Salem News Channel

PEREIRA/CALI, Colombia, Aug 11 (Reuters) - Rescue crews dug through mountains of shattered concrete in western Colombia on Tuesday, racing to find survivors after a powerful earthquake killed more than 250 people, according to estimates from local authorities. Families waited beside the rubble for signs of life. The 7.4-magnitude earthquake, the most powerful to strike the South American country in decades, tore through Colombia's coffee-growing heartland early on Monday, leaving apartment blocks, homes, schools and health centers cracked, leaning or flattened. Nearly 100 aftershocks were registered as of Tuesday morning. In the worst-hit cities, rescuers worked through the night with cranes, excavators and, at times, their bare hands, cutting through twisted steel and passing buckets of debris in desperate searches for those still trapped. Newly inaugurated President Abelardo De La Espriella said he had decreed a three-month economic relief measure for people in the coffee-growing region of Risaralda, speaking from its capital Pereira. "It broke my heart going through the city center and seeing all these businesses destroyed," he said, adding he hoped the measures would be "a breath of air in the middle of this tragedy." Separate reports from affected cities put the death toll at 254 on Tuesday morning, with 101 people killed in Pereira and 95 in Cali, the country's third-biggest city. The United Nations humanitarian office OCHA estimated 5,000 homes were damaged, while dozens of buildings collapsed and hundreds of residences were destroyed, OCHA said. In Cali, residents gathered in the streets after parts of homes and apartment blocks gave way. Families cooked outside, salvaged what they could and braced for another day away from home. Several of the top floors of one of the city's hospitals — some dedicated to pediatric care — collapsed, leaving some patients trapped and 600 others tended to on a street strewn with rubble, Irne Torres Castro, the hospital's director, told Caracol television. On Tuesday morning, lines of dump trucks brimming with rubble were heading to Cali's dump, amid heavy traffic after the mayor lifted normal traffic restrictions following the disaster. Many traffic lights remained out as rescuers heaved rubble under 30-degree Celsius (86-degree Fahrenheit) heat. Cali's public health secretary German Escobar said the city's morgue was full and authorities were bringing more bodies off the streets. Colombian social media influencer Jose Gallego had just arrived at Pereira airport and was recording live video when the earthquake struck, capturing footage of violent shaking as he crouched under a table and parts of the ceiling fell. "There were people injured, bleeding, screaming and trying to reach their families but there wasn't any signal," he said. "I crossed the city on foot; it took two hours and the scenes were devastating." Whole sections of residential neighborhoods were reduced to broken slabs of concrete and exposed rooms. Residents and volunteers formed human chains, while others stood silently nearby, listening for tapping sounds or cries from below. "They've already pulled several people out, some alive and some dead. I still can't believe it — yesterday at this same time I said hello to them, and today they're gone," said Fernanda Gaviria, 33, speaking from a grocery shop opposite a collapsed building. Gaviria said she spent the night sleeping in a park after her own apartment building was badly damaged. The earthquake also knocked out vital infrastructure. Civil aviation authorities closed six airports — Quibdo, Pereira, Manizales, Armenia, Cartago and Buenaventura — due to damage, while dozens of roads were reported to be affected. Electricity, water, healthcare and phone service remained disrupted in several areas, especially in Choco near the epicenter, complicating rescue efforts and aid delivery. The U.S. said it had allocated $15.5 million for emergency shelter, food, protection and damage assessments, while the Inter-American Development Bank said it had made $50 million immediately available for reconstruction support if requested. The U.N.'s Colombia resident coordinator Maria Jose Torres said the U.N. was working to increase its ground presence in the coffee-growing region and that its institutions had not been affected by the country's recent change of government. With communications still patchy in some of the worst-hit areas, officials said the full extent of the damage and the final death toll could take days to establish.

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COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Just two months after nominating Lindsey Graham to return to the U.S. Senate, South Carolina Republicans are casting ballots Tuesday in a special primary to pick a replacement following the sudden death of the president's close ally. Graham's sister, Darline Graham, a political unknown tapped to serve out the final months of her brother's term, is trying to overcome skepticism about her lack of experience in her campaign to replace him. She picked up President Donald Trump's swift endorsement though the rare open Senate seat has attracted a broad field, including some of the state's top Republicans. For decades, South Carolina voters have reliably returned Lindsey Graham to Washington despite periodic primary challengers who accused the dealmaker and foreign policy hawk of being insufficiently conservative. Tuesday's contest features one of Lindsey Graham’s foes from earlier this year, as well as two U.S. House members as well as Mark Sanford, the former governor and congressman who is seeking a political comeback in a field crowded with familiar faces.

