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Ga. Middle School Teacher Dies Amid Abuse Investigation

There were few surprises when Saudi Arabia finally admitted what most of the world already believed: Jamal Khashoggi, the missing dissident journalist, had indeed been killed at its Istanbul consulate. The gist of the explanation that emerged in a late-night flurry of statements via state-run media had been widely trailed - as much by President Donald Trump, who had quickly suggested “rogue killers” were to blame, as anyone else. It effectively dismissed Turkish claims that he had been murdered by a Saudi hit squad flown into the country for the job, and insulated Mohammed Bin Salman, the young Saudi crown prince, from blame. He does not escape completely. As part of the palace manoeuvring, he loses one of his most trusted intelligence chiefs and a close aide but in so doing, he may have engineered a way out of an escalating crisis, allowing him to protect relations between Riyadh and Washington. So rather than being ordered from the top, Khashoggi died in a tragic sequence of events as questioning spiralled into a fight, according to the official explanation. “The results of the preliminary investigations also revealed that the discussions that took place with the citizen Jamal Khashoggi during his presence in the consulate of the Kingdom in Istanbul by the suspects did not go as required and developed in a negative way led to a fight and a quarrel between some of them and the citizen Jamal Khashoggi, yet the brawl aggravated to lead to his death and their attempt to conceal and cover what happened,” it said. Jamal Khashoggi had not been seen since entering the Saudi cosulate more than two weeks ago Credit: AFP Again, the consequences had been floated like a trial balloon in the preceding days. Sources had told both The New York Times and The Washington Post that Saudi leaders were considering blaming Gen Ahmed al-Assiri, a senior adviser to the crown prince. And so it turned out with Gen Assiri, an air force officer, dismissed as deputy intelligence chief. He had served previously as the spokesman for the Saudi-led military campaign in Yemen, and was believed to have the ear of the crown prince, often sitting with him when receiving foreign visitors. A demonstrator wears a mask of Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia's crown prince, outside the White House  Credit: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg Also fired was Saud Qahtani, a powerful adviser to Prince Mohammed who led Saudi efforts to isolate Qatar amid a boycott of the country by the kingdom and three Arab allies. He had also arranged interviews for visiting journalists. On Twitter, where Mr Qahtani had frequently attacked what he saw as the kingdom's enemies, he thanked the Saudi government for the "great opportunity they gave me to serve my country all those years". "I will remain a loyal servant to my country for all times," he said. Some 18 Saudis have also been arrested. Saudi Arabia is gambling that the explanation and the dismissals will repair some of the damage done to Prince Mohammed’s reputation as a reformer. It also knows that the US needs its help - and its oil - if Iran is to be contained as a regional threat. The disappearance of Jamal Khashoggi However, critics quickly ridiculed the official account of an interrogation gone wrong. “They don’t get it,” said Samantha Power, who served as US ambassador to the UN under Barack Obama, on Twitter. “Shifting from bald-face lies (“#Khashoggi left consulate”) to faux condemnation (of a “rogue operation”) to claiming the fox will credibly investigate what he did to the hen...will convince nobody.” It has convinced Mr Trump. Earlier he had suggested severe consequences if it emerged that the Saudis had killed Khashoggi, but also said he didn’t want to harm US business interests or anything that would threaten tens of thousands of American jobs in the arms industry. On Friday, speaking to journalists ahead of a campaign rally in Arizona, he said it was important that Saudi Arabia had made arrests but that he wanted to talk to the crown prince before deciding next steps. When asked if he found the explanation to be credible, he answered: “I do. I do.”

Justin Bieber, Hailey Baldwin Courthouse Wedding Was Her Idea

A 23-year-old man has pleaded guilty to the rape and kidnapping of a British backpacker in Australia after holding her captive during a brutal 900-mile road trip across the outback.  Appearing via video in a court in Cairns in north Queensland, Marcus Allyn Keith Martin pleaded guilty to three counts of rape and one count of deprivation of liberty following his horrific treatment of a 22-year-old British traveller spanning about two months in 2017. The woman was rescued after she appeared shaken and traumatised at a petrol station in south-west Queensland. She failed to pay possibly as part of a deliberate ploy which prompted the cashier to contact the police. Beverley Page, the owner of the petrol station, later said she immediately realised something was wrong. “She came in, she couldn’t pay for her fuel,” Ms Page said. “She was crying and shaking the whole time - she was really upset. There were two marks on her neck along with the black eyes.”  Map of British backpackers journey When police located Martin’s four-wheel-drive near the outback town of Mitchell, a small rural town about 900 miles south of Cairns, they reportedly discovered Martin hiding in an alcove in the back. The pair reportedly met at a dance party outside Cairns before starting a relationship.  The woman, who arrived in Australia on a working visa in April 2015,  told police that Martin had begun abusing her shortly after they met. Detective Inspector Paul Hart said the backpacker showed remarkable courage and had no real opportunity to escape. “What she's experienced is no doubt horrific and terrifying,” he said in 2017.  A four-wheel drive vehicle is parked at the police station in Roma, Australia Credit: AP “She is a tourist, a lot of the areas where she would have been would have been unknown to her, and she wouldn't have known anyone there, so it would have been difficult for her to make an escape.” Following Martin’s guilty plea, prosecutors discontinued ten other charges including eight counts of rape, one of serious cruelty to animals, and torture. Martin earlier pleaded guilty to supplying dangerous drugs, wilful damage, assault occasioning bodily harm and choking or strangulation. He has been remanded in custody and will appear in court next February at a hearing to set his sentencing date.