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OPINION EXCHANGE | Counterpoint: On road to liberation, there's only one 'lane'

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OPINION EXCHANGE  |  Counterpoint: On road to liberation, there's only one 'lane'


Opinion editor’s note: Star Tribune Opinion publishes a mix of national and local commentaries online and in print each day. To contribute, click here.

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Minneapolis City Council Member LaTrisha Vetaw’s recent commentary (“On Gaza, council out of its lane, meeting out of control,” Jan. 11) is a far reach from the call for collaboration she claims it is. Vetaw’s article, published on the eve of South Africa’s appearance in the International Court of Justice to provide evidence of Israel’s violation of the Genocide Convention, demonstrates that Minneapolis leadership needs to pay attention to the voices of its constituents now more than ever.

The City Council has a moral obligation to place pressure on the state and national governments to end aid to Israel’s ongoing siege on Gaza. As a collective of Ward 4 constituents and stakeholders, we are concerned by Vetaw’s blatant lack of regard for the more than 23,000 lives stolen since Oct. 7, and the many thousands still under the rubble.

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This genocide has been livestreamed for the world to see. Despite numerous human rights organizations concluding Israel is engaged in war crimes and a “textbook case of genocide,” Vetaw suggests the issue is just too complicated for constituents and leaders in Minneapolis to understand.

In reality, passage of resolutions supporting a cease-fire by local governments is neither new nor unfounded. A number of cities across the United States have already passed resolutions supporting a cease-fire, including Atlanta, Seattle, Detroit, San Francisco and Oakland, Calif.

Council Member Vetaw poses a question: “What makes my colleagues think anyone in Israel or Gaza cares what they think?” A brief Google search will show you that Palestinians have been tirelessly sharing about their struggle for decades. Mohammed El-Kurd, a Palestinian poet and correspondent for the Nation, challenges us to “be unabashed in [our] support and articulation of Palestinian’s right to liberation and self defense against Israeli terror.”

On Nov. 1, Palestinian poet Refaat Alareer shared one of his last poems before being killed by an Israeli airstrike, “If I must die, you must live to tell my story … if I must die, let it bring hope, let it be a tale.” Our timelines are flooded with videos of airstrikes, hospitals in ruins and parents mourning their children, because Palestinian people want us to know what is happening and they are insisting that we speak out against it.

For Vetaw to even pose this question demonstrates that she is not listening to the Palestinian people in Gaza or in Minneapolis.

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Council Member Vetaw’s claim that Israel’s decadeslong occupation in Palestine is a complicated geopolitical issue, somehow beyond the scope of the City Council, is in direct contradiction with her decision to sign onto the council’s April 2022 resolution expressing unity with the people of Ukraine, and calling for additional funding from the U.S. government.

She describes the first City Council meeting of 2024 as “chaotic,” and the impassioned community members voicing their support for the cease-fire and the passage of the resolution as “disgraceful,” falsely labeling them as bullies. In reality, this was an act of community, with many stakeholders on all sides of the issue showing up to participate in the democratic process of our city.

Council Member Vetaw’s article also claims no “major” Jewish organizations were consulted in creating the City Council’s resolution. However, the Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-Minnesota) names numerous organizations, including IfNotNow MN, Jewish Voice for Peace and American Muslims for Palestine, who contributed to the writing of the resolution. These organizations and their members asked that the city of Minneapolis support a “full, immediate and permanent cease-fire in Gaza and for state and federal delegations to use their full authority to advance immediate and permanent cease-fire, and urgently needed humanitarian aid in Gaza.”

Council Member Vetaw wants the City Council to “stay in its lane.” As we honor the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. this week, we find his words as timely as ever: “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”

We believe that all of our lanes converge on the road to liberation.

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Noah Schumacher, Anusha Ramaswami, Amber Buck and D.A. Bullock are residents of Minneapolis, Ward 4. Jordan Kushner is a member of the National Lawyers Guild. Samantha Alsadi is a member of the Minnesota Anti War Committee.



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Minneapolis, MN

Man killed over Louie Vuitton bag, suspect was on bond for suspected carjacking, charges say

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Man killed over Louie Vuitton bag, suspect was on bond for suspected carjacking, charges say


Minneapolis police are investigating a homicide on Feb. 24, 2026.  (FOX 9)

A man is dead after a witness said he refused to give up a Louis Vuitton bag while being robbed by multiple men at gunpoint. 

Abdirahman Khayre Khayre, 20, is charged with second-degree murder and first-degree robbery for the incident that happened on the evening of Feb. 24 in Minneapolis. 

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READ MORE: Man fatally shot in south Minneapolis apartment building

Fatal Minneapolis shooting after robbery 

The set-up:

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Minneapolis police responded around 10:42 p.m. on Feb. 24 at the Abbott Apartments, located on the 100 block of East 18th Street in the Stevens Square neighborhood of Minneapolis.

