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Iran: Response of Resistance Factions Will Only Stop with Immediate End to War on Gaza

Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani. (Iran Foreign Ministry)
Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani. (Iran Foreign Ministry)
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Iran: Response of Resistance Factions Will Only Stop with Immediate End to War on Gaza

Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani. (Iran Foreign Ministry)
Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani. (Iran Foreign Ministry)

The response of the resistance factions will end once the war in Gaza has stopped, announced Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani on Monday.

"We have repeatedly said that the resistance groups represent their nations and make decisions and act independently based on the interests of their nations," he added.

Israel cannot accept the "strategic defeat" by a resistance group in Gaza, so it is trying to justify its shocking loss by pinning blame on Iran, he added.

The spokesman indicated that the "continuation and escalation of the clashes are due to the United States’ absolute support of the Zionist regime's criminal acts."

Kanaani stated that the resistance groups had repeatedly warned that they would not stand idly by if the military attacks did not end.

The widespread global wave of opposition to the war on Gaza shows that people around the world also reject the aggression and want to bring an end to the atrocities, said the spokesman.

"The US and the Zionist regime must understand that they can escape the situation only by stopping the war completely and immediately, allowing the dispatch of humanitarian aid [to the coastal enclave], and ending the forced displacement of the people of Gaza," he stressed

Meanwhile, President Ebrahim Raisi sent separate messages to the leaders and presidents of 50 countries, including Russia, China, Türkiye, South Africa, and Jordan, calling for unity in the course of lifting the siege on Gaza and ending the Zionist atrocities in Palestine.

In his letter, Raisi said they should use diplomatic and economic channels to pressure Israel to stop its crimes in Gaza.

He noted the brutal crimes and massacres carried out by Israel in the Gaza Strip over a period of 45 days, which have resulted in the killing of over 13,000 persons, according to the Iranian News Agency (IRNA).

Raisi criticized the double standards adopted by some Western governments and their deliberate neglect of the principles of humanity, ethics, and rights.

He stressed that "today is the day of the divine and human test of all governments," calling on the nations to use all the available tools for pressure, including stopping commercial and political cooperation and communications with Israel.

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World

‘No Sense of Fatigue’ When It Comes to Support for Ukraine, Blinken Says 

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken attends a press conference following the NATO Foreign Ministers meeting on Ukraine at its Headquarters in Brussels, Belgium November 29, 2023. (Reuters)
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken attends a press conference following the NATO Foreign Ministers meeting on Ukraine at its Headquarters in Brussels, Belgium November 29, 2023. (Reuters)
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‘No Sense of Fatigue’ When It Comes to Support for Ukraine, Blinken Says 

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken attends a press conference following the NATO Foreign Ministers meeting on Ukraine at its Headquarters in Brussels, Belgium November 29, 2023. (Reuters)
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken attends a press conference following the NATO Foreign Ministers meeting on Ukraine at its Headquarters in Brussels, Belgium November 29, 2023. (Reuters)

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Wednesday that there was "no sense of fatigue" among NATO allies when it came to helping Ukraine. 

"We must and we will continue to support Ukraine," he said after a NATO-Ukraine meeting in Brussels, adding that NATO allies were unanimous on this position and that he was also hearing continued support for Ukraine in both chambers of the US Congress. 

Kyiv has been concerned that the Israel-Hamas war could divert international attention away from its efforts to defeat Russia, which invaded Ukraine in February 2022. 

Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba urged the West earlier on Wednesday to ramp up arms production. 

The European Union has delivered about 300,000 of its promised 1 million artillery shells to Ukraine so far, he said. 

"We need to create a Euro-Atlantic common area of defense industries," Kuleba said before meeting the NATO foreign ministers, adding this would ensure both Ukraine's security and that of NATO countries themselves. 

Kyiv has recently engaged in a concerted drive to entice leading global arms manufacturers to set up operations in Ukraine, part of a bid to diversify its reliance on weapons and ammunition given by its allies. 

