Politics
‘Person of interest’ in missing Dominican Republic tourist case speaks out – National TenX News
Joshua Riibe, the man believed to be the last person who saw Sudiksha Konanki — who disappeared in the Dominican Republic on March 6 — broke his silence after having his passport seized by authorities.
Last week, the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office in Virginia, where Konanki is a biology student, told NBC News that a person of interest had been identified by U.S. investigators.
Surveillance footage of Konanki showed the missing student arm-in-arm with Riibe while two women walked behind them as they left the building. Riibe, 22, a university student from Minnesota, has now been “confined” to the Riu Republica in Punta Cana, where he was last seen with Konanki before she disappeared.
“He is permanently escorted by the police anywhere he goes,” the law firm Riibe is working with told NBC News, adding that he is “not free to leave.”
“I’m just trying to help them out,” Riibe said in reference to authorities’ search for Konanki. “The ocean is a dangerous place.”
Riibe, who has not been charged with any crime, told authorities on March 12 that he spent time on the beach “kissing” Konanki before her disappearance, according to the interview transcript obtained by NBC News. (Global News has not independently viewed the transcript.)
Riibe told local investigators that he and Konanki were “in waist-deep water, talking and kissing a little,” when a large wave crashed into them and swept them both “out to sea,” according to the transcript.
“I kept trying to get her to breathe, but that didn’t allow me to breathe all the time, and I swallowed a lot of water,” Riibe reportedly said.
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Riibe, a former lifeguard, told investigators that he got himself and Konanki back to shore safely.
“It took me a long time to get her out, it was difficult,” Riibe told officials, according to the transcript. “I was a lifeguard in the pool, not in the sea.
“When I finally reached the ground on the beach, I held her in front of me. She wasn’t out of the water, she was knee-deep and walking at an angle out of the water.
“The last time I saw her, I asked if she was OK. I didn’t hear her answer because I started vomiting all the sea water I had swallowed.”
Riibe said that after vomiting he looked around and assumed Konanki had left the beach.
“I looked around and I didn’t see anyone. I thought she’d grabbed her things and left,” he added.
A representative for the Dominican Republic authorities said in an update on March 14 that “Joshua Steven Riibe, who has been identified as a ‘person of interest,’ remains in custody and is being interrogated at the National Police’s Gender Violence Unit to gather more information about the incident.”
“As long as authorities consider Joshua Steven Riibe a key element in the investigation, he will remain in custody,” the notice said.
“We are using all our resources to thoroughly investigate the disappearance of Sudiksha Konanki and understand the distress this case causes her family, Dominican citizens, and Americans,” Attorney General Yeni Berenice Reynoso said on March 12. “As with any disappearance that occurs under the circumstances of the case at hand, we are applying a holistic investigation protocol that examines all variables.”
The surveillance footage, released last week, shows Riibe leaving the beach area at 9:55 a.m., with no sign of Konanki. Riibe’s family told local outlet WTAE that their son is “deeply dismayed by” Konanki’s disappearance. They also said that Riibe “has fully cooperated in the search and clarification of the facts from the very beginning.”
They said their son has been “detained under irregular conditions.”
“He has remained in his hotel room under police surveillance and has been repeatedly taken to the police station since March 6, where he has been interrogated for long hours,” Riibe’s parents said. “This situation has raised serious concern within his family, which has led us to retain legal counsel to initiate legal actions ensuring his safety and the protection of his rights throughout this process.
“Joshua is a 22-year-old college senior at St. Cloud State University in Minnesota, where he is pursuing a degree in land survey. He is a beloved son, brother, and friend, known for his kind nature, sense of humor, and commitment to his community.
“Throughout his life, he has shown a strong dedication to those around him, participating in sports, student events, and volunteer activities. His faith and values have guided his path, and those who know him can attest to his integrity and good heart.”
His parents said that “this is a complex and painful situation for all parties involved.”
“We trust that the investigation will be conducted with transparency and justice. Our only interest is that due process be respected and that actions be taken with the fairness that the situation requires,” they said. “We ask everyone to pray that Sudiksha be found and returned home to her family.”
Last week, Dominican President Luis Abinader told reporters that Konanki’s disappearance is being investigated as an accident.
“We are concerned,” he said on March 10 during his weekly meeting with the press. “All government agencies are searching … because the latest information we have from one of them, from the last person who was with the young woman, what he says according to the reports is that a wave, while on the beach, crashed into them.”
Abinader defended the safety of tourists in the Dominican Republic, saying the country receives more than 11 million visitors a year and that issues rarely arise.
The Riu Hotels chain said in a statement on March 9 that it was “deeply concerned about the disappearance of one of our guests.”