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Hugh Hewitt discusses Democratic Senate candidate Chris Pappas and the state of the Democratic Party. Democratic candidate Karishma Manzur shares her views on Pappas, the party’s direction, and key issues, while the discussion also covers the upcoming Republican primary and challenges facing both parties.

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In the lead-up to the Wisconsin primary, Democratic candidate Francesca Hong is making headlines with her bold positions on taxing the ultra-rich, combating political corruption, and making life more affordable. Despite Republican criticism that she is too extreme, Hong is focused on universal childcare, public school funding, and uniting the working class to defeat Tom Tiffany in November. She argues that her policies represent the future of the Democratic Party by putting working-class Wisconsinites first and prioritizing their needs over partisan politics.

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CHICAGO (AP) — Severe weather cut power Tuesday in the Chicago area and northwestern Indiana as perilous storms pummeled the region, darkening the sky and carrying extreme wind gusts across state lines. Tornado warning sirens blared in Illinois and Indiana, and all flights were stopped by late morning at Chicago's two major airports. There were numerous reports of wind gusts of 80 mph (128 kph) or more at personal weather stations, with trees blown down. “These are dangerous storms!” the National Weather Service said by late morning. More than 575,000 customers lost electricity in Illinois and Indiana, according to poweroutage.us. Lake County, Indiana, was especially hit hard.

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The Democratic Party's ideological divide is moving into new territory. In Tuesday's election, the main contest is in swing state Wisconsin where democratic socialist Francesca Hong wants to become her party's nominee for governor. A Democratic battle for an open Senate seat in Minnesota has become a familiar contest between centrist Rep. Angie Craig and liberal Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan. In Connecticut, a onetime insurgent who challenged a famed centrist from the left is now being challenged from the left himself in the governor's primary. And South Carolina holds yet another primary, this one to select a successor to the late Sen. Lindsey Graham.

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CHICAGO (AP) — Severe weather cut power Tuesday in the Chicago area and northwestern Indiana as perilous storms pummeled the region, darkening the sky and carrying extreme wind gusts across state lines. Tornado warning sirens blared in Illinois and Indiana, and all flights were stopped by late morning at Chicago's two major airports. There were numerous reports of wind gusts of 80 mph (128 kph) or more at personal weather stations, with trees blown down. “These are dangerous storms!” the National Weather Service said by late morning. More than 575,000 customers lost electricity in Illinois and Indiana, according to poweroutage.us. Lake County, Indiana, was especially hit hard.

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HALIFAX, Nova Scotia (AP) — Canadian police on Tuesday charged a man with making a bomb threat against the U.S. Consulate in Halifax, the latest security incident involving an American diplomatic post in Canada after two shootings at the U.S. Consulate in Toronto this year. Several streets downtown were evacuated after Halifax Regional Police found a vehicle linked to the suspect, Ali Assakereh, parked near the consulate on Monday morning. The vehicle contained a propane tank and containers believed to hold flammable liquids, police said Police said Assakereh, 54, was scheduled to appear in provincial court on charges of uttering threats and public mischief. They said they learned of the threat on Sunday night. An explosives expert later determined the items in the vehicle posed no threat to public safety, and the evacuation was lifted Monday afternoon. A spokesperson for the U.S. Embassy in Ottawa said Monday that U.S. officials would not comment on a security matter while the police investigation was continuing. The Halifax case follows two shootings this year at the U.S. Consulate in Toronto, Canada’s largest city. In March, two people fired multiple shots at the downtown Toronto consulate, damaging the building but causing no injuries. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police described that attack as a national security incident. The consulate was targeted again July 27, when a shot was fired at the building. Toronto police later arrested a 19-year-old man and a 15-year-old boy and said investigators were examining links to a broader gun-for-hire network. No one was injured. Authorities have not said there is any connection between the Halifax threat and the Toronto shootings.