"It is important that our solidarity with Ukraine is not only demonstrated in words but also in deeds," NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said, urging allies to do more. "These are concrete actions, we need more of them and we need sustained and stepped up support." 

Russia has amassed a large missile stockpile ahead of winter, Stoltenberg warned. 

Russia "is now weaker militarily, politically and economically," he said. "At the same time we must not underestimate Russia," he added, stressing that Russia had been making new attempts to strike Ukraine's power grid and energy infrastructure, "trying to leave Ukraine in the dark and cold." 

World

Russia Says It Has Taken Control of Village on Outskirts of Ukraine’s Bakhmut 

Ukrainian servicemen check their Sweden made CV90 armored infantry combat vehicle on a position pointing in the direction of Bakhmut in the Donetsk region on November 27, 2023, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)
Ukrainian servicemen check their Sweden made CV90 armored infantry combat vehicle on a position pointing in the direction of Bakhmut in the Donetsk region on November 27, 2023, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)
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Russia Says It Has Taken Control of Village on Outskirts of Ukraine’s Bakhmut 

Ukrainian servicemen check their Sweden made CV90 armored infantry combat vehicle on a position pointing in the direction of Bakhmut in the Donetsk region on November 27, 2023, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)
Ukrainian servicemen check their Sweden made CV90 armored infantry combat vehicle on a position pointing in the direction of Bakhmut in the Donetsk region on November 27, 2023, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)

Russia's defense ministry said on Wednesday its forces had taken control of a village in eastern Ukraine's war-torn Donetsk region.

Khromove, which Russia calls Artyomovskoe, is on the western outskirts of Bakhmut, a city which Russia captured last summer after a months-long battle. The village had a pre-war population of 1,000 people.

Reuters could not independently verify the defense ministry's assertion and there was no immediate comment from Ukraine.

World

Türkiye's Erdogan Welcomes Gaza Pause as Temporary ‘Stop of Bloodshed’ 

Palestinians cook among the houses destroyed in Israeli strikes during the conflict, amid the temporary truce between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas, at Khan Younis refugee camp, in the southern Gaza Strip, November 29, 2023. (Reuters)
Palestinians cook among the houses destroyed in Israeli strikes during the conflict, amid the temporary truce between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas, at Khan Younis refugee camp, in the southern Gaza Strip, November 29, 2023. (Reuters)
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Türkiye's Erdogan Welcomes Gaza Pause as Temporary ‘Stop of Bloodshed’ 

Palestinians cook among the houses destroyed in Israeli strikes during the conflict, amid the temporary truce between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas, at Khan Younis refugee camp, in the southern Gaza Strip, November 29, 2023. (Reuters)
Palestinians cook among the houses destroyed in Israeli strikes during the conflict, amid the temporary truce between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas, at Khan Younis refugee camp, in the southern Gaza Strip, November 29, 2023. (Reuters)

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday welcomed a pause in the Gaza war and the exchange of hostages and prisoners between Israel and militant group Hamas as a temporary "stop of bloodshed" in the enclave. 

Türkiye, which supports a two-state solution to the decades-old conflict, has strongly criticized Israel for its ground and air assault on Gaza, launched in retaliation for Hamas' rampage last month in which some 1,200 people were killed and 240 others taken hostage. 

More than 15,000 people, mostly women and children, have so far been killed in the Israeli campaign, health officials in the enclave say. 

"We view the hostage exchanges, the humanitarian pause as a positive development in terms of a stop of bloodshed," Erdogan said. 

Speaking to lawmakers in parliament, Erdogan slammed Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu's retaliatory assault, adding the Israeli premier would be remembered as the "butcher of Gaza". 

"The statements coming from the Netanyahu government are lessening our hopes that the humanitarian pause can be turned into a lasting ceasefire," Erdogan added, without elaborating, while repeating his view that a genocide was taking place in Gaza. 

He said he would discuss the situation in Gaza during a visit to Dubai later this week, adding Ankara would ramp up diplomatic efforts for a full ceasefire and hostage exchanges in coming days. 

