US religious group says 17 missionaries kidnapped in Haiti
San Juan (US), Oct 17: A group of 17 US missionaries, including children, were kidnapped by a gang in Haiti on Saturday, according to a voice message sent to various religious missions by an organization with direct knowledge of the incident.
The missionaries were on their way home from building an orphanage, according to a message from Ohio-based Christian Aid Ministries.
This is a special prayer alert, the one-minute message said. Pray that the gang members would come to repentance.
The message states that the mission's field director is working with the US Embassy, and that the field director's family and one other unidentified man stayed at the ministry's base while everyone else visiting the orphanage was abducted.
No other details were immediately available.
A US government spokesperson said they were aware of the reports on the kidnapping.
The welfare and safety of US citizens abroad is one of the highest priorities of the Department of State, the spokesperson said, declining further comment.
Haiti is once again struggling with a spike in gang-related kidnappings that had diminished after President Jovenel Moise was fatally shot at his private residence on July 7, and following a 7.2-magnitude earthquake that struck southwest Haiti in August and killed more than 2,200 people.
Gangs have demanded ransoms ranging from a couple hundred dollars to more than 1 million, according to authorities.
Last month, a deacon was killed in front of a church in the capital of Port-au-Prince and his wife kidnapped, one of dozens of people who have been abducted in recent months.
At least 328 kidnapping victims were reported to Haiti's National Police in the first eight months of 2021, compared with a total of 234 for all of 2020, according to a report issued last month the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti known as BINUH.
Gangs have been accused of kidnapping schoolchildren, doctors, police officers, busloads of passengers and others as they grow more powerful. In April, one gang kidnapped five priests and two nuns, a move that prompted a protest similar to the one organised for this Monday to decry the lack of security in the impoverished country.
Political turmoil, the surge in gang violence, deteriorating socioeconomic conditions including food insecurity and malnutrition all contribute to the worsening of the humanitarian situation, BINUH said in its report. An overstretched and under-resourced police force alone cannot address the security ills of Haiti.
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Karnataka: Elderly man dies after his car catches fire
Chikkaballapur (Karnataka) (PTI): A 70-year-old man died after his car caught fire, leaving his body charred, police said on Monday.
The deceased was identified as Uday Kumar, a resident of Raghuvanahalli on Kanakapura Road in Bengaluru, they said.
The incident occurred near Achepalli Cross in Bagepalli taluk of Chikkaballapur district on Sunday when he was returning after visiting his mother in his native place, police said.
Local police were alerted by passersby who noticed the car on fire. Fire tenders rushed to the spot and doused the blaze. However, the flames had spread rapidly through the vehicle, resulting in his death. Later, his charred body was recovered from the car, police said.
Citing preliminary investigation, a senior police officer said it appeared to be a case of suicide as investigators did not find any evidence indicating an accident or a mechanical fault in the car that could have triggered the fire.
"However, teams have collected samples and other evidence, and further investigation is underway to ascertain whether there was any technical fault that led to the fire," the officer said.
