Three teenagers who were allegedly caught on camera attacking a man with a mental disability are now charged with a hate crime.
On Monday prosecutors filed more charges against the three Delaware teens who are accused of assaulting a 26-year-old Newark-area man who suffers from a neurodevelopmental disorder.
The teens were initially charged with offensive touching, assault of a vulnerable adult and conspiracy in the third degree. They are now charged with a hate crime, crime against a vulnerable adult, abuse of an impaired adult and other related offenses. One of the suspects, a 14-year-old boy, is also charged with two additional counts of hate crime and crime against a vulnerable adult and one additional count of harassment, offensive touching and abuse of an impaired adult.
“It is our responsibility to protect people who cannot protect themselves,” Attorney General Beau Biden said. “Targeting and assaulting a vulnerable victim is especially egregious and those who do so face significant consequences under the law. Every parent needs to talk with their children about this incident and how to prevent these types of crimes.”
The teens were arrested last month after videos of the assaults on the man were posted on Instagram.
One video shows a teenager chasing after the man in front of an apartment complex. The man runs away from the teen, begging for him to leave him alone. The teen then grabs the man and body slams him to the ground as he screams out in agony. The teen then punches and kicks him in the head as his friends laugh in the background.
Two other videos show the teens attacking the same man in a wooded area. One video shows a teen once again body slamming the man to the ground as his friends laugh. The other video shows the teens punching and pushing the man to the ground.
The manager of a Delaware McDonald's also told NBC10 he spotted the teens bullying the man and throwing his lunch out onto a busy road.
The videos inspired a massive social media response and the clips quickly went viral.
"It's been a frenzy," said Soraya Cristan, a teenager from White Settlement, Texas.
Cristan claims the videos inspired her to create an anti-bullying campaign online.
"The tag #TheBullyProject has had over 50,000 posts," Cristan said. "People have spread the awareness all over the Internet."
Angeliz Marrero, a 16-year-old student at Howard High School of Technology in Wilmington, told NBC10 she also received a huge response after reposting the videos on her Instagram page and using #TheBullyProject hashtag. The campaign was personal for Marrero who says her brother is mentally challenged and was beaten up a few years back.
"I want something to be done to those kids so they know that's not okay and justice to be served for this man," Marrero said.
Police say the victim was treated and released from the hospital for injuries he suffered during the attacks.
Police told NBC10 the families of the teens took them to their headquarters not to turn them in but to complain about the numerous phone calls, texts and negative social media messages they've received due to the videos.
The three teens will be arraigned in Family Court on the new charges and their bail will be reviewed. Police are withholding the names of the suspects since their cases remain in Delaware Family Court. They continue to investigate.
The local Red Cross will be holding its largest fire safety walkthrough in Philadelphia Tuesday. The event will be held in Mantua and Powelton, in an effort to reduce the amount of fires and fire fatalities in both of these West Philadelphia neighborhoods, which both receive a high volume of fires each year.
The fire prevention run-through will start around 10 a.m. Tuesday, with more than 1,200 fire safety kits distributed to residents in Drexel Park (33rd and Powelton). Inside the kits, residents can find potentially life-saving information on the importance of smoke alarms, fire prevention techniques, and information on how to react if there is a fire. Families will also receive help in planning a fire escape plan in their home, with an added pet-friendly bonus.
The local Red Cross distributes more than 10,000 fire safety kits each year. Mantua, which is known to receive an especially high rate of fires each year, has currently received 345 fire-related phone calls from nearby residents.
A dozen Red Cross personnnel and over 100 NRG Energy employees from across the country will be conducting the fire security walkthoughs.
The fire safety walkthrough is part of national preparedness month. To find out how many fires have happened in your Philadelphia neighborhood click here.
Copyright Associated Press / NBC 10 Philadelphia
The wedding of two dachshunds is captured in whimsical photos by Philadelphia wedding photographer and videographer Danni Rivera of Danfredo Photo + Films.
Rivera is known for her creative edge and regularly collaborates with other business owners on style shoots.
One day she thought -- why not do a style shoot of a dog wedding instead of a human wedding.
She reached out to her creative friends and the dog wedding of her two adopted dauchshunds, Hudson and Chelsea, was put into motion.
The wedding took place on September 9 at the intimate Maas Building in Kensington.
A French bulldog, English bulldog, golden doodle and six dachshunds were among the wedding guests.