Unlike most of its Western allies and some Gulf states, NATO member Türkiye does not view Hamas as a terrorist group. It hosts some members of the militant group, but has also not taken steps to curb trade or energy ties with Israel. No big Turkish company has moved to divert businesses either. 

Erdogan said Türkiye had "largely completed" evacuating its nationals from Gaza. Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said Ankara was expecting to receive 50 Gazan patients on Wednesday as part of a medical evacuation scheme which has brought more than 150 people, mostly cancer patients and their companions, for treatment. 

Koca said the 50 evacuees, most of whom are children and young people, would arrive in Ankara on Wednesday afternoon from Egypt. He added the youngest evacuee is a 7-month-old baby. 

World

Türkiye Freezes Assets of 82 Organizations, People for Alleged PKK Ties

A woman holds a flag of the PKK (Kurdistan Workers' Party) during a demonstration against Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan in central Brussels, Belgium, November 17, 2016. REUTERS/Yves Herman/ File Photo
A woman holds a flag of the PKK (Kurdistan Workers' Party) during a demonstration against Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan in central Brussels, Belgium, November 17, 2016. REUTERS/Yves Herman/ File Photo
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Türkiye Freezes Assets of 82 Organizations, People for Alleged PKK Ties

A woman holds a flag of the PKK (Kurdistan Workers' Party) during a demonstration against Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan in central Brussels, Belgium, November 17, 2016. REUTERS/Yves Herman/ File Photo
A woman holds a flag of the PKK (Kurdistan Workers' Party) during a demonstration against Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan in central Brussels, Belgium, November 17, 2016. REUTERS/Yves Herman/ File Photo

Türkiye froze the local assets of 20 organizations and 62 people based in Australia, Japan and various European countries, citing alleged ties with Kurdish group PKK, a decision published in the Official Gazette showed on Wednesday.
Türkiye’s Ministry of Treasury and Finance said the decision was "based on the existence of reasonable grounds" that they committed acts falling within the scope of the law on preventing the financing of terrorism.
The list included three organizations from Germany and another three from Switzerland, both countries that are home to a large Kurdish diaspora. It also named two organizations each from Australia, Italy and Japan.
Other affected organizations were in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Sweden, Norway, the United Kingdom and Iraq-Syria.
A spokesperson for Insamlingsstiftelsen Kurdiska Roda Solen, the one organization on the list in Sweden, said the group is a humanitarian aid organization with no operations and no assets in Türkiye.
Sweden as well as Finland requested to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in May last year following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan raised objections to both requests, citing the Nordic nations' protection of those whom Türkiye deems terrorists, as well as their defense trade embargoes. Türkiye endorsed Finland's bid in April.
From Sweden, it has demanded further steps to control local members of the Kurdistan Workers' party (PKK), which the European Union and the United States consider a terrorist group.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan told NATO counterparts on Tuesday he was working hard on Sweden's NATO ratification, which the Turkish parliament is debating. He provided a likely timeline of before year-end for the Nordic country to formally join the alliance, a senior State Department official said.

World

Ukraine Has Received 300,000 of EU’s Promised Million Shells, Says FM 

A local resident stands outside an apartment building damaged by recent shelling in Donetsk, Russian-controlled Ukraine, on November 28, 2023, amid the Russia-Ukraine conflict. (AFP)
A local resident stands outside an apartment building damaged by recent shelling in Donetsk, Russian-controlled Ukraine, on November 28, 2023, amid the Russia-Ukraine conflict. (AFP)
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Ukraine Has Received 300,000 of EU’s Promised Million Shells, Says FM 

A local resident stands outside an apartment building damaged by recent shelling in Donetsk, Russian-controlled Ukraine, on November 28, 2023, amid the Russia-Ukraine conflict. (AFP)
A local resident stands outside an apartment building damaged by recent shelling in Donetsk, Russian-controlled Ukraine, on November 28, 2023, amid the Russia-Ukraine conflict. (AFP)

The European union has delivered about 300,000 of its promised million shells to Ukraine so far, Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on Wednesday while attending a NATO meeting in Brussels.

