Gunman killed near Israeli consulate in Munich believed to be planning terrorist attack: Police
Police officers secure the area around the Koenigsplatz square after a shooting near the building of the Documentation Centre for the History of National Socialism (NS-Dokumentationszentrum) in Munich, southern Germany, on September 5, 2024. (PAULINE CURTET/AFP via Getty Images)
(LONDON) — A “suspicious person” was shot dead by Munich police near the Israeli consulate in what authorities said they believe was a planned terrorist attack.
The incident occurred in the Karolinenplatz area of the southern German city on Thursday morning.
Munich’s police force said in a statement on social media that officers deployed to the scene encountered an armed 18-year-old suspect and engaged him in a shootout.
“The suspect was fatally injured,” police said. “There are still no indications of further suspects or other injured persons.”
The 18-year-old suspect was an Austrian citizen living in Austria who did not have a permanent residence in Germany, Munich police said. He was carrying an “older carbine with attached bayonet” when shot, officials said. The suspect parked a car near the crime scene, police said.
“At present, it is assumed that the attack was a terrorist attack, also with reference to the Consulate General of the State of Israel, with one focus of the ongoing investigation being the suspect’s motivation for the crime,” the Munich police said in a statement translated by The Associated Press.
Police added they are still investigating the suspect’s alleged motive.
The area was cordoned off with a helicopter in the air above the scene, the force said. Police later issued an “all clear” statement assuring people in the area that “there is no longer any danger to the population.”
The shooting occurred next to the city’s Nazi Documentation Center, police said. Authorities urged residents to “avoid this area as much as possible” as the investigation continued, and warned of road closures and disruption to nearby public transit routes.
The Nazi Documentation Center is one of the city’s most popular museums, located midway between the famous Karolinenplatz and Königsplatz squares just northwest of the medieval old town. It is less than 500 feet from the Israeli consulate.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry confirmed there had been a “shooting incident” close to the consulate, noting the facility was closed on Thursday coinciding with the anniversary of the deadly terror attack at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich.
“No one from the consulate staff was injured in the incident,” the ministry’s spokesperson said. “The shooter was neutralized by the German security forces and the incident is under their care.”
ABC News’ Joe Simonetti, Victoria Beaule and Dana Savir contributed to this report.
(NEW YORK) — The climate crisis is not a distant threat; it’s happening right now and affecting what matters most to us. Hurricanes intensified by a warming planet and drought-fueled wildfires are destroying our communities. Rising seas and flooding are swallowing our homes. And record-breaking heatwaves are reshaping our way of life.
The good news is we know how to turn the tide and avoid the worst possible outcomes. However, understanding what needs to be done can be confusing due to a constant stream of climate updates, scientific findings, and critical decisions that are shaping our future.
That’s why the ABC News Climate and Weather Unit is cutting through the noise by curating what you need to know to keep the people and places you care about safe. We are dedicated to providing clarity amid the chaos, giving you the facts and insights necessary to navigate the climate realities of today — and tomorrow.
October record heat made more likely because of climate change
It may be fall, but it feels a lot like summer in much of the country. That has some people wondering: Is climate change responsible for these record-high temperatures? With climate attribution science, we can now answer that question and determine when human-amplified climate change is responsible for extreme weather events and the significance of that impact.
Using advanced computer models, climate attribution science takes a real-world weather event, such as a record high-temperature day or a hurricane, and compares it to the world where human-caused, post-industrial greenhouse gas emissions don’t exist. By comparing what is actually happening with what would have happened without human intervention, science can estimate how likely or severe a weather event has become due to climate change.
Climate Central, a nonprofit climate research and communications organization, uses climate attribution science to provide real-time data that shows “how much climate change influences the temperature on a particular day.” The information is displayed on a global interactive map called the Climate Shift Index.
For example, the Index showed that human-amplified climate change made Sunday’s record high in Tucson, Arizona of 98 degrees at least three times more likely. The same was true for Waco, Texas, which broke a record with 92-degree heat, and Mobile, Alabama, which hit a record 90 degrees.
Extreme heat is the deadliest weather-related hazard in the U.S., with children and adults over 65 being among the most vulnerable to heat-related illnesses and death. And the average number of heat waves that major U.S. cities experience each year has doubled since the 1980s, according to the federal government’s Fifth National Climate Assessment.
-ABC News Climate Unit’s Matthew Glasser
How crops will fare with 45% of the US experiencing drought
The U.S. is experiencing the driest fall on record, which could potentially impact the quality of upcoming autumn harvests, experts told ABC News.
About 77% of the mainland U.S. is abnormally dry, and almost half of the country is experiencing drought, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. The spatial pattern of the dry conditions varies widely across the continent, Josue Medellin-Azuara, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at the University of California Merced, told ABC News.
