HIGHLAND PARK SHOOTING: MAN ARRESTED AFTER 4 JULY MASS SHOOTING

A gunman perched on a rooftop has opened fire on families waving flags and children riding bicycles during an Independence Day parade near the US city of Chicago, killing at least six people and wounding 36 others.

The shooting in Highland Park, a community of about 30,000 residents some 40km (25 miles) north of Chicago, Illinois, caused panicked mayhem on Monday as hundreds of marchers, including parents with strollers, fled the scene in terror.

Hours later, authorities said a man named as a “person of interest” in the shooting was taken into police custody.

He was identified as 22-year-old Robert E Crimo III.

Christopher Covelli, a spokesperson for the Lake County Major Crime Task Force, told reporters the attacker apparently used a “high-powered rifle” to fire from a spot atop a building where he was “very difficult to see”.

“Very random, very intentional and a very sad day,” he said.

The shooting comes as the United States struggles to stem a surge in gun violence and after a string of recent deadly incidents, including a massacre at a Texas primary school, has renewed calls for stricter gun regulations in the country.

“Our community was terrorised by an act of violence that has shaken us to our core. Our hearts go out to the families of the victims during this devastating time,” Mayor Nancy Rotering told reporters on Monday afternoon.

PUTIN PRESSES ON AFTER LYSYCHANSK CAPTURE

President Vladimir Putin on Monday ordered Russian troops to press their offensive deeper into the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine after Moscow’s forces seized the strategic city of Lysychansk.

Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu told Mr. Putin at a meeting that Moscow’s forces were now in full control of the Luhansk region.

In a sign there would be no let-up in the fighting and that Russia now had its eyes on the entire Donetsk region, Mr. Putin told Mr. Shoigu that troops stationed there must continue their operations. “Military units, including the East group and the West group, must carry out their tasks according to previously approved plans,” Mr. Putin said. “I hope that everything will continue in their direction as has happened in Luhansk so far.”

The Ukrainian Army said on Sunday it was retreating from Lysychansk to preserve the lives of its troops who were outnumbered and outgunned by Russian forces.

With the war now well into its fifth month, Ukraine told a reconstruction conference in Switzerland on Monday that it would already cost $750 billion to rebuild the country.

“The key source of recovery should be the confiscated assets of Russia and Russian oligarchs,” Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal told leaders of dozens of countries in Lugano.

In a video address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described rebuilding Ukraine as the “common task of the whole democratic world” and the “biggest contribution to the support of global peace.”

PAK. ARMY TOLD TO STAY AWAY FROM POLITICS

Pakistan Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa has issued fresh directions to his commanders and officers, including from the ISI, to stay away from politics after leaders of ousted Prime Minister Imran Khan’s party alleged that some officials of the country’s intelligence agency were trying to “manipulate” the upcoming by-elections in Punjab, according to a media report on Monday.

The Pakistan Army had earlier said it had nothing to do with politics and it would remain apolitical in the future as well.

Chief of the Army Staff General Bajwa has issued fresh directions to all his commanders and key officers to stay away from politics and avoid interacting with politicians, The News newspaper reported.

These directions have been given in the wake of Imran Khan-led Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s propaganda against the military establishment alleging certain ISI officials of trying to manipulate the upcoming byelections in Punjab to the disadvantage of the party, the report said.

LANKA OFFERS FUEL QUOTAS TO COS THAT CAN PAY IN DOLLARS

Bankrupt Sri Lanka is offering a guaranteed fuel quota to any company that can pay in dollars. Potential purchasers must pay as much as a month in advance to open a consumer account at state-run Ceylon Petroleum Corp, energy minister Kanchana Wijesekera tweeted on Sunday. Fuel will be issued on a daily or weekly basis from July 12, according to the minister. Sri Lanka has closed public schools and offices through July 10 to conserve fuel as the nation doesn’t have the dollars to pay for imports. Roads across the island have been deserted. “I see this announcement as the natural progression of increased dollarization in Sri Lanka to meet its near term challenges,” said Deshan Pushparajah, head of global markets and investment banking at CAL Sri Lanka. “Dollar preference on the part of the Ceylon Petroleum Corp may drive its larger customers, including the Ceylon Electricity Board, to also make similar pronouncements in the coming weeks. ”

1.7M IN CHINA LOCKED DOWN AFTER FRESH COVID OUTBREAK

Beijing : China placed 1. 7 million people under lockdown in central Anhui province, where authorities reported nearly 300 new cases on Monday in the latest of a string of outbreaks testing Beijing’s no-tolerance approach to Covid-19.