Speaking to reporters on the event's sidelines, Kuleba called for greater alignment of Ukraine's and NATO's defense industries to ensure Kyiv has the supplies it needs to defeat Russia, which invaded Ukraine in February 2022.

"We need to create a Euro-Atlantic common area of defense industries," Kuleba said, adding this would ensure both Ukraine's security and that of NATO countries themselves.

Kyiv has for the last several months engaged in a concerted drive to entice leading global arms manufacturers to set up operations in Ukraine, part of a bid to diversify its reliance on weapons and ammunition given by its allies.

Kuleba also said he had a "productive" meeting on Tuesday with Slovak Foreign Minister Juraj Blanar.

Slovakia's newly-elected President, Robert Fico, promised to halt military aid to Ukraine, although later clarified that he would not block arms purchases from private companies.

"He reiterated that the maintenance hub for Ukrainian heavy equipment will continue to function in Slovakia. Contracts between Ukrainian and Slovak companies producing weapons will continue," Kuleba said.

World

Iran Finalizes Arrangements for Delivery of Russian Fighter Jets

A handout photo made available by the Iranian army office shows Iranian Navy soldiers next to Iran's new warship “Deylaman” during an inauguration ceremony at the port of Bandar Anzali on the Caspian Sea, Iran, 27 November 2023. (EPA/Iranian army office/Handout)
A handout photo made available by the Iranian army office shows Iranian Navy soldiers next to Iran's new warship “Deylaman” during an inauguration ceremony at the port of Bandar Anzali on the Caspian Sea, Iran, 27 November 2023. (EPA/Iranian army office/Handout)
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Iran Finalizes Arrangements for Delivery of Russian Fighter Jets

A handout photo made available by the Iranian army office shows Iranian Navy soldiers next to Iran's new warship “Deylaman” during an inauguration ceremony at the port of Bandar Anzali on the Caspian Sea, Iran, 27 November 2023. (EPA/Iranian army office/Handout)
A handout photo made available by the Iranian army office shows Iranian Navy soldiers next to Iran's new warship “Deylaman” during an inauguration ceremony at the port of Bandar Anzali on the Caspian Sea, Iran, 27 November 2023. (EPA/Iranian army office/Handout)

Iran has finalized arrangements for the delivery of Russian made Sukhoi su-35 fighter jets and helicopters, Iran's deputy defense minister told Iran's Tasnim news agency on Tuesday, as Tehran and Moscow forge closer military relations.

Iran's air force has a limited quantity of strike aircrafts, including Russian jets as well as ageing US models acquired before the 1979 revolution.

“Plans have been finalized for Sukhoi Su-35 fighter jets, Mil Mi-28 attack helicopters, and Yak-130 jet trainers to join the combat units of Iran's Army,” Iran's deputy Defense Minister Mehdi Farahi said, according to Reuters.

The Tasnim report did not include any Russian confirmation of the deal.

In 2018, Iran said it had started production of the locally-designed Kowsar fighter for use in its air force. Military experts believe the jet is a carbon copy of the F-5, first produced in the United States in the 1960s.

World

Erdogan Tells UN’s Guterres Israel Must Be Tried in Int’l Courts over Gaza Crimes

Palestinians inspect the destruction caused by Israeli strikes in Wadi Gaza, in the central Gaza Strip on November 28, 2023, amid a truce in battles between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
Palestinians inspect the destruction caused by Israeli strikes in Wadi Gaza, in the central Gaza Strip on November 28, 2023, amid a truce in battles between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
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Erdogan Tells UN’s Guterres Israel Must Be Tried in Int’l Courts over Gaza Crimes

Palestinians inspect the destruction caused by Israeli strikes in Wadi Gaza, in the central Gaza Strip on November 28, 2023, amid a truce in battles between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
Palestinians inspect the destruction caused by Israeli strikes in Wadi Gaza, in the central Gaza Strip on November 28, 2023, amid a truce in battles between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday told United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres that Israel must be held accountable in international courts for the war crimes it committed in Gaza, the Turkish presidency said.