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WASHINGTON, Aug 11 (Reuters) - Russia on Tuesday freed a former American Marine who had been jailed in the country since 2022, U.S. President Donald Trump said. In a social media post, Trump said Russia agreed to release Robert Gilman, 32, for humanitarian reasons after discussions with Russian President Vladimir Putin, adding that the ailing American would arrive at Joint Base Andrews near Washington on Tuesday night. "I am proud to announce that American Citizen Robert Gilman, a former United States Marine, is coming HOME!" Trump said. "We appreciate this decision, and the fact that Russia asked for no one in return — No exchange took place." The White House and the State Department had urged Moscow to release Gilman so he could receive medical treatment in the United States. U.S. officials said Putin approved a pardon for him. Gilman was being held in a prison in Voronezh, about 340 miles (550 kilometers) south of Moscow. The exact circumstances of his health are unclear. But Eric Lebson, chief strategy officer of Global Reach, an advocacy group representing Gilman's family, told Reuters last week that Gilman was moved in late June from the prison hospital to the psychiatric ward of a civilian emergency hospital in a catatonic-like state assessed as a "dissociative stupor." A U.S. official who spoke to Gilman said he was walking and talking. "All things considered he seems to be in good shape," the official said. Trump's post included a photo of a gaunt-looking man on a plane surrounded by a group of smiling people carrying an American flag. The president said he had spoken to Gilman, who requested a cheeseburger upon landing. "I will take care of that!" Trump said. Gilman will be evaluated on the flight by four doctors, said the U.S. officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity. After that, Gilman is likely to be flown to a rehabilitation center in San Antonio, Texas, for medical treatment, the officials said. ARRESTED OVER POLICE OFFICER INCIDENT Gilman, who served in the U.S. Marines from August 2019 until August 2020, was traveling by train when he was arrested in January 2022 in Voronezh, Lebson said. He was detained for allegedly kicking a police officer while drunk, according to Russian state media. However, his father, Vladimir Gilman, who emigrated to Massachusetts from Russia, wrote in an October 2024 Boston Globe op-ed that the charges were false. His son, he said, had fallen ill when the incident occurred and accidentally kicked the officer. The officer was uninjured, dropped the charges, and did not present evidence at Gilman's trial, he wrote. Robert Gilman was sentenced to 4-1/2 years in jail. He was one of at least 10 Americans known to be imprisoned in Russia. The U.S. officials said a Russian senior official, Yuri Ushakov, informed Trump aides last week that Putin had agreed to sign a decree pardoning Gilman for humanitarian purposes, given Putin's friendship with the president. The release resulted from intense negotiations over the weekend by U.S. and Russian officials. The U.S. did not exchange any Russian prisoners in order to gain Gilman's release and no concessions were made, the officials said. "It's a goodwill gesture," one official said. Trump thanked U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff, senior director for counterterrorism Sebastian Gorka, his son-in-law Jared Kushner, and U.S. special envoy for hostage response Adam Boehler for making the release possible. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Gilman is among 100 U.S. citizens whose freedom Trump has helped secure during his second term in office. Rubio said the U.S. appreciated the "positive step," but called for the release of other Americans who he said were unjustly detained in Russia, including Stephen Hubbard. Hubbard, a retired schoolteacher, was sentenced in October 2024 to almost seven years in a penal colony after a court found him guilty of serving in a Ukrainian territorial defense unit against Russian forces, tasked with manning a checkpoint. Hubbard denied the charge.

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During President Trump's visit to Turkey for the NATO summit, credible intelligence indicated a serious assassination threat from Iranian sources. To ensure his safety, an elaborate security measure was enacted. Trump was secretly transferred from his primary aircraft to a smaller military jet using a catering truck at the airport. This high-level precaution reflects the gravity of the threat and underscores the ongoing risks faced by the president. Iran has a history of threatening retaliation against Trump and other former officials, making such measures a necessity. This incident highlights the constant vigilance required to protect the highest office in the United States, both domestically and internationally.

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Controversial statements involving race, political violence, policing and anti-Semitism have drawn condemnation, yet prominent progressives have continued to defend or associate with some of the figures involved.

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Newly released texts are raising serious questions about what Anthony Fauci and other top health officials knew about COVID-19 vaccination during pregnancy. In private, Fauci discussed a theoretical first-trimester miscarriage concern tied to reactions following a second dose. Yet just days later, he publicly reassured Americans that approximately 20,000 pregnant women had been vaccinated with “no red flags.”

