Six US police officers shot in same night, 1 fatally
Daesh-claimed stabbing spree in Russia wounds 7
WASHINGTON/MOSCOW: Six US police officers were shot in one night in the states of Florida and Pennsylvania, one fatally, while in a Daesh-claimed incident in Russia, a man stabbed seven people on the street.
In the central Florida city of Kissimmee — close to the Walt Disney World Resort and other amusement parks — Officer Matthew Baxter was killed and Sergeant Sam Howard was left in “grave critical condition and the prognosis does not look good,” police chief Jeff O’Dell said at a news conference early Saturday.
The incident prompted US President Donald Trump to tweet his support for the slain officer’s department early Saturday.
The officers had been checking on suspicious people in an area known for drug activity around 9:30 p.m. Friday (0130 GMT Saturday). Five minutes later, authorities received a call that officers had been shot.
First responders found the officers “gravely wounded” in the road, O’Dell said.
“My thoughts and prayers are with the @ KissimmeePolice and their loved ones. We are with you!” Trump, a staunch supporter of US law enforcement, tweeted early Saturday.
In the northern Florida city of Jacksonville, sheriff’s officers responding to an attempted suicide call late Friday were confronted by a suspect firing a high-powered rifle, Director Mike Bruno told a news conference.
Two officers were shot in the exchange of gunfire, one hit in both hands and the other in the stomach, Bruno said. The suspect was killed.
And two Pennsylvania state troopers were shot Friday night, the agency said.
“Two state troopers shot and (the) suspect is deceased,” Pennsylvania State Police spokeswoman Melinda Bondarenka told ABC News. “We are not releasing any more details at this time.”
Both troopers are expected to survive, ABC said of the shooting in the community of Fairchance, about 97 km south of Pittsburgh.
Daesh claims responsibility Meanwhile, Daesh claimed responsibility after a man stabbed seven people on the street in a remote far northern Russian city before being shot dead by police, despite investigators saying it was probably not a terrorist attack.
“The executor of the stabbing operation in the city of Surgut in Russia is a soldier of the Islamic State,” Daesh propaganda outlet Amaq said in a statement, after the militants also claimed responsibility for twin attacks in Spain that left 14 dead.
The attack also comes a day after a stabbing spree in Finland, which left two people dead and eight others injured and is being investigated as a terrorist attack, although the assailant’s motive is unknown.
The city of Surgut lies some 2,100 km northeast of Moscow and is the largest in the oil-rich Khanty-Mansi region. It does not have a large Muslim population.
Russia’s Investigative Committee, which probes major crimes, said a man in Surgut had “carried out attacks on passers-by, causing stab wounds” on Saturday morning. It said armed police called to the scene “liquidated” the attacker.
Regional officials said seven people were taken to hospital, with the figure confirmed by investigators, who lowered an earlier toll of eight wounded.
A spokesman for regional police downplayed the possibility of a terrorist incident, telling Interfax news agency that the theory that the incident was “a terrorist (attack) is not the main one.”
There has not yet been any official response to the Daesh claim.