Officers then found a dead man in the lobby who had been shot multiple times. 

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A witness to the shooting said he and the victim arrived at the apartments to “hang out” with Khayre, according to the criminal complaint. 

The witness said he became suspicious when Khayre he left the room multiple times and “appeared to be stalling.”

The robbery:

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The complaint states the witness reported three men then came into the room and yelled “Give me everything.” The men were armed with Glock handguns that had extended magazines as well as an AR-style rifle.

They then stole two guns from the witness, and one of them was handed to Khayre.

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When the men demanded a Louis Vuitton bag from the victim, he refused, leading to a fight between them all.

The shooting:

The witness said when he walked toward them, Khayre pointed the witness’ stolen gun at him and racked it. 

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The witness then got out of the room, ran toward the lobby and heard multiple gunshots. He then saw two of the men flee out the back of the building, but didn’t see what direction they went in.

The victim was then found dead. 

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The aftermath:

Khayre was then identified by the witness in a photo lineup, according to the criminal complaint. 

Police say video footage corroborated much of what the witness reported.

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Khayre was on conditional release for a suspected carjacking at the time of the shooting, according to the complaint. 

The Source: This story uses information gathered from a criminal complaint filed in Hennepin County and previous FOX 9 reporting. 

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Crime and Public SafetyMinneapolis



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Minnesota’s Iranian community: Mixed emotions on US-Israel strike

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Minnesota’s Iranian community: Mixed emotions on US-Israel strike


The local Iranian community in Minnesota is expressing mixed emotions following the recent joint U.S.-Israel strike on Iran.

Local reactions to the strike

What we know:

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The strike resulted in the death of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, according to President Donald Trump and Iranian state media. Many Iranians in Minnesota feel this could lead to freedom for their country.

Nazanin Naferipoor shared that her sister in Iran was initially happy about the strike, believing it might bring about freedom. However, communication has been cut off since the strike began, leaving many worried about their loved ones.

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The other side:

Hamid Kashani from the Minnesota Committee in Support of a Democratic Iran expressed mixed feelings about the strike. While he hopes for change, he is concerned about the potential loss of innocent lives.

Fazy Kowsari emphasized that the attack targeted the government, not the religion, and criticized the political motivations behind the strike.

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Upcoming rally at Nicollet Mall

Why you should care:

A rally is scheduled for tomorrow afternoon at Nicollet Mall and 11th Street. Organizers view the U.S. strike as a rescue operation for Iranians held hostage by the regime, rather than an act of war.

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PoliticsMinnesota



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Ex-MN Twins Pitcher Sentenced For Shooting His In-Laws

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Ex-MN Twins Pitcher Sentenced For Shooting His In-Laws


AUBURN, CA — Former Major League Baseball pitcher Dan Serafini was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for murdering his father-in-law and attempting to murder his mother-in-law in a 2021 ambush-style shooting at a Lake Tahoe-area home.

A Placer County jury previously found Serafini, 51, guilty of fatally shooting 70-year-old Gary Spohr and seriously wounding Spohr’s wife, 68-year-old Wendy Wood, on June 5, 2021, at their home on the lake’s west shore. Wood survived the attack but died a year later.

In a statement obtained by The Associated Press, Placer County District Attorney Morgan Gire said that Spohr and Wood were loving grandparents and detailed how Serafini’s crimes had affected the couple’s family members and friends.

“The impact of this attack has extended far beyond the immediate victims, deeply affecting family members and the broader community, and highlighting the lasting harm caused by deliberate violence,” Gire said.

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On the day of the shooting, Serafini’s wife, the victims’ daughter, had taken the children to the lake to visit their grandparents.

Prosecutors said the deadly ambush stemmed from a dispute over a $1.3 million investment in a ranch renovation project. The victims had reportedly contributed the money.

In one text message shown in court, Serafini wrote, “I’m gonna kill them one day,” referencing a dispute over $21,000, prosecutors said.

He also sent other threatening messages, including “I will be coming after you” and “Take me to court,” according to ABC10.

Jurors also found Serafini guilty of several “special circumstance” sentencing enhancements, including lying in wait, use of a firearm, and that the attack was willful, deliberate and premeditated. He was also convicted of first-degree burglary.

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Prosecutors had also charged Serafini with child endangerment, saying he put his infant and toddler sons at risk by having a gun in the home. Jurors found him not guilty on that count.

The case also involved a second defendant, 33-year-old Samantha Scott, who pleaded guilty to being an accessory in February, according to the New York Post.

A left-hander, Serafini was a 1992 first-round pick for the Minnesota Twins. He also played for the Chicago Cubs, San Diego Padres, Pittsburgh Pirates, Cincinnati Reds and Colorado Rockies, pitching for six MLB teams over seven seasons.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.





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