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In an exclusive interview, Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, Director of the National Institutes of Health, discusses the recent executive order concerning childhood vaccinations. Dr. Bhattacharya explains that the order aims to investigate the causes of autism and to allow parents more autonomy over their children's vaccination schedules. He emphasizes the importance of giving parents options rather than mandates and highlights concerns about the transparency and impact of previous policies. Additionally, the conversation touches on the ethical considerations of mandating COVID-19 vaccines for pregnant women when there was insufficient evidence of safety, a point Dr. Bhattacharya strongly criticizes. The discussion provides a clear overview of the administration's new stance on vaccination policies and the broader implications for public health.

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In an exclusive interview, Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, Director of the National Institutes of Health, discusses the recent executive order concerning childhood vaccinations. Dr. Bhattacharya explains that the order aims to investigate the causes of autism and to allow parents more autonomy over their children's vaccination schedules. He emphasizes the importance of giving parents options rather than mandates and highlights concerns about the transparency and impact of previous policies. Additionally, the conversation touches on the ethical considerations of mandating COVID-19 vaccines for pregnant women when there was insufficient evidence of safety, a point Dr. Bhattacharya strongly criticizes. The discussion provides a clear overview of the administration's new stance on vaccination policies and the broader implications for public health.

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In this segment, Matt Foldi discusses how Democrats are strategically maneuvering to influence elections in key states, particularly in red states like Montana and Nebraska. He reveals how Democrats are supporting stealth candidates who run as independents but are effectively backed by the Democratic party, aiming to avoid the toxic brand associated with the Democrat label. The conversation touches on the tactics employed to pressure primary winners to drop out in favor of these preferred candidates. Foldi also highlights the implications of these strategies on the integrity of the electoral process and whether these maneuvers might backfire on the Democrats in the upcoming elections.

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The driver of a speedboat that capsized near the Statue of Liberty over the weekend, killing a 27-year-old woman and her 5-month-old daughter, is now facing a federal charge in connection with their deaths. Federal prosecutors say 46-year-old Manuel Hernandez was operating the 22-foot Yamaha speedboat Saturday night when it overturned near Liberty Island. Sara Sanchez and her infant daughter, Antonella Garcia, were killed, while 12 other people aboard were rescued and survived. Authorities allege the vessel was carrying 14 people despite being designed for a maximum of 10. Prosecutors also say Hernandez did not have the required U.S. Coast Guard license to operate a commercial charter and that the boat lacked life preservers designed for children. Investigators believe the vessel may have encountered the wake of a larger boat before capsizing. Hernandez appeared in Manhattan federal court Monday and was released on $50,000 bail. He is charged with misconduct or neglect of a ship officer resulting in death. The investigation is also examining the charter operation connected to the trip.

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Trump Media & Technology Group is pulling back from several of its newer business ventures and refocusing on Truth Social after reporting a $238 million loss in the second quarter. The loss was more than 10 times larger than a year earlier and was driven largely by declines in the value of the company’s cryptocurrency holdings. The company says it will largely abandon its expansion into areas including cryptocurrency and online betting, while putting more resources into its core social media business. One exception is its planned merger with nuclear fusion company TAE Technologies, which Trump Media says it still hopes to complete by the end of the year. A key part of the new strategy is Truth API, a paid data service offering high-speed access to posts from President Donald Trump and other prominent Truth Social users. Trump Media says more than 10 customers, primarily high-frequency trading firms, have already signed up. The service costs between $60,000 and $100,000 per month. The service has drawn criticism from government watchdogs and Democrats over concerns that traders could gain faster access to market-moving statements from the president. Trump Media rejects those concerns, arguing the posts are public information and that selling real-time data feeds is common across the technology and financial industries.

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President Donald Trump is shifting his strategy in the war with Iran back toward economic pressure as diplomatic and military efforts have failed to produce a lasting agreement with Tehran. The Trump administration is betting that months of U.S. military action, combined with renewed sanctions, have pushed Iran’s economy close enough to a breaking point to force its leaders to accept American demands. Those demands include addressing Iran’s nuclear program and fully reopening the Strait of Hormuz, the critical shipping route through which roughly one-fifth of the world’s traded oil passed before the war. Trump has argued that Iran is nearing financial collapse, while his administration maintains the United States can use its economic leverage to outlast Tehran. Iran, however, has endured decades of U.S. sanctions and continues to demand concessions from Washington as part of negotiations over the strait. The renewed sanctions push comes as negotiations remain stalled over control of the Strait of Hormuz and the future of Iran’s nuclear program. Iran has insisted the waterway will not simply return to its prewar status, while the Trump administration has rejected Iranian demands to charge vessels for passage.

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