2 Americans injured in suspected shark attack in the Bahamas: Police
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(BAHAMAS) — Two Americans were injured, one seriously, in a suspected shark attack in the Bahamas, police said.
The two female tourists were swimming in Bimini Bay on Friday around 6:30 p.m. when the incident occurred, the Royal Bahamas Police Force said over the weekend.
“Initial reports indicate that the victims, both U.S.A. residents, sustained injuries while swimming in the waters at Bimini Bay,” police said.
Both women sustained injuries to their lower bodies, with one of the victims injured seriously, police said.
They both were initially treated at a local clinic before being airlifted to New Providence for further medical attention, police said.
Both have since returned to the U.S., Bahamian officials said Monday.
One of the victims will require a third surgery to repair the damage to her leg, her family told ABC News. She will undergo the surgery in the Orlando, Florida, area, her family said.
The incident remains under investigation.
Shark attacks are exceedingly rare. There were 69 unprovoked shark bites recorded around the world in 2023, according to the most recent yearly research conducted by the Florida Museum of Natural History’s International Shark Attack File.
Of those, one of them occurred in the Bahamas and was deadly, according to the report. In that incident, a 44-year-old woman from Massachusetts was killed by a shark while paddleboarding near the back of the Sandals resort, according to the Royal Bahamas Police Force.
ABC News’ Anselm Gibbs and Alondra Valle contributed to this report.
(GAZA) — Since the end of the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas on March 18, the humanitarian situation in Gaza has sharply deteriorated.
The continued closure of all border crossings since March 2 has blocked the entry of humanitarian aid, triggering a severe food crisis and endangering the lives of millions of civilians.
Aid organizations warn that without urgent action, Gaza faces the real possibility of widespread famine, escalating malnutrition and the collapse of essential services.
One of the gravest consequences of the blockade is the complete disruption of the food supply chain. According to residents, bakeries across Gaza have been forced to shut down due to a lack of flour, fuel and operational supplies.
“There is no bread, no bread at all. There is no flour. The crossings are closed. The children are starving,” said Ahmed Abu Mustafa, a resident of Khan Younis, in an interview with ABC News. “Even if we had flour … the bakeries don’t have fuel to bake or cook food.”
The impact on civilians is visible and tragic.
Moath Fayez Abu Ramadan, also from Khan Younis, waited daily at a closed bakery earlier this month hoping to find food for his children.
“I have been here since six in the morning, waiting for the bakery to open so I can feed my children,” he told ABC News. “My wife was killed in the war, and my children need someone to take care of them and provide food.”
The World Food Programme (WFP) announced on March 31 that its aid supplies to Gaza have been fully depleted. The closure of the crossings has made resupply impossible, with catastrophic results.
“We are in a famine in every sense of the word,” said Umm Mohammed, a displaced resident from Rafah. “No matter how much we describe it, it is a famine. What is the fault of the children?” she asked during an interview with ABC News.
In a series of statements on Wednesday, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Israel would continue to bar the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza, calling it “one of the main pressure tools that prevents Hamas form using this measure vis a vis the population.”
Katz said Israel planned to create an infrastructure for distributing aid using civilian companies later.
Aid organizations raise alarm
International aid organizations are also raising alarm over the humanitarian toll of the blockade.
Rosalia Bollen, a spokesperson for UNICEF, told ABC News, “Since March 18, hundreds of children have been killed, hundreds more have been injured. … Burns, shrapnel lodged in the bodies of children, children who’ve had their limbs amputated.”
She emphasized the urgent need to reestablish a ceasefire and reopen the crossings.
“The most impactful action that governments need to take is to ensure that the ceasefire is reestablished. That is the most important measure to save children’s lives,” she said.
Beyond food shortages, Gaza’s children are suffering psychologically from the relentless violence and deprivation.
“Children are deeply traumatized by what they’ve witnessed,” Bollen explained. “They’ve been exposed to really unprecedented levels of violence on a daily basis for months in a row. … Today, every child in Gaza needs mental health support.”
Violence has returned
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) echoed this concern and highlighted the challenges of operating under such extreme conditions.
“After a period of relative calm, violence has returned to Gaza and the civilian population once again is bearing the brunt,” said Hisham Muhanna, an ICRC spokesperson, in an interview with ABC News. “The entry of humanitarian aid – Gaza’s main lifeline – has been suspended … the situation is even more dire.”
ICRC’s operations in Gaza are ongoing but severely constrained, Muhanna said.