Peanut based paw print cookies, carib treats and milk bones were served on coasters and appetizer plates. The newly wed canine couple shared a dog-friendly two-tier cake. The message "thanks for sitting and staying" was etched on the favors.
Portraits of the couple hung on the brick wall near a cozy table setting adorned with a pink, white and red flower centerpiece.
Rivera attributes being able to pull off the wedding thanks to a "solid team of crazy dog people" and business owners who donated services -- Confetti & Co., Kate Farley Design, Saylormade, West Elm Philly, Pennys & Stamps, hello bird and Amelie's Bark Shop.
Rivera and her husband started their photography business after their own experience with their wedding photographer two years ago.
"We approach every wedding like it was our wedding. It’s a very, very personal mission for me," said Rivera, who is booking human weddings for 2015.
Copyright Associated Press / NBC 10 Philadelphia
Striking nurses at a Delaware County hospital won't be returning to work Tuesday after a two-day walkout.
Around 500 nurses picketed outside the Crozer-Chester Medical Center Sunday and Monday. The Crozer-Chester Nurses Association first gave official notice of a walkout earlier in the month. The union represents nearly 600 nurses at Crozer-Chester Medical Center.
A spokesman for the Union told NBC10 they were told not to return to the hospital and "locked out until Friday." The Union claims they were informed that the hospital hired replacement nurses for five days rather than two. A spokesman for the Crozer-Key Health System called claims that the nurses were "locked out" false.
"We have informed PASNAP and nurses that the contingency staffing agreement - which we had no option but to enter into because of the Union's actions and threats - requires a guarantee of five days' work for nurses to temporarily cover positions vacated by strikers," the spokesman said in a released statement. "Once the Union or strikers have made an unconditional offer to return and the conditions are available, we will reinstate them. It is erroneous to call this a "lockout," and the Union knows this. The National Labor Relations Board has long held that an employer is not required to "pay double" for staff if an employer must hold over temporary replacements until the end of a work guarantee."
The nurses have been working without a new contract since June. Union leaders say they want improvements to the patient to nurse ratio as well as improvements to pay and retirement benefits.
"The primary sticking point is staffing," said Bobbi McClay, president of the union.
McClay tells NBC10 she's never seen so many patients assigned to one nurse in her 38-year career.
"In the maternity area there has been an incident where they've had nine patients and they're caring for an infant and the mother," McClay said. "In the ICU you're supposed to be two to one. In the recovery room there were two nurses that recovered 11 patients the other day."
The union also says members are concerned about safe staffing levels, citing anecdotes of patients waiting for hours to be transported to various units. Crozer officials say staffing levels rank above average and in many cases in the top third of hospitals.
Health system officials say they are concerned about the institution's financial health, citing a $32 loss during the last fiscal year due to declining reimbursements and patient volume.
In addition to the strike, the union also held a rally Monday night.
Copyright Associated Press / NBC 10 Philadelphia
A dozen students at a Philadelphia high school were suspended after a brawl erupted in the hallways. The fight occurred during the last period of a shortened day at Martin Luther King High School last Wednesday.
Video of the brawl shows several students in a hallway throwing fists, kicking and shoving as other students look on. A parent of a student at MLK High was shocked when he watched the video.
“This is not a learning environment,” he said. “What do you expect your kids to achieve in life if this is what you send them to everyday?”
Students from neighboring Germantown High School merged with MLK High a year ago due to district budget cuts. Officials say the students involved in the fight are recent transfers. William Wade, the principal of MLK High School, called the fight an exception to the structured atmosphere he’s created at the school.
“I welcome every young person in this neighborhood,” Wade said. “But I know some of them come with challenges. Unfortunately, they have not been taught how to deal with those challenges.”
Wade says the fight was quickly brought under control. MLK High School currently has nine safety officers and six afternoon aides. When the suspended students return to school, they’ll attend evening mentoring sessions and sign a behavior contract, according to Wade.
A firefighter suffered a minor injury and three others were hurt when a North Philly home went up in flames late Monday night.
The blaze broke out in a house on the 3800 block of North 9th Street in the city's Hunting Park section shortly after 11 p.m, according to officials.
Police rushed one person, who was suffering from smoke inhalation, to a local hospital and medical personnel treated two other people at the scene, according to authorities.
Two neighboring homes were also damaged in the fire.
The cause of the fire is unknown. An investigation is underway.
An armed robbery suspect opened fire on his victim on a North Philly street late Monday night.
