North Korea test-fires ‘multiple’ ballistic missiles as US-South Korea war games begin
Kim Jae-Hwan/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
(SEOUL and LONDON) — North Korea fired “multiple” ballistic missiles on Monday, according to South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff, as U.S.-South Korea war games began nearby.
The missiles, which were “unidentified,” were fired from the North’s Hwanghae Province at about 1:50 p.m. local time, the South Korean military said. They were aimed inland, toward the West Sea.
The South Korean military “has increased surveillance and maintaining readiness posture in close cooperation with the U.S.,” the Joint Chiefs said.
The annual U.S.-South Korea joint exercises, which are known as “Freedom Shield,” were scheduled to begin Monday and run through March 21, according to the U.S. Army.
The training alongside South Korean soldiers will include urban combat, field hospital operations, field artillery exercises, air assault training and air defenses, the Army said in a statement on Monday. The U.S. Marine Corps is also expected to take part in a joint assault exercise.
North Korea’s Foreign Ministry described the planned exercises as “aggressive,” with officials telling state media on Sunday that the “U.S. random exercise of strength will result in aggravated security crisis.”
“This is a dangerous provocative act of leading the acute situation on the Korean peninsula, which may spark off a physical conflict between the two sides by means of an accidental single shot, to the extreme point,” the ministry said in a statement to the Korean Central New Agency on Sunday.
ABC News’ Somayeh Malekian contributed to this report.
(Washington City, UT) — Human remains that had been decomposing “for an extended period of time” have been discovered just off of a public hiking trail in Utah, police said.
The Washington City Police Department announced the discovery of human remains near the Bone Wash Trail and Elephant Arch hiking area in Washington City in southern Utah — some 125 miles northwest of Las Vegas, Nevada — according to a statement released by the authorities on Tuesday.
“On January 12, 2025, a hiker reported what appeared to be human remains near the Elephant Arch hike,” the Washington City Police Department said in their press release. “Officers from Washington City Police and Deputies from Washington County Sheriff’s Office responded promptly to the scene and confirmed the presence of human remains in various forms of decomposition, indicating they had been there for an extended period of time.”
Detectives immediately began processing the area and were able to identify the remains as belonging to a man, police said.
“The remains have been transported to the Medical Examiner’s office for a thorough investigation to determine the cause of death,” authorities said. “At this time, foul play does not appear to be a factor.”
The identity of the deceased man was subsequently confirmed by authorities and his family was notified of his death, though he has yet to be publicly identified.
“Out of respect for the family, the identity will not be disclosed at this time,” police said. “The case remains active pending the completion of all reports, including finds from the Medical Examiner’s office.”
Officials did not say how they were able to identify the remains or when they plan on disclosing more information on the case.
“We extend our deepest sympathies to the family and friends of the deceased,” authorities said. “We also express our sincere gratitude to the various agencies that have assisted in the investigation.”
(LOS ANGELES) — A 23-year-old college student was found murdered at her off-campus apartment in a “senseless and violent act,” authorities said, who are now seeking to identify a person of interest in the homicide.
Menghan Zhuang, who also went by Emily King, was discovered unresponsive by her roommate at their Santa Clarita apartment the evening of Feb. 4, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said.
Her roommate called 911 and first responders found Zhuang suffering from multiple injuries to her upper body, according to Lt. Michael Modica, who did not disclose the nature of her injuries amid the investigation. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
Authorities are now seeking the public’s help in identifying a person of interest in the case. Investigators learned that Zhuang had a “male companion” at her apartment the night of Feb. 3 who was then captured on video exiting from her second-story bedroom window the following afternoon, on the day she was discovered deceased, Modica said.
“It is clear this was not a random act of violence and Zhuang somehow knew the person of interest, evident by bringing that person into her apartment,” Modica said during a press briefing Thursday.
The sheriff’s department released photos of the suspect from the video of him leaving the apartment at the Vistas condominium complex in Newhall. He was described as a man in his 20s, wearing a black shirt and black pants, who appears to be of Asian descent, authorities said.