“Programs like common kitchens continue feeding people with, sometimes, the only meal they will receive a day,” Muhanna said.
However, he warned of a looming catastrophe.
“Flour supplies are dwindling, and many bakeries have had to shut down,” he said. “In short order, the impacts will be acute on nutrition and basic health.”
With no fuel entering Gaza, water purification systems and hospitals are on the verge of collapse, Muhanna said.
“Hospitals cannot operate without health care staff, who don’t live nearby and who are struggling to come to work safely during this period of hostility,” Muhanna said.
“With no proper sanitation and limited access to safe drinking water, the danger of communicable disease outbreaks is closer by the day,” he added.
‘In need of literally everything’
Citizens are also voicing their frustration and calling for urgent international action.
“We want the war on Gaza to stop. May God make the Arab countries stand with us,” said Abu Ramadan.
Umm Mohammed added, “We fear hunger. We no longer fear death; we have reached the point where we wish for death. … When your child asks for bread — his most basic right — what do you say?”
As aid agencies work tirelessly under impossible conditions, time is running out for Gaza.
“The suffering in Gaza isn’t just physical but also psychological,” said Bollen. “Children in Gaza are in need of literally everything: food, safe water, health care and emotional support.”
The international community faces a critical moment. Without immediate and sustained action to reopen the crossings and restore aid flows, aid agencies are warning that Gaza is at risk of plunging into an irreversible humanitarian catastrophe.
(LONDON) — The Kremlin on Monday said it was “very important” to push President Volodymyr Zelenskyy toward making a peace deal, echoing arguments made by President Donald Trump in Friday’s contentious Oval Office meeting with the Ukrainian leader.
“He does not want peace. Someone should make Zelenskyy want peace,” said Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, his remarks reflecting Russia’s long-standing false narrative blaming Kyiv for Moscow’s three-year-old invasion and more than a decade of cross-border aggression. “If the Europeans can do it, they should be honored and praised.”
The comments came shortly after Zelenskyy expressed gratitude for years of American backing in a statement ending a tumultuous week of transatlantic diplomacy that saw a dramatic and public break with Trump’s administration.
Zelenskyy framed this week’s outreach as the beginning of a longer process that may result in a peace deal to end Russia’s three-year-old invasion of his country. “There will be many meetings and joint efforts in the coming days and weeks,” Zelenskyy said in a video posted to the presidential website.
“There will be diplomacy for peace,” he added. “And for the sake of all of us standing together — Ukraine, the whole of Europe, and necessarily America.”
On Monday, Zelenskyy reacted to another night of Russian long-range missile and drone strikes, writing on Telegram, “Ukraine is fighting for the normal and safe life it deserves, for a peace that is just and reliable. We want this war to end. But Russia does not want it and continues its aerial terror.”
“Those who want negotiations do not deliberately hit people with ballistic missiles,” the president added. “To force Russia to stop the strikes, we need a greater joint force of the world.”
Zelenskyy’s fiery Friday meeting with Trump and Vice President JD Vance demonstrated the divergence in Ukrainian and U.S. visions of Russia’s war, blame for which Trump has repeatedly and falsely attributed to Kyiv while also seeking to undermine Zelenskyy’s legitimacy.
Russian officials celebrated the disastrous meeting. Peskov told state television on Sunday that Trump’s administration is “rapidly changing” American “foreign policy configurations,” putting them “largely in line with our vision.”
In his Sunday statement, Zelenskyy said Ukrainians “understand the importance of America, and we are grateful for all the support we have received from the United States. There hasn’t been a single day when we haven’t felt grateful. Because this is gratitude for the preservation of our independence.”
“We need peace, not endless war,” he added. “And that is why we say that security guarantees are the key to this.”
Zelenskyy attended a summit of European leaders in London on Sunday. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he had agreed with Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron that the U.K. and France would work with Ukraine to formulate a peace plan that will then be presented to the U.S.
Starmer outlined a plan including the continuation of aid flows to Ukraine and the maintaining of economic pressure on Russia. The prime minister said that any lasting peace agreement must ensure Ukraine’s sovereignty and security, and that Kyiv must be at the negotiating table.
In the event of a deal, Starmer said Europe will continue to help Ukraine militarily to deter any future military action by Russia. He also said there will be a “coalition of the willing” to help defend Ukraine.
Starmer said the United Kingdom is ready to back the plan with boots on the ground and planes in the air. He said he also recognizes that not all countries will be able to make this kind of commitment.