Two robbers approached a man near 3rd and Indiana streets and demanded his wallet, according to police.
As the victim reached for his money, one of the suspects started firing, shooting the victim in the arm, authorities said.
The victim was rushed to Temple University Hospital, where he remains in stable condition, according to officials.
Both suspects remain at large. An investigation is underway.
Copyright Associated Press / NBC 10 Philadelphia
A tractor trailer crashed into a guardrail on the southbound lanes of I-95 Tuesday morning -- spilling fuel and dumping trash across the highway, and blocking the roadway.
The driver of the tractor trailer lost control of the vehicle as it passed Bridge Street heading south on I-95 in the Bridesburg section of Philadelphia around 3:30 a.m., according to officials.
Once the truck slammed into the guardrail, it overturned and took out lanes in both directions on the interstate.
Motorists heading in both directions experienced delays all morning as lanes remained blocked more than five hours after the crash.
Traffic heading southbound was crawling for several miles ahead of the Bridge Street exit on I-95, while motorists traveling north hit some slow spots as crews continued to clear the roadway.
The driver of the tractor trailer suffered minor injuries and was rushed to Hahnemann University Hospital, officials said.
Motorists heading in both directions should expect delays.
PennDOT workers are clearing trash from the northbound lanes -- which also caused some disruptions to the morning commute -- while crews shut down southband lanes for several hours to upright the overturned tractor trailer.
A gunman was found dead inside a home after a barricade situation in South Jersey, according to police.
Members of the fugitive task force arrived at a townhome on Buckingham Drive in West Deptford, N.J. around 1:20 p.m. Monday to serve an arrest warrant on a 24-year-old man. The man was a suspect in a burglary in which a gun was taken, according to investigators.
While the officers were inside the home, they heard a gunshot from the basement. The task force left the home and called in the SWAT team as well as other police departments.
A barricade situation was declared and residents in nearby homes were evacuated.
After several hours, the SWAT team entered the home and found the man's body inside. Investigators say he died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. They have not yet revealed his identity.
Neighbors were permitted to return to their homes just before 2 a.m. Tuesday, according to officials.
Copyright Associated Press / NBC 10 Philadelphia
A plane traveling from Brussels to Philadelphia made an emergency landing in London Tuesday after a passenger became ill during the flight.
Pilots on U.S. Airways Flight 751 declared an emergency once the passenger got sick, prompting them to land the plane in London, according to officials.
No word yet on what type of illness afflicted the passenger.
Once the sick traveler gets off the plane, the flight will continue on to Philadelphia, authorities said.
Stay with NBC10 for more on this developing story.
A birthday wish that Daniel Muniz made when he turned five-years-old best describes the type of boy that he is.
"He wished for his whole family to be together," said Daniel's mother Stephanie Gonzalez. "He didn't wish for toys or anything. He's the type of kid who'd rather sit on the couch with his family and watch TV than play with his toys and do anything else. He's just a loving, loving kid with a very big personality."
Gonzalez, of Upper Deerfield, New Jersey says she and her husband suddenly noticed a change in that personality last August.
"He complained of a headache and he wasn't acting like his normal self," Gonzalez said. "The next day he got very sleepy. Later on, throughout the night he kind of stopped talking and he always talked. He kind of had a confused look on his face and was staring into space as if he didn't know what was going on. Then we immediately took him to the emergency room."
A few days later Gonzalez heard the news. Her six-year-old son was diagnosed with a rare form of Acute Disseminated Encephalomyelitis (ADEM) called Acute Necrotizing Encephalitis (ANE). ANE produces inflammatory lesions in the brain and spinal cord. The form that Muniz suffers from is extremely rare and only seen in about 2% of ADEM cases. ANE destroys brain tissue and leaves the patient unable to walk, talk or perform basic functions.
"From what I've read, there has only been four to five cases in the United States, 10 to 12 in Europe and 230 in Asia," Gonzalez said. "They don't have a lot of information on how to treat the disease so the doctors had to do a lot of research and go through a lot of trials to find out what they can do to help my son."
Danny received treatment at AI DuPont Hospital in Delaware. The initial news doctors gave Gonzales following an MRI scan wasn't good.
"They felt he wouldn't really improve because they believed he had permanent damage in the part of his brain that controls movement and basic function," Gonzalez said.
Gonzalez and her husband also had to deal with the financial burden.