Modica stressed that Zhuang’s roommate is not a suspect in the homicide.
“I want to make it clear that her roommate is helping us in this case,” he said.
Zhuang was a senior undergraduate at the California Institute of the Arts, studying art, the school said.
“Our community is devastated by this loss, and our heartfelt condolences go out to her family, friends, classmates and teachers,” CalArts said in a statement on Friday.
CalArts is cooperating in the investigation and “were instrumental” in getting investigators in contact with the family of Zhuang, a Chinese national, Modica said.
Her family has requested privacy at this time, said CalArts, which is working with her family to plan an event in honor of Zhuang and to share her art.
The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors is expected to approve a $20,000 reward for information in the case during its Feb. 18 meeting, which would retroactively go into effect on Feb. 13, Modica said.
“We hope people will have the courage to come forward and help investigators identify the individual responsible for this senseless and violent act and help bring justice and a sense of closure to the family,” he said.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department at 323-890-5500 or Los Angeles Regional Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477.
ABC News’ Jennifer Watts and Alex Stone contributed to this report.
(NEW ORLEANS, LA) — The suspect in a deadly attack on New Year’s revelers in New Orleans has been identified as Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a 42-year-old U.S.-born citizen and U.S. Army veteran from Texas, according to the FBI.
At least 15 people were killed and over two dozen injured after a man drove a Ford pickup truck through a crowd on Bourbon Street at a high rate of speed early Wednesday, multiple law enforcement sources and Louisiana Rep. Troy Carter told ABC News.
Authorities are working to determine whether the deceased suspect had any affiliation with terrorist organizations after an ISIS flag was found tied to the truck’s trailer hitch, the FBI said.
After barreling through the crowd over a three-block stretch, the suspect allegedly got out of the truck wielding an assault rifle and opened fire on police officers, law enforcement officials briefed on the incident told ABC News. Officers returned fire, killing the suspect, police said. At least two police officers were shot and wounded, authorities said.
“This man was trying to run over as many people as he possibly could,” New Orleans Police Chief Anne Kirkpatrick said at a press briefing on Wednesday afternoon. “It was not a DUI situation. This is more complex and more serious.”
She said the driver was “hell-bent on creating the carnage and the damage that he did.”
Weapons and potential IEDs were located in the suspect’s vehicle and other potential IEDs were located in the French Quarter, according to the FBI, which is leading the investigation. As of now, two IEDs have been found and rendered safe, the FBI said. Investigators found homemade pipe bombs at the scene of the Bourbon Street attack, law enforcement sources told ABC News. The crude devices contained coils and nails, the sources said. Authorities also found a grenade, which is among the items tested for viability, sources said.
New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell described the horrific incident as a “terrorist attack” and the FBI said it was being investigated as an act of terror.
The suspect is not believed to be “solely responsible” for the attack, according to the FBI, which said it is pursuing leads to identify any of his associates.
New Orleans police have reviewed surveillance video that appears to show several people planting potential explosive devices in advance of the vehicle ramming, leading the FBI to conclude the driver of the pickup truck did not act alone in the attack, law enforcement sources told ABC News.
Investigators are urgently working to identify the individuals who were seen on camera and take them into custody, the sources said.
Jabbar is believed to have been discharged honorably from the Army, though investigators are still looking into his military record, the FBI said.
Carter told ABC News that the suspect appears to have “lived or spent some time” in the New Orleans area.
“My understanding is there may have been some identification that indicated that the suspect had a local residence and so that information is being tested,” he said.
The vehicle had a Texas license plate, according to Carter.
The truck used in the attack appeared to be a Ford F-150 Lightning, an electric vehicle. It appears the truck was rented through the Turo app — a carsharing company, according to Rodrigo Diaz, the owner of the truck.
Diaz told ABC News he rented the truck to an individual through the app and is currently talking to the FBI. He declined further comment.
Diaz’s wife, Dora Diaz, told ABC News that she and her husband are devastated by the incident.
“My husband rents cars through the Turo app. I can’t tell you anything else. I’m here with my kids, and this is devastating,” Dora Diaz said.
