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WORLD BRIEF
FBI ALERTED TO GEORGIA SCHOOL SHOOTING SUSPECT
14-year-old Colt Gray who is accused of killing four people at his high school in Georgia was interviewed last year by police about anonymous online threats, the FBI has said.
Gray denied to police in May 2023 that he was behind internet posts that contained images of guns, warning of a school shooting.
The suspect opened fire on Wednesday at Apalachee High School in the city of Winder, killing two teachers and two pupils. Nine others were injured. He was arrested on campus and will be prosecuted as an adult.
ABC RELEASES THE RULES AHEAD OF HARRIS-TRUMP DEBATE
With less than a week until the Sept. 10 presidential debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump hosted by ABC News, the network on Wednesday released the set of rules that will govern the matchup.
There will be 90 mins of debate time, with two commercial breaks.
The debate will be held in Philadelphia at the National Constitution Center and will have no audience in the room.
Microphones will be live only for the candidate whose turn it is to speak and muted when the time belongs to another candidate. Only the moderators will be permitted to ask questions.
A coin flip was held virtually on Tuesday to determine the podium placement and the order of closing statements; former President Trump won the coin toss and chose to select the order of statements. The former president will offer the last closing statement.
There will be no opening statements, and closing statements will be two minutes per candidate.
Each candidate will be allotted two minutes to answer each question with a two-minute rebuttal, and an additional minute for a follow-up, clarification, or response.
no props or pre-written notes will be allowed on stage. Each candidate will be given a pen, a pad of paper, and a bottle of water.
Campaign staff may not interact with candidates during commercial breaks.
NETANYAHU DOUBLES DOWN ON CONTROL OF GAZA-EGYPT BORDER
Benjamin Netanyahu, has again insisted that Israeli forces will not leave the Philadelphi Corridor – a strategically important strip of land in southern Gaza along the border with Egypt.
He told foreign media in Jerusalem that he is “open” to considering alternatives to the presence of Israeli troops along the Gaza-Egypt border, as part of any future permanent ceasefire deal – but that he did not see it happening.
Mr Netanyahu argued that Israeli troops must remain in this buffer zone to prevent weapons and possibly Israeli hostages being smuggled across the border.
Hamas said in a statement cited by Reuters news agency that Mr Netanyahu’s decision not to withdraw from the Philadelphi corridor is an attempt to thwart the ceasefire agreement, adding that it was time to put pressure on Israel.
FAKE CV LANDS SA BASED ‘TOP ENGINEER’ 15 YEAR SENTENCE
A man who had been chief engineer at South Africa’s state-owned passenger rail company has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for faking his qualifications.
Daniel Mthimkhulu was head of engineering at the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) for five years – earning an annual salary of about 2.8m rand $156,000; £119,000.
On his CV, the 49-year-old claimed to have had several mechanical engineering qualifications, including a degree from South Africa’s respected Witwatersrand University as well as a doctorate from a German university.
However, the court in Johannesburg heard that he had only completed his high-school education.
Despite admitting that he did not correct people who believed he had a PHD, Mthimkhulu is reportedly planning to appeal.