"There are medical costs and equipment costs," Gonzalez said. "He needs a wheelchair, bath chair and a hospital bed. Our insurance only covers 50 percent of the cost. I'm not working and my husband is the only one working. It's been a struggle to pay our bills, pay rent and be at the hospital all the time. The hospital is also an hour away."
After about a month, Gonzalez told Danny's preschool teacher Donna Harrington about his condition. She never imagined what Harrington would do next.
Harrington, Daniel’s kindergarten teacher Megan Gannon and Harrington’s teaching assistant Terri Bodine started a website for the young boy, raising awareness and collecting money as well as food for the family.
“He is a gorgeous child and he just radiates happiness and warmth and love,” Harrington said. “Because of that the community has really come together for him.”
Gonzalez says the love shown for her son brought tears to her eyes.
"I cried," she said. "When they did all that for us we were in shock and surprised. We're so grateful and we can't tell them thank you enough. All we ever asked for from anybody was prayer. We never expected all this outpouring of support from the community."
While Danny is still unable to perform basic functions and remains hospitalized, Gonzalez says the young boy has defied expectations.
"He's getting better and he's out of critical care," Gonzalez said. "Every week we feel like we see a new improvement in him and the hospital has been wonderful. With the intense rehab he's gone through every week we've seen small steps. He's starting to move his head, keep his eyes open, move his eyes around and communicate with a little bit of noise. His neurologists are really surprised because according to his MRI scans, he really shouldn't be doing these things."
Despite the improvements, Gonzalez knows there's a long road ahead to recovery.
"We know it's gonna take at least a year for him to get anywhere," she said. "We're prepared to take it one day at a time with him."
Yet despite the challenge, Gonzalez takes solace in the fact that an entire community is in the young boy's corner.
"I still cry over it," she said. "It's just amazing to know people who really feel for our son and feel for our family. It's really been wonderful the support that we've had. We don't feel alone."
Donations for Danny are being collected through September 30. To donate, visit the fundraising website. You can also email Harrington at harringtond@utds.org.
Copyright Associated Press / NBC 10 Philadelphia
Pentagon: US, partners expand airstrikes into Syria against Islamic State group target
The U.S. and five Arab countries launched airstrikes Monday night on Islamic State group targets in eastern Syria, and the U.S. undertook a separate, unilateral air attack on what it called an al-Qaida affiliate elsewhere in Syria.
Several hours after the Pentagon announced the airstrikes against Islamic State targets, U.S. Central Command said American warplanes launched eight airstrikes "to disrupt the imminent attack plotting against the United States and Western interests" by a network of "seasoned al-Qaida veterans" — sometimes known as the Khorasan Group -- who have established a haven in Syria. It provided no details on the plotting.
Central Command said that separate bombing mission was undertaken solely by U.S. aircraft and took place west of the Syrian city of Aleppo. It said targets included training camps, an explosives and munitions production facility, a communication building and command and control facilities.
The airstrikes against Islamic State targets were carried out in the city of Raqqa and other areas in eastern Syria by a mix of manned aircraft -- fighter jets and bombers -- plus Tomahawk cruise missiles and drone aircraft. The strikes were part of the expanded military campaign that President Barack Obama authorized nearly two weeks ago in order to disrupt and destroy the Islamic State militants, who have slaughtered thousands of people, beheaded Westerners -- including two American journalists -- and captured large swaths of Syria and northern and western Iraq.
In its written statement detailing the operation, Central Command said the airstrikes, which officials said began around 8:30 p.m. EDT, were conducted by the U.S., Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates. It said the five Arab partner countries "participated in or supported" the airstrikes against Islamic State targets. It was not more specific.
Damascus says Washington informed Syrian UN envoy before striking Islamic State group in Syria
The Syrian foreign ministry said Tuesday that Washington informed Damascus' envoy to the United Nations before launching airstrikes against the Islamic State group in Syria, attacks that activists said inflicted casualties among jihadi fighters and civilians on the ground.
A brief ministry statement, carried by Syrian state media, said "the American side informed Syria's permanent envoy to the U.N. that strikes will be launched against the Daesh terrorist organization in Raqqa."
The statement used an Arabic name referring to the Islamic State group, which seized large chunks of Syrian and Iraqi territory in a blitz this summer.
The airstrikes hit targets in and around the Syrian city of Raqqa and the province with the same name as well as the eastern province of Deir el-Zour, activists said, adding that there were casualties among Islamic State militants on the ground. The city of Raqqa is the militant group's self-declared capital in Syria.
