Prince, Princess of Wales Meet with Families of Dance Class Stabbing Attack

William and Catherine, the Prince and Princess of Wales speak to members of the emergency services during a visit to Southport Community Center in Britain to meet rescue workers and the families of those caught up in the Southport knife attack earlier this year. Picture date: Thursday October 10, 2024. Danny Lawson/Pool via REUTERS
William and Catherine, the Prince and Princess of Wales speak to members of the emergency services during a visit to Southport Community Center in Britain to meet rescue workers and the families of those caught up in the Southport knife attack earlier this year. Picture date: Thursday October 10, 2024. Danny Lawson/Pool via REUTERS
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Prince, Princess of Wales Meet with Families of Dance Class Stabbing Attack

William and Catherine, the Prince and Princess of Wales speak to members of the emergency services during a visit to Southport Community Center in Britain to meet rescue workers and the families of those caught up in the Southport knife attack earlier this year. Picture date: Thursday October 10, 2024. Danny Lawson/Pool via REUTERS
William and Catherine, the Prince and Princess of Wales speak to members of the emergency services during a visit to Southport Community Center in Britain to meet rescue workers and the families of those caught up in the Southport knife attack earlier this year. Picture date: Thursday October 10, 2024. Danny Lawson/Pool via REUTERS

Prince William and the Princess of Wales on Thursday carried out their first joint public engagement since the end of Kate’s chemotherapy by meeting the bereaved parents of victims of a stabbing rampage in the seaside town of Southport.
The royal couple spent 90 minutes meeting privately with the families of Bebe King, 6, Elsie Dot Stancombe, 7, and Alice da Silva Aguiar, 9, who were killed at the Taylor Swift-themed dance class on July 29. They also met with their teacher.
The couple later met with emergency workers at a community center, and told them how much their efforts had helped the families of the victims.
“I can’t underestimate how grateful they all are for the support you provided on the day,'' The Associated Press quoted Kate as saying. “On behalf of them, thank you.”
William and Kate sat beside each other on a bench and listened to their stories. Once the cameras left, Kate offered a hug to responders who were struggling to express their feelings.
“You’re all heroes,'' William said. "Please make sure you look after yourselves, please take your time, don’t rush back to work.”
The Princess of Wales revealed in March that she was undergoing treatment for cancer, in a stunning announcement that followed weeks of speculation about her health and whereabouts.
The princess disclosed her condition in a video message that followed relentless speculation on social media that began when she was hospitalized for unspecified abdominal surgery in January.
In a recent video, Kate said she had completed chemotherapy, and planned to slowly return to public duties, “undertaking a few more public appearances” in the coming months.
But she acknowledged that the path to recovery would be long and she would “take each day as it comes.”



Two US Navy Pilots Shot Down Over Red Sea in Apparent ‘Friendly Fire’ Incident, US Military Says

Aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman is moored near Split, Croatia, Feb. 14, 2022. (AP)
Aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman is moored near Split, Croatia, Feb. 14, 2022. (AP)
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Two US Navy Pilots Shot Down Over Red Sea in Apparent ‘Friendly Fire’ Incident, US Military Says

Aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman is moored near Split, Croatia, Feb. 14, 2022. (AP)
Aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman is moored near Split, Croatia, Feb. 14, 2022. (AP)

Two US Navy pilots were shot down Sunday over the Red Sea in an apparent “friendly fire” incident, the US military said, marking the most serious incident to threaten troops in over a year of America targeting Yemen's Houthi militias.

Both pilots were recovered alive after ejecting from their stricken aircraft, with one suffering minor injuries. But the shootdown underlines just how dangerous the Red Sea corridor has become over the ongoing attacks on shipping by the Iranian-backed Houthis despite US and European military coalitions patrolling the area.

The US military had conducted airstrikes targeting the Houthis at the time, though the US military’s Central Command did not elaborate on what their mission was and did not immediately respond to questions from The Associated Press.

The F/A-18 shot down had just flown off the deck of the USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier, Central Command said. On Dec. 15, Central Command acknowledged the Truman had entered the Mideast, but hadn't specified that the carrier and its battle group was in the Red Sea.

“The guided missile cruiser USS Gettysburg, which is part of the USS Harry S. Truman Carrier Strike Group, mistakenly fired on and hit the F/A-18,” Central Command said in a statement.

From the military's description, the aircraft shot down was a two-seat F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jet assigned to the “Red Rippers” of Strike Fighter Squadron 11 out of Naval Air Station Oceana, Virginia.

It wasn't immediately clear how the Gettysburg could mistake an F/A-18 for an enemy aircraft or missile, particularly as ships in a battle group remain linked by both radar and radio communication.

However, Central Command said that warships and aircraft earlier shot down multiple Houthi drones and an anti-ship cruise missile launched by the militias. Incoming hostile fire from the Houthis has given sailors just seconds to make decisions in the past.

Since the Truman's arrival, the US has stepped up its airstrikes targeting the Houthis and their missile fire into the Red Sea and the surrounding area. However, the presence of an American warship group may spark renewed attacks from the militias, like what the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower saw earlier this year. That deployment marked what the Navy described as its most intense combat since World War II.

On Saturday night and early Sunday, US warplanes conducted airstrikes that shook Sanaa, the capital of Yemen that the Houthis have held since 2014. Central Command described the strikes as targeting a “missile storage facility” and a “command-and-control facility,” without elaborating.

Houthi-controlled media reported strikes in both Sanaa and around the port city of Hodeidah, without offering any casualty or damage information. In Sanaa, strikes appeared particularly targeted at a mountainside known to be home to military installations. The Houthis later acknowledged the aircraft being shot down in the Red Sea.

The Houthis have targeted about 100 merchant vessels with missiles and drones since the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip started in October 2023 after Hamas’ surprise attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people and saw 250 others taken hostage.

Israel’s grinding offensive in Gaza has killed more than 45,000 Palestinians, local health officials say. The tally doesn’t distinguish between combatants and civilians.

The Houthis have seized one vessel and sunk two in a campaign that has also killed four sailors. Other missiles and drones have either been intercepted by separate US- and European-led coalitions in the Red Sea or failed to reach their targets, which have also included Western military vessels.

The militias maintain that they target ships linked to Israel, the US or the United Kingdom to force an end to Israel’s campaign against Hamas in Gaza. However, many of the ships attacked have little or no connection to the conflict, including some bound for Iran.

The Houthis also have increasingly targeted Israel itself with drones and missiles, resulting in retaliatory Israeli airstrikes.