Improvement in the drought is not expected for most of the South, the Plains and parts of the Upper Midwest due to expected La Nina conditions this winter that would further reinforce the dryness, according to forecasts by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
However, a lot of the crops in these regions that harvest in the fall had good growing conditions throughout the summer and are in the process of being harvested, meaning overall output should not be heavily impacted, Joseph Glauber, senior research fellow at the International Food Policy Research Institute and former chief economist for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, told ABC News.
EPA cancels toxic pesticide used in growing produce
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said it’s canceling any product containing the pesticide dimethyl tetrachloroterephthalate (DCPA), also known as Dacthal.
According to the EPA, their decision is based on comprehensive scientific studies that indicate potential thyroid toxicity linked to DCPA. The agency says research suggests that exposure to this pesticide during pregnancy can lead to changes in thyroid hormone levels in unborn children. Studies cited by the EPA indicate that these hormonal changes could be associated with various health concerns, including low birth weight, impaired brain development and reduced IQ. That research suggests that these developmental challenges may also have long-term effects on motor skills.
DCPA is used in the industrial farming of broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage and onions. While pregnant women working in agriculture are most at risk, pesticides can travel into neighboring communities via the air and runoff, putting non-agricultural workers at risk as well.
In a press release, EPA’s assistant administrator for the office of chemical safety and pollution prevention, Michal Freedhoff, wrote, “With the final cancellation of DCPA, we’re taking a definitive step to protect pregnant women and their unborn babies. The science showing the potential for irreversible harm to unborn babies’ developing brains, in addition to other lifelong consequences from exposure, demands decisive action to remove this dangerous chemical from the marketplace,” Freedhoff added.
(BEIRUT) — Israel targeted Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in a strike Friday on Beirut, according to a senior U.S. official.
At least two people were killed and 76 others were injured in the strike, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry.
Nasrallah and some of his lieutenants were in Beirut making a quick visit when the strike took place, according to the official. Israel let the U.S. know less than an hour before this strike that it was going to target Nasrallah, the official said.
Israel used bunker busters — a munition designed to penetrate targets underground — in the strike, according to an Israel official familiar with the strike.
It’s unclear whether the strike was successful.
After speaking at the United Nations on Friday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will fly back to Israel on Friday night, sooner than originally planned, according to his office.
“Don’t let Nasrallah drag Lebanon into the abyss,” Netanyahu said during his address to the U.N. an hour before the strike. “We’re not at war with you. We’re at war with Hezbollah, which has hijacked your country and threatens to destroy ours. As long as Hezbollah chooses the path of war, Israel has no choice. … Israel must defeat Hezbollah.”
President Joe Biden said he had “no knowledge” of or “participation in” the attack on Beirut.
“We’re gathering more information and I’ll have more to say when I have more information,” Biden told reporters on the tarmac Friday.
The U.S. had no involvement or advanced warning of the Israeli strike, deputy Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh told reporters Friday. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke with his Israeli counterpart as the operation was “already underway,” Singh said.
“This operation happened within the last few hours. We are still assessing the event, and don’t have any additional information or any further specifics to provide at this time,” Singh said.
After the attack, the Iranian Foreign Ministry released a statement calling the U.S. “an accomplice” in Israel’s attack and both should be held accountable.
The Iranian Foreign Ministry said the attack is a “flagrant violation of the rules and regulations of international law as well as the sovereignty and territorial integrity and national security of Lebanon [and] is considered a war crime.”
Residents in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights and Galilee were told to reduce outside movements, avoid gatherings and stay near protected areas.
The U.K. government said citizens “in Lebanon should leave now. You should take the next available flight,” in a post on X.
A huge plume of smoke could be seen over a residential area of Beirut on Friday as Israel claimed it struck Hezbollah’s central headquarters in the city.
“Moments ago, the Israel Defense Forces carried out a precise strike on the central headquarter of the Hezbollah terror organization that served as an epicenter of Hezbollah’s terror,” the IDF said in a statement, before accusing Hezbollah of intentionally building the headquarters amid civilian infrastructure.
“Hezbollah’s central headquarter was intentionally built under residential buildings in the heart of the Dahia in Beirut as part of Hezbollah strategy of using Lebanese people as human shields,” the IDF said.
Exchanges continued between Israel and Lebanon on Thursday. More than 700 people have been killed in Israeli strikes on Lebanon since Monday, according to Lebanese officials.
More than 118,000 people have been displaced in Lebanon since Monday, according to the United Nations.
“The relentless airstrikes have pushed tens of thousands from the South, southern suburbs of Beirut and the Bekaa to safer locations in Beirut, Mount Lebanon, and the North,” the United Nations said in a statement Friday. “Movements peaked on both Monday and Tuesday, creating congestion and chaos. They have continued more gradually as many people are still looking for homes and shelter.”
