Connect with us

Boston, MA

Fighting between Israel and Islamic Jihad: Where things stand – The Boston Globe

Published

on

Fighting between Israel and Islamic Jihad: Where things stand – The Boston Globe


The Israeli military said another of the group’s operatives was also killed in Friday’s strike. The Palestinian Health Ministry confirmed that two people were killed and said that five were injured.

Israel also said Friday that it had struck command centers and rocket-launching sites operated by the militant group as the latest confrontation stretched into a fourth day, despite overnight mediation efforts to reach a cease-fire.

Israel suspended its participation in Egyptian-led cease-fire talks Friday, officials said, after Islamic Jihad — which is classified by Israel, the United States, and many other Western countries as a terrorist organization — had launched rockets toward Jerusalem.

Israel had already killed five Islamic Jihad commanders since the hostilities erupted Tuesday. On Friday, the military expanded its targets to include what it described as command centers of the group, several of which appeared to be in houses in residential areas across the Palestinian coastal enclave.

Advertisement

The militant group has responded to Israeli attacks by firing nearly 1,000 rockets and mortar rounds into Israel from Gaza, the Israeli military said.

More than 30 Palestinians have been killed, six of them children, the Palestinian Ministry of Health said Friday. More than half of them appeared to be civilians. The ministry said more than 90 Palestinians had also been injured.

A rocket fired from Gaza on Thursday evening struck a residential building in Rehovot, a city in central Israel. One person was killed in that attack, Israeli officials said — the first casualty on the Israeli side in the several days of fighting. Five more people were injured in that rocket attack, according to Israel’s ambulance service.

The fighting, Israel’s third confrontation with Islamic Jihad in Gaza since last summer, began with the targeted assassinations of three of the militant group’s top commanders. Ten civilians, four of them children, were also killed in those initial airstrikes, according to Palestinian officials.

Israel has said that the Islamic Jihad commanders it targeted were responsible for firing rockets into Israel, including more than 100 projectiles that the group fired out of Gaza on May 2.

Advertisement

Islamic Jihad has responded to the Israeli attacks by firing rockets into southern and central Israel.

Israel’s military has also conducted scores of airstrikes against Islamic Jihad targets in Gaza over the past few days, killing more of the group’s senior commanders.

Egypt and other regional powers have been pressing the two sides to agree to a cease-fire. But after several hours of calm early Friday, it became clear that those efforts had not succeeded as the cross-border exchanges of fire resumed.

The sides had appeared close to a cease-fire earlier as well, on Wednesday night, but hopes of a deal faded the next day as the fighting surged again. Islamic Jihad has presented several conditions for a cease-fire, including an Israeli commitment to halt assassinations.

Despite the mediation efforts, both sides vowed Thursday to fight on if necessary.

Advertisement

“Whoever harms us will pay the price, as will his replacement,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel said. “We are in the midst of a campaign of both offense and defense.”

Islamic Jihad said in a statement, “The enemy continues its crimes against those who are safe in their homes, and it will pay the price for that.”

Hamas, the larger Islamic militant group that controls Gaza, has voiced its support for Islamic Jihad’s actions and Thursday praised the strike that resulted in the Israeli death.

Ismail Radwan, a Hamas official, described the strike as retaliation for the assassination of the two Islamic Jihad commanders Thursday and for other Israeli “crimes.”

But Israeli officials say that Hamas has not actively joined in the rocket launching itself, a factor that could limit the scope of hostilities.

Advertisement

Hamas, which bears responsibility for the population of more than 2 million Palestinians in Gaza, has been less eager to engage in fighting with Israel over the past year since Israel issued almost 20,000 permits for Gazans to work in Israel.

Gaza is a largely impoverished territory that operates under a strict air, land, and sea blockade imposed by Israel and Egypt.

Millions of Israelis in areas within range of the rocket fire have been told to stay close to safe rooms and shelters.

Israel’s air defense systems intercepted most of the other rockets that appeared headed toward population centers, although a few slipped through and caused damage to several houses.

In Gaza, schools and many businesses have been closed this week. Israel also shuttered its schools within a 25-mile radius of the Gaza border and closed its border crossings with the enclave, preventing the passage of people or goods.

Advertisement



Source link

Continue Reading
Advertisement
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Boston, MA

Boston doctor Derrick Todd accused of sexually assaulting 200 patients charged with rape

Published

on

Boston doctor Derrick Todd accused of sexually assaulting 200 patients charged with rape


A prominent Boston-area doctor accused in several lawsuits of sexually assaulting more than 200 former patients was indicted by a grand jury on rape charges.

