July 11, 2024

A Spanish tourist was crushed to death by a herd of elephants inside South Africa’s Pilanesberg National Park after he left his vehicle to take a close-up photo of the breeding animals, local police said. The unnamed European, described by police as a 43-year-old man, visited the game reserve in South Africa’s North West Province on Sunday, in a private vehicle, according to provincial police spokesperson Sabata Mokgwabone. He was accompanied by his fiancee and two other women, Mokgwabone said in a statement sent to CNN Wednesday. Spanish newspaper La Vanguardia identified the tourist as Carlos Luna, whom it said was from Zaragoza. The Pilanesberg Game Reserve is South Africa’s fourth-largest park and a popular tourist destination. It is also home to more than 7,000 animals, according to its website. US tourist on safari in Zambia killed by charging elephant Police said that while touring the park, the man and his passengers “spotted three elephants with three calves,” adding that “the man stopped the vehicle, alighted and went closer to take pictures” before he was attacked and killed by the herd. The province’s tourism board said in a statement that the Spaniard “did not heed the warnings” of “his fellow passengers, and occupants from two other vehicles that were at the sighting” before approaching the elephants “that were feeding a distance from the road.” “An adult elephant cow charged at the man, who then ran … (but) was unfortunately not able to escape or evade the elephant, which was now joined by the whole herd, and was caught and trampled to death,” the board said. It added that the elephants left the scene afterward and did not attack anyone. “Statements by witnesses who observed the whole incident further suggest that the female elephant that charged and attacked might have done so to protect the herd and young ones.” Plans are being made to repatriate the tourist’s body, the Spanish newspaper said, citing officials. Elephant attacks are not rare in South Africa. In 2019, a suspected poacher was attacked and killed by an elephant, and his body eaten by lions in the northeastern Kruger National Park, authorities said at the time. In the same year, a security guard was similarly crushed to death by an elephant at a mine in the country’s Limpopo province. Other parts of Southern Africa have witnessed similar tragedies. Three months ago, an elderly American woman was killed after an elephant charged at a vehicle transporting tourists inside Zambia’s largest national park. The North West tourism board said it was “saddened” by the incident at the Pilanesberg park, urging tourists to “respect distance between vehicles and animals and … to only alight in specially designated areas.” Source: https://edition.cnn.com/2024/07/10/africa/elephants-kill-spanish-tourist-south-africa-intl/index.html

At least 15 people were dead and two injured when a passenger jeep plunged down from the Leswa Bypass Road near Devlian village onto the bank of the Neelum River on Wednesday while they were travelling from Lawat Bala to Muzaffarabad, Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK). According to Rescue 112, though police and rescue teams rushed to the accident site, their efforts faced certain difficulties due to the occurrence of rain. They added that the bodies were sent to the District Headquarters Hospital, whereas, the wounded passengers were taken to the Muzaffarabad Combined Military Hospital. Additionally, at the scene, a woman cutting grass and two children were also injured. They were also admitted to the hospital. accident merge Notably, at least 17 passengers were travelling in the jeep including the driver; out of which six men, four women, and three children could not survive the accident. Additionally, two other passengers were announced dead when they reached the hospital, as per the rescue officials. Apart from the police and rescue teams, local people and youth also volunteered and took part in the rescue efforts. As the possible causes behind the accident are still being determined, Muzaffarabad Deputy Commissioner Nadeem Ahmed Janjua told Geo News: “Apparently, there is no obvious cause for the car accident. There is also no trace present on the road where the accident took place, which can determine the cause behind the occurrence.” He added, “The road is perfectly smooth and in good condition.” The passengers who lost their lives belonged to two families of Lawat Bala village in the Neelum Valley. The bodies were handed over to their respective kin and their funeral prayers will be offered in the village before they are laid to rest. Accidents like this routinely take place in the mountainous areas of AJK. The prime reason behind such occurrences is mostly faulty and worn-out public transport vehicles, but a lack of road safety measures also causes such road mishaps. Source: https://www.thenews.com.pk/latest/1208374-15-killed-as-passenger-jeep-falls-into-ravine-in-ajks-neelum-valley

Source: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2024/7/11/israels-war-on-gaza-live-bodies-filling-the-streets-in-gaza-city