The activists said the strikes did not only target the Islamic State group but also the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front.
Israeli military says it shot down a Syrian aircraft that entered its airspace
The Israeli military shot down a Syrian fighter jet that infiltrated its airspace over the Golan Heights on Tuesday morning -- the first such downing in decades, heightening tensions in the volatile plateau.
The military said a "Syrian aircraft infiltrated into Israeli air space" in the morning hours and that the military "intercepted the aircraft in mid-flight, using the Patriot air defense system."
The military would not say what type of aircraft was downed and said the circumstances of the incident were "unclear."
A defense official identified the downed aircraft as a Sukhoi Su-24 Russian fighter plane. Perviously, it was reported to have been a MiG aircraft. He said the Syrian jet penetrated 800 meters (2,600 feet) into Israeli air space and tried to return to Syria after the Patriot missile was fired.
The crew managed to abandon the plane in time and landed in Syrian territory, the Israeli official said.
Accused White House intruder heavily armed during arrest in Va. months before breach
Two months before Omar J. Gonzalez allegedly hopped a White House fence, dashed across the North Lawn and entered the executive mansion, he was arrested in rural Virginia, heavily armed and carrying a map of Washington tucked inside a Bible -- with a circle drawn around the White House.
The 42-year-old Army veteran from Copperas Cove, Texas, had been arrested July 19 in rural southwestern Virginia after a state trooper received a call about a man in a Ford Bronco driving erratically. He was taken into custody after a brief pursuit and a trooper found an illegal, sawed-off shotgun in the gray sport utility vehicle, according to Wythe County Deputy Commonwealth Attorney David Saliba.
After his arrest, troopers and agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives found weapons that included two semi-automatic, military-style rifles, including one with a bipod and flashlight and one with a bipod and scope; three .45-caliber handguns; and several loaded ammunition magazines. Saliba said Gonzalez also had a hatchet and camping equipment.
Gonzalez was released from jail in Virginia on $5,000 bond and last appeared in court Sept. 11. He did not enter a plea in that case.
Authorities ran into Gonzalez again on Aug. 25, when he was stopped while walking by the south fence of the White House, his car parked nearby. He had a hatchet in his waistband but no firearms, Assistant U.S. Attorney David Mudd said during a brief court hearing Monday.
Israeli forces kill 2 Hamas men suspected in abduction and slaying of Israeli teens
Israeli special forces stormed a West Bank hideout early on Tuesday and killed two Palestinians suspected in the June abduction and slaying of three Israeli teenagers, a gruesome attack that had triggered a chain of events that led to the war in Gaza this summer.
The deaths of the two suspects, identified by the Israeli military as well-known Hamas militants, ended one of the largest manhunts conducted by the Israeli security forces.
Eyal Yifrah, 19, Gilad Shaar, 16, and Naftali Fraenkel, a 16-year-old with dual Israeli-American citizenship, were abducted on June 12 while hitchhiking home in the West Bank and killed soon afterward.
The teens' abduction and slaying prompted a large Israeli crackdown on the Islamic militant Hamas group and set off a chain of events that led to a 50-day war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
In an operation codenamed "Brother's Keeper," Israel dispatched thousands of troops across the West Bank in search of the youths, closed roads in the Hebron area and arrested hundreds of Hamas operatives throughout the territory.
Tensions running high as ambush suspect eludes hundreds of law enforcement
A 10-day manhunt for the survivalist accused of ambushing a Pennsylvania State Police barracks has narrowed to the rural area where he grew up and his parents still live, but the suspect has managed to elude capture despite the efforts of hundreds of law enforcement officials.
State police have been closing roads in the Canadensis area as they hunt for 31-year-old Eric Frein, who's charged with killing Cpl. Bryon Dickson on Sept. 12 and seriously wounding another trooper outside the Blooming Grove barracks.
Residents have been unable to get back to their homes due to heavy police activity in the heavily wooded region of the Pocono Mountains, and tensions are running high. The American Red Cross opened a shelter for displaced residents from two townships late Monday.
One resident, Bill Mew, said the lengthy manhunt has been nerve-wracking, especially with police choppers circling overhead.
"You start thinking to yourself, is this guy standing outside your front door? So you start looking out the windows, and then you think to yourself, that's not such a good idea, in case he's looking back," he said.
