There were a number of congratulatory comments from citizens of many nations, but of course, there's always an anti-American leftist to spoil the party:US Navy snipers killed three Somali pirates who had been holding an American merchant skipper on a lifeboat last night, rescuing the hostage unharmed.
The US Navy Seals opened fire from about 25 metres away under standing orders from President Obama when they saw one of the pirates pointing an AK47 at Captain Richard Phillips’s back, putting his life in imminent danger.
All three pirates were killed. A fourth, who had come aboard a nearby US warship to negotiate, was taken into custody. He was reported to be as young as 16.
As others pointed out:So the mighty America rejoices in killing 4 poor Somalis who have resorted to desperate measures to survive. What a victory. Much rejoicing to be had.
dean, Sydney, Australia
It's not about resorting to desperate measures to survive. These are well equipped kidnappers who spend millions (from previous kidnappings) on arms, boats, communication and navigation equipment. The other 10 million Somalians are also desperate but don't kidnap.
Gordon Hickley, Melbourne, Australia
(CNN) -- Woody Harrelson defended his clash with a photographer at a New York airport Wednesday night as a case of mistaken identity -- he says he mistook the cameraman for a zombie.This, of course, is a strong argument for gun control: the average person, like Woody Harrelson, can't tell a movie from reality, and may not start shooting all those zombies out there.The TMZ photographer filed a complaint with police claiming the actor damaged his camera and pushed him in the face at La Guardia Airport, according to an airport spokesman.
"We're looking into this allegation and if it's warranted, we'll turn it over to the proper authorities," said Port Authority of New York and New Jersey spokesman Ron Marsico.
The photographer, who was not identified, captured the encounter on a small camera after his larger one was broken.
Harrelson, who is being sued by another TMZ photographer for an alleged assault in 2006, did not deny his involvement.
"I wrapped a movie called 'Zombieland,' in which I was constantly under assault by zombies, then flew to New York, still very much in character," Harrelson said in a statement issued Friday by his publicist.
"With my daughter at the airport I was startled by a paparazzo, who I quite understandably mistook for a zombie," he said.
From April 11, 2009 BBC:A Greek student has died after shooting a fellow student and two passers-by at his college in Athens before turning the gun on himself.
Police said the gunman's motive was revenge, saying he had left a note indicating he was tired of being mocked by fellow pupils.
The wounded student is in a serious condition in hospital. The other two victims have minor injuries.
The shooting happened at a vocational college in a poor district of Athens.
And that's just the last two days.A Dutch man has opened fire at a crowded cafe in Rotterdam, killing one person and injuring three others.
Dutch police said bystanders wrestled the gunman to the ground and held him until officers arrived.
A police spokesman said the man was a 46-year-old Rotterdam resident, but gave no further details.
He said the motive for the early morning shooting was unclear, but may have begun with a quarrel in the cafe, where a talent contest was under way.
The shooting took place at 0100 local time (2300 GMT), according to Dutch police.
One person was wounded inside the cafe and three people were hit on the street, one fatally.
Better in jail facing drug charges, then in the morgue, facing an autopsy.WENATCHEE — Josh Ray always sleeps with a gun next to him.
"I just feel safer," he says.
Early Monday morning, he felt he had to use it to defend himself.
The 25-year-old Wenatchee man says he was just falling asleep on his living room couch when "my door flew open and there was a man standing there in the doorway and he said, 'Freeze, police.' "
Ray, who says he is an avid viewer of the television reality show "Cops," was not buying it.
"I kind of got real scared and I jumped in the air and put my hands up but it took me only a couple of seconds to know that this guy's not a cop," Ray said. "I know from watching that show that if police are coming to someone's house, they announce themselves before they boot the door open, not afterwards."
The next few seconds would culminate in the wounding of Ray, the death of the man at the door, Scott D. Bates, and possibly the solving of three armed robberies at Wenatchee area pharmacies. Wenatchee police say they suspect that Bates was involved with those robberies, one of which was committed with an accomplice. Wenatchee police cannot confirm what happened inside the residence before they were called.Ray called The Wenatchee World to say that he was never convicted of three misdemeanors, a statement that was published in stories earlier this week. The only charges listed for Ray in the The Washington State Patrol's criminal data base are the new charges pending against him. After the shooting he was booked into the Chelan County Regional Justice Center on suspicion of possession of less than 40 grams of marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of a legend drug, Ambien, a sleep aid. No other charges are pending against him in the WSP database.
Ray said he had a pistol on the coffee table next to the couch, but when he jumped up, the movement put him closer to a semi-automatic rifle, which he grabbed. At that point, he said, Bates shouted, " 'Freeze' at least two more times and I pretty much said BS. Those were the only words I ever said to that man."
Ray said Bates then shot him in the thigh and "it hurt really bad and I immediately returned fire. I shot him eight to 10 times. I wanted to make sure I didn't get shot again because he still had the gun in his hand when he was on the ground."