Starmer stressed that any deal will need strong U.S. backing to succeed.
Zelenskyy said Sunday he had been given “clear support from Europe,” reporting “even greater unity, even stronger readiness for cooperation” from his weekend meetings.
“Everyone is united on the main point — for peace to be real, real security guarantees are needed,” the president said. “And this is the position of all of our Europe — of the entire continent.”
“In the near future, all of us in Europe will shape our common positions — the lines we must achieve and the lines we cannot compromise on,” Zelenskyy said. “These positions will be presented to our partners in the United States.”
“Robust and lasting peace, and the right agreement on the end of the war are truly our shared priority,” he added.
ABC News’ Patrick Reevell contributed to this article.
(COPENHAGEN, Denmark) — One of the Americans detained for nearly two weeks in Denmark over an alleged assault against an Uber driver while visiting Copenhagen on their college spring break said he was “shocked” that he and his friend were arrested and maintained that they are innocent.
“We were both just very shocked about the fact that we were being arrested over this incident,” Owen Ray told “Good Morning America” on Monday, hours after he and his friend were freed. “We had done nothing wrong,” Ray added.
Ray, a 19-year-old studying at Miami University in Ohio, and his unnamed friend were detained at Copenhagen Airport on April 1 over an alleged dispute with an Uber driver the night prior, Jordan Finfer, a U.S.-based attorney for Ray’s family, told ABC News. Local police detained them while they were heading home after deeming them “flight risks,” claiming they were planning to run from the incident, he said.
In an account relayed to Finfer, who then shared the details with ABC News, Ray said he and his friend realized they had entered the wrong address for their destination — and the Uber driver allegedly refused to take them anywhere else.
Ray said they decided to cancel their Uber and left the vehicle. Then, after they walked a few blocks, the Uber driver pulled up, got out of the car and “started yelling at us, thinking he hadn’t been paid for the Uber, but in fact, he had been paid for the Uber,” Ray said.
“He then got in our faces and was saying, ‘I’m gonna call 10 guys,'” Ray said.
“We said, ‘We’ve done nothing wrong. We’ve done nothing wrong.’ He then started an altercation with us,” Ray said.
“The safety of everyone who uses the Uber app is a top priority, and we take reports of violence very seriously,” an Uber spokesperson said in a statement to ABC News on Sunday. “Any additional questions about the investigation should be directed to the Danish police,” the statement added.
Copenhagen police said the two students were charged with common assault.
Following his arrest, Ray said he thought he would be able to explain to a judge what happened and be released.
“But then we went to the judge, and we were actually told that we would be imprisoned in a Danish prison for 10 days,” he said.
Ray said he wasn’t able to make a phone call for 36 hours after his arrest and didn’t know if his parents even knew where he was.
“I was initially very worried about making sure that I could get into contact,” he said.
He said he was able to text his mother from a phone at court, and she ended up flying to Denmark.
“I was very relieved to have heard that she was able to do that, and thankful that she was able to,” Ray said. “I’m very thankful to my family and everyone else who’s been supporting me throughout this situation.”
Ray said it also helped that he and his friend had each other while detained.
“We read books, we played cards, we played chess and luckily we were able to get through it in a good mental state,” he said.
Their initial 10-day, pre-trial detention amid the investigation into the incident was subsequently extended until April 24, a Copenhagen police spokesperson told ABC News.
Ray said his Danish attorney filed an appeal last week, and the judge ruled in their favor on Monday, releasing them.
The teen said Danish authorities have their passports and they have to check in with police daily until they get an update on the case. He said he believes they are waiting for either the investigating authorities to drop the case or for a trial date to be set.
Ray said he and his friend are in a good mental state, and that he plans to maintain a positive attitude about the ordeal while hoping for it to be resolved soon.
“I just hope that Denmark and the legal authorities here are able to — and the U.S. government can help us and do what they can to help us be released by Easter, so I can be home with my family,” Ray said.
“I think the best case would be for the Danish police and the prosecutor to drop the case at this point, because we’re completely innocent, and for them to return us our passports and allow us to head back to the United States,” he said.
A U.S. State Department spokesperson said in a statement on Sunday that they are “aware of media reports of two U.S. citizens detained in Denmark. Staff at our embassy in Copenhagen are providing consular assistance.”
“The Department has no higher priority than the safety and security of U.S. citizens abroad,” the statement continued. “Due to privacy considerations, we have no further comment.”