In a phone call ahead of a UN Security Council meeting on Gaza planned for Wednesday, Erdogan told Guterres that "Israel continues to shamelessly trample on international law, laws of war, and international humanitarian law by looking in the eyes of the international community", his office said.

Israel launched an air and ground offensive against Hamas in Gaza after the militant group carried out a deadly gun rampage in southern Israel last month, killing some 1,200 people and taking 240 others hostage. Israeli bombardment has killed more than 15,000 in Gaza, according to the enclave's health authorities.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, part of a so-called contact group of Muslim countries that has been holding talks with Western leaders over Gaza, will attend the meeting in New York on Wednesday, the foreign ministry said on Tuesday.

World

China Coastguard Says it Warns off Japanese Ships in Disputed Waters

File Photo: Photo nearby Ukedo fishing port in Namie town, northeastern Japan, Thursday, Aug. 24, 2023. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
File Photo: Photo nearby Ukedo fishing port in Namie town, northeastern Japan, Thursday, Aug. 24, 2023. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
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China Coastguard Says it Warns off Japanese Ships in Disputed Waters

File Photo: Photo nearby Ukedo fishing port in Namie town, northeastern Japan, Thursday, Aug. 24, 2023. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
File Photo: Photo nearby Ukedo fishing port in Namie town, northeastern Japan, Thursday, Aug. 24, 2023. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

The Chinese coastguard said its vessels warned off Japanese ships that "illegally intruded" into waters around disputed East China Sea islets on Tuesday.

The Chinese vessels "took necessary control measures", the coastguard added, without going into details. There was no immediate comment from Japan, Reuters reported.

China urged Japan to immediately cease all "illegal activities" in the area and ensure that similar incidents do not recur, the coastguard added.

The waters around Diaoyu Islands, which Japan calls the Senkaku Islands, are disputed and claimed by both China and Japan. The two sides have faced off in the waters, deploying patrol boats and urging the other to leave the area.

World

Iranian President Postpones Scheduled Trip to Türkiye

In this photo released on Monday, March 20, 2023, by the office of the Iranian Presidency, President Ebrahim Raisi gives a televised new year message to the nation at the presidency office in Tehran, Iran. (Iranian Presidency Office via AP)
In this photo released on Monday, March 20, 2023, by the office of the Iranian Presidency, President Ebrahim Raisi gives a televised new year message to the nation at the presidency office in Tehran, Iran. (Iranian Presidency Office via AP)
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Iranian President Postpones Scheduled Trip to Türkiye

In this photo released on Monday, March 20, 2023, by the office of the Iranian Presidency, President Ebrahim Raisi gives a televised new year message to the nation at the presidency office in Tehran, Iran. (Iranian Presidency Office via AP)
In this photo released on Monday, March 20, 2023, by the office of the Iranian Presidency, President Ebrahim Raisi gives a televised new year message to the nation at the presidency office in Tehran, Iran. (Iranian Presidency Office via AP)

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi's visit to Türkiye has been postponed, Iran's semi-official Tasnim news reported on Tuesday, without elaborating on the reason.

"The trip was scheduled to take place on Wednesday but it has been postponed to another date," Tasnim said.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said earlier this month that Raisi would visit Türkiye at the end of November to hold talks on Gaza.