“From the moment her absence was reported, we have been working closely with the local authorities, including the police and the navy, to conduct a thorough search,” the hotel said. “We would like to express our deepest sympathy to the family and friends during this incredibly difficult time … we are fully committed to doing everything in our power to assist in this situation.”
Politics
UK refuses to invite Israeli government officials to London arms fair over the war in Gaza – National TenX News
The U.K. has barred Israeli government officials from attending the country’s biggest arms fair over growing concern about the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
The decision does not cover representatives of Israeli defense contractors, who will be allowed to attend the DSEI UK exhibition, scheduled for Sept. 9-12 in London. The event was formerly known as Defense and Security Equipment International.
“The Israeli Government’s decision to further escalate its military operation in Gaza is wrong,” the British government said in a statement. “As a result, we can confirm that no Israeli government delegation will be invited to attend DSEI UK 2025.”
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The decision comes after Prime Minister Keir Starmer in July announced plans to recognize a Palestinian state unless Israel takes steps to end the crisis in Gaza, agrees to a ceasefire with Hamas and commits to a long-term peace agreement. Britain previously barred sales to Israel of any arms that could be used in the nearly 23-month war in Gaza.
Israel’s Defense Ministry said the decision was based on politics and “serves extremists.”
“These restrictions amount to a deliberate and regrettable act of discrimination against Israel’s representatives,” the ministry said.
The Israeli ministry said it would withdraw from the exhibition and will not establish a national pavilion.
Pro-Palestinian and anti-war groups have announced plans to for protests during DSEI, which will take place at the Excel center in east London.
© 2025 The Canadian Press
Politics
Israel soon will halt or slow aid to northern Gaza as military offensive grows – National TenX News
Israel will soon halt or slow humanitarian aid into parts of northern Gaza as it expands its military offensive against Hamas, an official said Saturday, a day after Gaza City was declared a combat zone.
The decision was likely to bring more condemnation of Israel’s government as frustration grows in the country and abroad over dire conditions for both Palestinians and remaining hostages in Gaza after nearly 23 months of war.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media, told The Associated Press that Israel will stop airdrops over Gaza City in the coming days and reduce the number of aid trucks arriving in the north as it prepares to evacuate hundreds of thousands of people south.
Israel on Friday ended recently imposed daytime pauses in fighting to allow aid delivery, describing Gaza City as a Hamas stronghold and alleging that a tunnel network remains in use, despite previous large-scale raids. The United Nations and partners have said the pauses, airdrops and other measures fell far short of the 600 trucks of aid needed daily in Gaza.
A ‘massive population movement’ coming
AP video footage showed several large explosions across Gaza overnight. Israel’s military Saturday evening said it had struck a key Hamas member in the area of Gaza City, with no details.
In recent days, Israel’s military has increased strikes on the outskirts of Gaza City, where famine was recently documented and declared by global food security experts.
By Saturday there had been no airdrops for several days across Gaza, a break from almost daily ones. Israel’s army didn’t respond to a request for comment or say how it would provide aid to Palestinians during another major shift in Gaza’s population of over 2 million people.
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“Such an evacuation would trigger a massive population movement that no area in the Gaza Strip can absorb, given the widespread destruction of civilian infrastructure and the extreme shortages of food, water, shelter and medical care,” Mirjana Spoljaric, president of the International Committee of the Red Cross, said in a statement.
It’s impossible that a mass evacuation of Gaza City can be done in a safe and dignified way, she said.
Hundreds of residents have begun leaving Gaza City, piling their remaining possessions onto pickup trucks or donkey carts. Many have been forced to leave their homes more than once.
Killed while seeking food
Israeli gunfire killed four people trying to get aid in central Gaza, according to health officials at Al-Awda Hospital, were the bodies were taken.
An Israeli strike on a bakery in Gaza City’s Nasr neighborhood killed 12 people including six women and three children, the Shifa Hospital director told the AP, and a strike on the Rimal neighborhood killed seven.
Gaza’s Health Ministry said another 10 people died as a result of starvation and malnutrition over the past 24 hours, including three children. It said at least 332 Palestinians have died from malnutrition-related causes during the war, including 124 children.
At least 63,371 Palestinians have died in Gaza during the war, said the ministry, which does not say how many are fighters or civilians but says around half have been women and children. The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government and staffed by medical professionals. The U.N. and independent experts consider it the most reliable source on war casualties. Israel disputes its figures but has not provided its own.
“There is no food and even water is not available. When it is available, it is not safe to drink,” said Amer Zayed, as he waited for food from a charity kitchen in Deir al-Balah on Friday.
“The suffering gets worse when there are more displaced people,” he added.