A missile was fired into a Beirut neighborhood on Thursday, according to video released by the Israeli military. The strike, which hit a southern Beirut suburb, killed the head of one of Hezbollah’s air force units, Mohammad Surur, according to the military.
Separately, at least 19 people were injured after a missile from Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels was intercepted over central Israel late Thursday, according to Israeli authorities.
Speaking at the United Nations on Friday, Netanyahu sought to rally international support as Israeli officials say they are planning for a potential ground invasion into Lebanon.
French President Emmanuel Macron called the number of civilian victims of Israeli strikes in recent days “absolutely shocking” and called on both Israel and Hezbollah to stop attacks across the border.
France is “opposed to Lebanon becoming Gaza again,” Macron said.
Reacting to Netanyahu’s comments Thursday, in which the Israeli prime minister signaled he was unwilling to agree to a cease-fire, Macron said he thought those remarks were not definitive.
“We will continue our contact and close coordination with our American partners, all our mobilized partners, including Canada, and by communicating with the Israelis ourselves, we will do everything to ensure that this proposal is accepted,” Macron said.
Speaking Thursday at the United Nations General Assembly in New York, Lebanese Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib renewed calls for a cease-fire in Lebanon amid concerns Israel is preparing for a ground invasion.
Mohammed Talatene/picture alliance via Getty Images
(LONDON) — Yahya Sinwar, one of the key architects of the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel, emerged over the summer as the de facto leader of the terrorist organization.
Israeli officials confirmed Thursday that Sinwar’s reign, however, was short-lived. The 61-year-old leader of Hamas was one of three militants killed in an Israeli military strike in the Gaza Strip, Israel Foreign Minister Israel Katz said in a personal message to dozens of foreign ministers around the world.
“The master murderer Yahya Sinwar, who is responsible for the massacre and atrocities of October 7, was killed today by IDF soldiers,” Katz said.
Sinwar had been among the top targets sought by Israel, which placed a $400,000 bounty on his head following the Oct. 7 surprise attack on Israel that left more than 1,200 people dead and 240 taken hostage.
Israeli officials announced on Aug. 1 that they killed Mohammed Deif, commander of Hamas’ military wing, in a “precise, targeted strike” on July 13 in the southern Gaza town of Khan Younis. Deif and Sinwar were allegedly the masterminds of the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel.
Sinwar was elevated to political leader of Hamas in Gaza in August after Iranian officials confirmed that the previous Hamas political leader, Ismail Haniyeh, was killed in a bombing at a guest house in Tehran, where he was staying while attending the inauguration of Iran’s president-elect, Masoud Pezeshkian.
Haniyeh’s death left Sinwar calling the shots for Hamas at a time when negotiations involving the White House have been underway for a cease-fire in Gaza and the release of the remaining Israeli hostages.
Sinwar had not been publicly heard from since late 2023, when Hamas and affiliated groups launched the surprise attack in Israel. It was believed that he was hiding in the vast network of Hamas tunnels under the Gaza Strip.
Sinwar helped establish Hamas in the late 1980s. In 1989, an Israeli court sentenced him to four life sentences for his role in killing suspected Palestinian informers and plotting to murder two Israeli soldiers. He spent 22 years in prison and was one of more than 1,000 Palestinian detainees who were released in 2011 in exchange for Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, who had been held hostage by Hamas for five years.
At the time of his imprisonment, Sinwar was head of Hamas’ infamous internal security arm, Al-Majd. Israeli and Palestinian sources told ABC News that his job was to investigate members of Hamas who were potentially working with the Israelis.
In an interview with ABC News in December, Michael Koubi, a former officer in Shin Bet, Israel’s internal security organization, said he interrogated Sinwar, while he was a prisoner, for more than 150 hours.
Koubi described Sinwar as “tough” and devoid of emotions but “not a psychopath.”
Koubi told ABC News that Sinwar — dubbed “the butcher of Khan Younis,” for the town in Gaza that he was from — boasted during his interrogations about killing suspected Palestinian informants with “a razor blade” and “a machete.”
In 2017, six years after his release from an Israeli prison, Sinwar was elected the overall chief of Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
Sinwar’s ideology and long-term hatred toward Israel were what motivated him to attack the country on Oct. 7, according to Koubi.
Following the attack on Israel, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Dec. 6 that it was “only a matter of time” before Sinwar was located. Israeli military leaders had described him as “a dead man walking.”
Koubi told ABC News in December that he expected Sinwar would eventually go down fighting, saying Sinwar wanted to “die a hero of the slum, as a hero of Hamas, as a hero of the Gaza people.”
