldives, Oman, Qatar
Group B
UAE, Iran, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia
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What are the main cyber security threats?
Cyber crime - This includes fraud, impersonation, scams and deepfake technology, tactics that are increasingly targeting infrastructure and exploiting human vulnerabilities.
Cyber terrorism - Social media platforms are used to spread radical ideologies, misinformation and disinformation, often with the aim of disrupting critical infrastructure such as power grids.
Cyber warfare - Shaped by geopolitical tension, hostile actors seek to infiltrate and compromise national infrastructure, using one country’s systems as a springboard to launch attacks on others.
if you go
The flights
Emirates flies to Delhi with fares starting from around Dh760 return, while Etihad fares cost about Dh783 return. From Delhi, there are connecting flights to Lucknow.
Where to stay
It is advisable to stay in Lucknow and make a day trip to Kannauj. A stay at the Lebua Lucknow hotel, a traditional Lucknowi mansion, is recommended. Prices start from Dh300 per night (excluding taxes).
A timeline of the Historical Dictionary of the Arabic Language
- 2018: Formal work begins
- November 2021: First 17 volumes launched
- November 2022: Additional 19 volumes released
- October 2023: Another 31 volumes released
- November 2024: All 127 volumes completed
HIV on the rise in the region
A 2019 United Nations special analysis on Aids reveals 37 per cent of new HIV infections in the Mena region are from people injecting drugs.
New HIV infections have also risen by 29 per cent in western Europe and Asia, and by 7 per cent in Latin America, but declined elsewhere.
Egypt has shown the highest increase in recorded cases of HIV since 2010, up by 196 per cent.
Access to HIV testing, treatment and care in the region is well below the global average.
Few statistics have been published on the number of cases in the UAE, although a UNAIDS report said 1.5 per cent of the prison population has the virus.
Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