Dr. Derrick Todd allegedly assaulted two women during examinations in December 2022 and June 2023 at the Charles River Medical Associates in Framingham, Mass., the Middlesex County District Attorney announced Thursday.

Todd, a rheumatologist, appeared in Middlesex Superior Court Friday after he handed himself over to police the previous night.

Dr. Derrick Todd is arraigned in Middlesex County Superior Court after he was indicted on rape charges on Jan. 17, 2025. AP

The two women had either a pelvic exam or pap smear with the doctor when the alleged assault occurred, NBC Boston reported.

Advertisement

The patients alleged the exams went beyond “normal.”

One of the women endured enough pain for her to scream at Todd to stop but the doctor didn’t listen and continued the exam.

The second patient alleged she didn’t give Todd consent to perform the specific examination but the doctor went ahead despite the rejection, the outlet reported.

Todd pleaded not guilty to the two rape charges.

He was held on a $10,000 bail.

Advertisement
Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital in Boston, where Todd worked for 14 years. Google Maps

A judge ordered Todd to surrender his passport, not have any contact with his alleged victims, and give up all medical licenses.

Claims of abuse from Todd date back to 2010 but only surfaced in 2023 after Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital received anonymous complaints.

Todd is the former chief of clinical rheumatology at the Boston hospital but resigned after 14 years in 2023 when two other physicians questioned the appropriateness of pelvis exams for his rheumatology patients, the Boston Globe reported.

Over 200 of Todd’s former patients accused him of performing unnecessary pelvic floor therapy, breast examinations, testicular examinations, and rectal examinations.

The accusers include over 200 women and several men between teenagers and 60-year-olds.

Advertisement

Attorneys for 180 of the former patients say the two rape charges are just the start of the doctor’s legal battle.

“It’s just the beginning of the criminal case against Dr. Todd, but it does help validate the civil claims that Lubin & Meyer is pursuing on behalf of so many of his former patients,” Attorney William Thompson said. “Fundamentally, it’s about a doctor abusing his position. And taking advantage of patients who put their trust in him for his own personal sexual gratification.”

Over 200 of Todd’s former patients accused him of performing unnecessary pelvic floor therapy, breast examinations, testicular examinations, and rectal examinations. LinkedIn

Todd voluntarily ceased his medical practice in Massachusetts in September 2023.

The announcement was made in a letter to the Board of Registration in Medicine.

The class-action lawsuit against Todd also listed the hospital as a defendant for allegedly knowing about the abuse and failing to stop it.

Advertisement

Todd was fired from the hospital in July 2024.

With Post wires



Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Boston, MA

O’shae Brissett, part of Boston Celtics championship, reportedly signs with Long Island Nets

Published

on

O’shae Brissett, part of Boston Celtics championship, reportedly signs with Long Island Nets


O’shae Brissett, who won a championship with the Boston Celtics in June but hasn’t played professionally since, has reportedly signed an NBA G-League level contract with the Brooklyn Nets G League team, the Long Island Nets.

Bobby Manning was first with the news Friday morning…

The 6’7” 26-year-old Brissett, a defensive specialist, will join Long Island having last played for the Boston Celtics as a part of the NBA Championship squad last year.

Advertisement

In his defining moment of the title run, Brissett was inserted as a small ball center by Boston coach Joe Mazzulla in Game 2 of the Celtics-Pacers conference title series. It was his first playoff minutes, but he played a critical role defensively, picking up three steals and finishing a +15 in his 12 minutes on the court.

“Just his presence, his energy, his athleticism,” Mazzulla said after that game. “Just gave us, I think he had a dunk, got a steal, got us out in transition with a couple [of] rebounds. So just, he plays with such a high level of intensity and energy. It’s big for us.”

In his 55 games with the Celtics in the 2023-24 season, Brissett started just one and played roughly 11.5 minutes per game. He averaged 3.7 points per game, 2.9 rebounds, and 0.8 assists. He shot 44.4% from the field, 27.3% from beyond the arc. He adds yet another NBA veteran presence to the young Long Island Nets team with .

Brissett played three years with the Indiana Pacers, his best year coming in 2021-22 when he played 67 games, 25 starts, averaging 9.1 points and 5.3 rebounds.

However, he hasn’t played since the NBA Finals. Brissett, who turned 26 years old in June, declined a $2.5 million dollar player option with Boston at the end of June. He hoped that he could get more by testing the free-agent market. Similarly, the Toronto native dropped out of the Canadian national team, coached by Jordi Fernandez, to focus his free agency. However, offers or at least offers he liked never materialized and he remained a free agent until Friday.