Israelis rally again to demand a ceasefire deal
Israelis waited to hear the identity of the remains of a hostage that Israel on Friday said had been recovered in Gaza. It also said it recovered the remains of hostage Ilan Weiss.
Forty-eight hostages now remain in Gaza of the over 250 seized in the Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7, 2023, that sparked the war. Israel had believed 20 are still alive.
Their loved ones fear the expanding military offensive will put them in even more danger, and they were rallying again Saturday to demand a ceasefire deal to bring everyone home.
“Netanyahu, if another living hostage comes back in a bag, it will not only be the hostages and their families who pay the price. You will bear responsibility for premeditated murder,” Zahiro Shahar Mor, nephew of hostage Avraham Munder, said in Tel Aviv.
© 2025 The Canadian Press
The Trump administration said Friday it was denying and revoking U.S. visas from members of the Palestinian Authority and the Palestine Liberation Organization.
That comes ahead of next month’s United Nations General Assembly, where Canada and several other countries have said they intend to officially recognize a Palestinian state.
The U.S. State Department cited the groups’ efforts to secure statehood recognition at the UN, along with their appeals to the International Criminal Court and International Court of Justice to investigate alleged Israeli crimes in Gaza, as reasons for the decision by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
“Both steps materially contributed to Hamas’s refusal to release its hostages, and to the breakdown of the Gaza ceasefire talks,” the department said in a statement.
“The Trump Administration has been clear: it is in our national security interests to hold the PLO and PA accountable for not complying with their commitments, and for undermining the prospects for peace.”
The statement did not name the officials being denied entry. It was not immediately clear if the list included Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, who was expected to travel to New York for the UN gathering.
The Palestinians’ ambassador to the UN, Riyad Mansour, told reporters at the UN headquarters that they were checking exactly what the U.S. move means “and how it applies to any of our delegation, and we will respond accordingly.”
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Representatives assigned to the Palestinian Authority mission at the UN, led by Mansour, will be granted waivers so they can continue their New York-based operations, the U.S. statement said.
Mansour said Abbas still intends to lead the delegation to the high-level meetings and is expected to address the General Assembly — as he has done for many years — and to attend a meeting on the afternoon of Sept. 22 on a two-state solution co-chaired by France and Saudi Arabia.
U.S. President Donald Trump will travel to New York and address the general assembly on Sept. 23, the White House said on Thursday.
Canada, Britain, Australia and France in recent weeks have announced or signalled their intention to recognize a Palestinian state during the meeting.
The countries have said their recognition is conditional on the Palestinian Authority — which has limited self-rule over parts of the occupied West Bank and has for years been positioning itself as a legitimate government alternative to Hamas in Gaza — undergoing reforms and new elections.
Abbas has signalled he will co-operate with the Western nations’ demands.
The Palestinian Liberation Organization is an internationally recognized coalition that represents Palestinian people in its occupied territories and abroad.
The Trump administration has staunchly backed Israel’s military offensive in Gaza. The U.S. has also refused to condemn expanded Israeli settlements in the West Bank, which Canada and other allies have said undermine two-state solution efforts.
Rubio hosted Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar in Washington on Wednesday “to reaffirm our two nations’ close cooperation,” the U.S. secretary said in a post on X.
Saar, asked after the meeting what the plan was for a Palestinian state, said there would not be any.
The Israeli minister on Friday thanked Rubio for holding the PA and PLO “accountable for rewarding terrorism, incitement and efforts to use legal warfare against Israel” in a social media statement.
Officials with the Palestinian Authority reject that they’ve undermined peace prospects.
Under the 1947 UN “headquarters agreement,” the U.S. is generally required to allow access for foreign diplomats to the UN in New York. But Washington has said it can deny visas for security, terrorism and foreign policy reasons.
Hamas earlier this month said it had accepted a U.S.-backed proposal on a ceasefire in Gaza that would see the release of some hostages in exchange for talks with Israel that would end the conflict and see the return of all remaining hostages.
But Israel has said it will only accept the full return of all the hostages and has pressed ahead with a plan to occupy Gaza City, which international monitors like the UN have warned could worsen a famine already afflicting the Palestinian territory.
Rubio last week announced sanctions against multiple International Criminal Court judges and prosecutors involved in the court’s investigation into Israel’s actions in Gaza and the issuing of arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant.
—With files from Reuters
© 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
UK refuses to invite Israeli government officials to London arms fair over the war in Gaza – National TenX News
Israel soon will halt or slow aid to northern Gaza as military offensive grows – National TenX News
U.S. scraps Palestinian officials’ visas ahead of UN General Assembly – National TenX News
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