Twelve killed in foiled Brazil bank assaults
Rio De Janeiro, Dec 8 : Twelve people -- including five hostages -- were killed in northeast Brazil on Friday after police foiled a gang of armed robbers staging simultaneous pre-dawn assaults on two banks in the town of Milagres, officials said.
The five dead hostages were members of the same family and included two children, the local mayor, Lielson Landim, told the Folha de Sao Paulo newspaper. They had been returning from a nearby airport when some of the robbers seized them.
The secretary for security in the state of Ceara, Andre Costa, said in a statement that an investigation was being carried out to identify those killed and the circumstances of their deaths. Costa did not say whose bullets killed the hostages.
Landim had earlier said that, based on initial information, he understood that "the criminals killed the hostages and the police killed the criminals."
Two suspects were arrested, according to Costa's office. "A heavily armed group arrived in the town in the early hours and went to the centre of town, where they tried to commit the crime. There was an exchange of fire between the suspects and police," it said.
It said six gang members were killed and "another six people died from gunshots." The identity of the 12th victim was not immediately clear. Various weapons and explosives as well as three vehicles used in the bank assaults were recovered.
The gang had launched simultaneous assaults on two banks on the same street in Milagres -- population 28,000 -- shortly after 2:00 am (0400 GMT).
According to the G1 news website, the robbers had blocked a street with a truck and stopped the car carrying the family, which included relatives who had just arrived on a flight from Sao Paulo to celebrate Christmas with them. G1 reported that the robbers "executed" the hostages when police turned up. It said some of the gang managed to escape.
"I've never seen anything like it. I stayed inside my home, cowering and afraid," a local resident, Mendonca de Santa Helena, told media.
"I heard people yelling and crying. It was horrible." Shaken by the violence, the municipality of Milagres suspended most of its activities on Friday and asked residents to stay at home "until order is restored."
Brazil is one of the most violent countries in the world, suffering nearly 64,000 murders last year -- a homicide rate of 30.8 per 100,000 inhabitants that is three times higher than the level the United Nations considers to be endemic violence.
On January 1, a far-right politician promising a relentless crackdown on crime, Jair Bolsonaro, will become Brazil's new president following his election in October.
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Russia always ready to supply crude oil to India: Envoy
New Delhi (PTI): Russia has always been open to supplying crude oil to India, Russian Ambassador Denis Alipov said on Thursday, amid increasing concerns over spiralling prices of petroleum products in view of the West Asia crisis.
Global oil and gas prices have surged after Iran has virtually blocked the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow shipping lane between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman, that handles roughly 20 per cent of global oil and LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas).
India imports 88 per cent of its crude oil needs and roughly half of its natural gas requirement. These mostly come via the Strait of Hormuz.
Any prolonged instability in West Asia is set to be detrimental to India's national interests as the region remains a major source of New Delhi's energy security.
"We have been open to supplying crude oil to India," Alipov told reporters while responding to a question on Russian crude oil supplies to India in view of the West Asia crisis.
The US launched military strikes on Iran on February 28, killing Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
Following the military offensive, Iran has carried out a wave of attacks mainly targeting Israel and American military bases in several Gulf countries including the UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan and Saudi Arabia.
In the last three days, the conflict has widened significantly with attacks and counter-attacks by both the sides.
India's procurement of crude oil from Russia has seen sharp fall in the last few weeks.
US President Donald Trump, while announcing a trade deal with New Delhi last month, claimed India has agree to not procure crude oil from Russia.
In an executive order, Trump had rolled back an additional 25 per cent tariffs on India that he imposed in August last for India's procurement of crude oil from Russia.
In the order, the US said it would monitor whether India resumed Russian oil purchases directly or indirectly and that would determine whether a 25 per cent tariff would again be re-impose.
India has been maintaining that it will procure oil from multiple sources and diversify them to ensure stability in the supply chain with national interests remaining the "guiding factor" for the procurement.