Advertisement

Brissett’s rebounding and size will give Long Island some added depth, and in Long Island’s case, a potential starter. Brissett always intended to pursue a return to the NBA, and his signing with the Long Island Nets is a first step to getting back to that dream.

Brissett also re-unites with Kendall Brown who had been his Indiana Pacers teammate two years ago.





Source link

Continue Reading

Boston, MA

Magic Look to Bounce Back With More Energy at Celtics

Published

on

Magic Look to Bounce Back With More Energy at Celtics


BOSTON – Over two weeks ago, after the Orlando Magic’s latest rally fell short in a loss to the Detroit Pistons, fourth-year guard Jalen Suggs called out a worrying trend among his team in hopes of nipping it in the bud.

“We’re putting ourselves in these holes and spotting teams leads, then having to fight, scratch, claw just to get back in the game and give ourselves a chance,” Suggs said on New Year’s Day.

The Magic had developed a resilience that meant they were never out of games, no matter the score. Complimentary, energy-filled basketball helped Orlando do the fighting, scratching and clawing to get back into those games.

Did it always result in a victory? Not quite. But the relentless attitude and constant effort – especially for a team so handicapped by its shrinking list of healthy players – was commendable, and has been embedded in the Magic’s DNA.

Advertisement

In the rare occasions when it doesn’t show face, though, Magic coach Jamahl Mosley says it’s “glaring.” That was the case when the Milwaukee Bucks delivered a 29-point shellacking to Orlando, marking the most lopsided loss for the Magic this year.

“There was an energy and effort issue,” said Mosley postgame.

Wendell Carter Jr. would later say his team was “out-physicaled” and made life too easy for their opponent.

Then, in the locker room, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope told reporters Orlando got its “a– whooped,” and Paolo Banchero told reporters, “[A]s a group top to bottom, we’ve got to be more ready to play. We’re down a lot of bodies, but we can’t make excuses and we’ve just got to come out and play for each other.”

To Banchero’s point, the Magic’s 124 missed games from players due to injury or illness haven’t been a catch-all, safety-net excuse when the team is struggling. Instead, their aforementioned resilience built an identity that helped them generate results throughout the entire first half of the season, regardless of available contributors.

Advertisement

It justifies Mosley’s claims that the lackluster performance vs. the Bucks “wasn’t Orlando Magic basketball. Not even close.” Because although that was the case in Game 42, through the first 41 games, it wasn’t.

“It’s something that you can learn from, and you have to be able to bounce back, which this group has always done,” Mosley said.

With a national audience watching along, Orlando (0-4 in national TV games this season) pays its only visit to TD Garden Friday evening, squaring off with the defending champion Boston Celtics for the second of three matchups this season. The Magic host the 18-time champs once more in April to close the Kia Center’s regular season slate.

Boston has dropped three of their last five outings, including an uncharacteristic loss to the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday night in Scotiabank Arena. The Celtics were without Jayson Tatum due to a last-minute spat with an illness in the Magic’s Dec. 23 home win, but Orlando was shorthanded as well. Of their top four scorers, only Suggs was available.

“We beat them last time at home, so I’m sure they haven’t forgot that,” Paolo Banchero said in Orlando’s locker room Wednesday. “They have a hell of a home atmosphere [and] home crowd, so they’ll be ready to play in front of their fans.”

Advertisement

Heading into Friday’s tilt, where both teams are eager to wipe the slate clean from their mid-week malaise, Boston reports a clean bill of health. Now, only Banchero is available of the Magic’s top scorers, and other key reserves are unavailable as well.

MORE: Magic-Celtics Injury Report

Those who are available, however, say they shouldn’t have any issue getting back to their standard.

“Playing against teams like this is what hoopers get up for,” Anthony Black said. “Definitely getting up for this game. It’s always fun playing against some good hoopers, so I think we’re up and I think we’ll be ready to bring energy come game time.”

“You don’t like losing games, especially when you get your butt kicked,” Mosley said, “but you also have to know you have to bounce back, can’t hang your head, be ready to go and move on the next game.”

Advertisement

Follow ‘Orlando Magic on SI‘ on Facebook and like our page. Follow Magic beat reporter Mason Williams on Twitter/X @mvsonwilliams. Also, bookmark our homepage so you never miss a story.



Source link

Continue Reading

Trending