 

 

 

 

 

World

Vermont Man Charged with Attempted Murder in Shooting of Students of Palestinian Descent 

A vigil is held on the grounds of Brown University, after three students of Palestinian descent were shot and wounded in Vermont, at the school's main green in Providence, Rhode Island, US, November 27, 2023. (Reuters)
A vigil is held on the grounds of Brown University, after three students of Palestinian descent were shot and wounded in Vermont, at the school's main green in Providence, Rhode Island, US, November 27, 2023. (Reuters)
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Vermont Man Charged with Attempted Murder in Shooting of Students of Palestinian Descent 

A vigil is held on the grounds of Brown University, after three students of Palestinian descent were shot and wounded in Vermont, at the school's main green in Providence, Rhode Island, US, November 27, 2023. (Reuters)
A vigil is held on the grounds of Brown University, after three students of Palestinian descent were shot and wounded in Vermont, at the school's main green in Providence, Rhode Island, US, November 27, 2023. (Reuters)

The man accused of shooting and wounding three college students of Palestinian descent in Burlington, Vermont, over the weekend pleaded not guilty to attempted murder charges on Monday and was ordered by a judge to remain held without bond.

Jason J. Eaton, 48, was arraigned in Chittenden County Criminal Court in Burlington, appearing via a video feed from the county jail where he has been detained since his arrest on Sunday, the day after the attack.

Police have said investigators were treating Saturday evening's gun violence in the heart of Vermont's largest city as a suspected hate-motivated crime.

Two of the three men who were shot recounted they were wearing black-and-white Palestinian keffiyeh scarves, and one said they were conversing in a mix of English and Arabic when the gunman confronted them, according to charging documents filed in court.

The three friends - identified in court documents as Hisham Awartani, Tahseen Aliahmad and Kinnan Abdalhamid, all aged 20 - remained under medical care on Monday with gunshot wounds to the spine, chest and buttocks, respectively, authorities said.

The victims told police they were shot while strolling near the University of Vermont, about a block from the house of Awartani's grandmother, following an afternoon at a bowling alley, according to a police affidavit filed in support of the charges.

All three men are undergraduate students at colleges in other cities but were staying with Awartani and his relatives in Burlington for the Thanksgiving holiday.

According to police, Easton approached the three men right outside his apartment, drew his pistol and wordlessly opened fire from a few steps away, then vanished from the scene. Investigators said he fired four shots in all.

‘I've been waiting for you’

The shooting sparked an intense manhunt by local, state and federal law enforcement, including the FBI and the US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).

Eaton was taken into custody the following day after an ATF agent knocked on his door while canvassing the neighborhood and was greeted by the suspect, who held his hands out with palms upturned and said to the officer, "I've been waiting for you," according to the police affidavit.

A search of the apartment later turned up a handgun, ammunition matching the rounds found at the crime scene, a .22-caliber rifle and two shotguns, police said.

He was charged with three counts of attempted second-degree murder, a felony punishable by a prison sentence of 20 years to life if convicted.

"Although we do not yet have evidence to support a hate crime enhancement, I do want to be clear that there is no question that this was a hateful act," said Sarah Fair George, state's attorney for Chittenden County, during a briefing on Monday.

The shooting came amid a surge in anti-Islamic, anti-Arab and antisemitic incidents and threats reported around the United States since a bloody conflict between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas erupted on Oct. 7.

"In this charged moment, no one can look at this incident and not suspect that it may have been a hate-motivated crime," Burlington Police Chief Jon Murad said in a statement on Sunday.

Dressed in an orange jumpsuit at his three-minute arraignment, Eaton responded "yes, sir" when asked by the judge if he understood the charges against him.

Police said the suspect had legally acquired the gun used in the shooting a few months ago.

The US Department of Justice is assisting local authorities in the investigation, US Attorney General Merrick Garland said on Monday.

"No person and no community in this country should have to live in fear of lethal violence," Garland said ahead of a separate meeting at the department's Southern District of New York office.

The White House said President Joe Biden was horrified by the shooting. "There is absolutely, absolutely no place for violence or hate in America," White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters at a news briefing.

According to the victims' families, Awartani is a student at Brown University in Rhode Island, Abdalhamid is enrolled at Haverford College in Pennsylvania, and Aliahmad attends Trinity College in Connecticut.

Police said all three are of Palestinian descent - two of them US citizens and the third a legal US resident.

They are graduates of the Ramallah Friends School, a private Quaker secondary school in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, the families said.