Report: Government's own 'white-hat' hackers give HealthCare.gov mixed review on security
The government's own watchdogs tried to hack into HealthCare.gov earlier this year and found what they termed a critical vulnerability — but also came away with respect for some of the health insurance site's security features.
Those are among the conclusions of a report being released Tuesday by the Health and Human Services Department inspector general, who focuses on health care fraud.
The report amounts to a mixed review for the federal website that serves as the portal to taxpayer-subsidized health plans for millions of Americans. Open enrollment season starts Nov. 15.
So-called "white hat" or ethical hackers from the inspector general's office found a weakness, but when they attempted to exploit it like a malicious hacker would, they were blocked by the system's defenses.
It's the second independent security assessment in as many weeks to find problems, and it comes on the heels of the massive breach at Home Depot stores, which affected 56 million credit and debit cards.
6 months into the Ebola outbreak, scientists say we're learning more about deadly virus
Six months into the biggest-ever Ebola outbreak, scientists say they know more about how the potentially lethal virus behaves. The first cases of Ebola in this outbreak were reported in Guinea by the World Health Organization on March 23 -- before spreading to Sierra Leone, Liberia and elsewhere. Here's a look at what scientists have learned so far.
HOW DIFFERENT IS THIS OUTBREAK?
Past outbreaks have all been in rural communities and have typically been snuffed out in weeks or months. But one main difference this time is that it has hit densely packed cities in West Africa, making the current outbreak an international threat. "I always thought Ebola was really bad when it happens, but that it would kill 100 people in a remote part of Africa, and then it's over," said Dr. Peter Piot, the co-discoverer of Ebola. He said the severity of this outbreak could also be linked to the increased movement of people across borders and "more contact with whatever the primary source of Ebola is." The virus' reservoir is thought to be fruit bats, considered a delicacy in some parts of Africa. In a study released Tuesday by the New England Journal of Medicine, the World Health Organization said it was possible there could be almost 21,000 Ebola cases by early November and that cases could continue to trickle out for years if there is no change in current containment measures.
For same-sex military spouses, a duty station in a gay-friendly state makes all the difference
On the wall over her bunk in Kuwait, Marine Cpl. Nivia Huskey proudly displays a collection of sonogram printouts of the baby boy her pregnant spouse is carrying back home in North Carolina. If all goes as planned, the 28-year-old military policewoman will return to Camp Lejeune in time for a January delivery at an on-base hospital.
But the space on the baby's birth certificate marked "Father" will be left blank.
Though her wedding in Washington, D.C., to Jessica Painter Huskey is recognized by the federal government, including the military, Cpl. Huskey is assigned to a battalion based in North Carolina, where state law bans same-sex marriage. She is barred from legally adopting her spouse's biological child, and will have no legal recognition as a parent.
Last year's U.S. Supreme Court ruling striking down the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act ensured that federal military benefits extend to same-sex partners and their children.
But about two-thirds of active-duty personnel in the U.S. are based in states that don't recognize gay marriages, leaving thousands of military families missing out on legal rights they would enjoy if Uncle Sam had stationed them elsewhere.
AP Exclusive: Brazil won't sign onto to global plan to save forests, says it wasn't consulted
Despite its critical role in protecting the Amazon rainforest, Brazil will not endorse a global anti-deforestation initiative being announced at the U.N. climate summit, complaining it was left out of the consultation process. A U.N. official disputed that claim.
Brazilian Environment Minister Izabella Teixeira said Brazil was "not invited to be engaged in the preparation process" of the declaration. Instead, she said Brazil was given a copy of the text and asked to endorse it without being allowed to suggest any changes.
"Unfortunately, we were not consulted. But I think that it's impossible to think that you can have a global forest initiative without Brazil on board. It doesn't make sense," Teixeira said in an interview Monday with The Associated Press.
Charles McNeill, a senior environmental policy adviser with the U.N. Development Program, said "there were efforts to reach out to Brazilian government people but there wasn't a response."
"There was no desire to exclude Brazil," said McNeill. "They are the most important country in this area. An effort that involves Brazil is much more powerful and impactful than one that doesn't."
An Israeli army spokesman says two Palestinians suspected in the fatal abduction of three Israeli teens in June have been killed in a shootout with Israeli forces. Lt. Col. Peter Lerner says the suspects were killed in the West Bank on Tuesday.
The teens' abduction in the West Bank sparked a massive manhunt, leading to the arrest of hundreds of activists of the Islamic militant group Hamas and eventually sparking the summer war in Gaza. FULL STORY