The outbreak in Anhui — where officials first found hundreds of cases last week — comes as the Chinese economy begins to rebound from a months-long lockdown in Shanghai and disruptive Covid restrictions in the capital Beijing. Two counties in the province — Sixian and Lingbi —announced lockdowns last week, with over 1. 7 million residents only permitted to leave their homes if they are getting tested. Footage from state broadcaster CCTV showed empty streets in Sixian over the weekend and people lining up for their sixth round of mass testing in recent days. The province reported 287 new infections on Monday, including 258 people who had no symptoms, according to China’s National Health Commission, bringing the total cases found to just over 1,000. Neighbouring Jiangsu province also reported 56 new local infections across four cities. While cases remain low relative, officials insist the zero-Covid policy is necessary to prevent a healthcare calamity.

PROTESTS IN U.S. OVER SHOOTING OF BLACK MAN

Several hundred protesters marched on Sunday in Akron, Ohio after the release of body camera footage that showed police fatally shooting a Black man with several dozen rounds of bullets.

As anger rose over the latest police killing of a Black man in the United States, and authorities appealed for calm, a crowd marched to City Hall carrying banners with slogans such as “Justice for Jayland”.

The slogan refers to Jayland Walker, 25, who was killed last Monday after officers tried to stop his car over a traffic violation, the police said.

Fourth day in a row

Sunday marked the fourth straight day of protests.

Demonstrations were peaceful but for a tense moment in which some protesters got close to a line of police and shouted at them.

SWEDEN AND FINLAND HOLD NATO TALKS

The Foreign Ministers of Sweden and Finland were holding talks with NATO on Monday on formally starting the process to join the military alliance.

The negotiations, led by Swedish Foreign Minister Ann Linde and Finnish counterpart Pekka Haavisto, were made possible after existing NATO member Turkey last week dropped objections.

Ambassadors from NATO’s 30 member states were on Tuesday expected to sign the accession protocols for Sweden and Finland, opening a months-long period for alliance countries to ratify their membership.

In the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February, Sweden and Finland in parallel announced their intention to drop their military non-alignment status and become part of NATO.

SAUDI ELEVATES 2 WOMEN TO SENIOR POSITIONS IN GOVT

Saudi Arabia has appointed two women to senior positions in government, the latest sign that the kingdom is looking to diversify a predominantly male workforce. Shihana Alazzaz has been named the first female deputy secretary general of the Saudi cabinet, according to a royal decree issued on Sunday. Alazzaz was one of the first women licensed to practice law in Saudi Arabia and joins from the Public Investment Fund, where she was general counsel. As part of the changes, Princess Haifa bint Mohammed Al Saud has been appointed as deputy minister of tourism. She was previously assistant minister of tourism, in charge of implementing the kingdom’s tourism strategy — a key plank of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s goal of diversifying the economy.

COPENHAGEN SHOOTING: SHOPPING MALL GUNMAN CHARGED WITH MURDER

A 22-year-old man suspected of killing three people at a shopping centre in Denmark's capital Copenhagen has been charged with murder.

Two Danish citizens, both aged 17, and a 47-year-old Russian citizen were killed in Sunday's attack.

Police said the suspect had mental health issues and there is no indication of a terror motive.

He had a rifle and a knife and his shooting was random - "not motivated by gender or anything else" - they said.

The suspect appeared in front of a court in a blue T-shirt accompanied by three heavily armed officers, Danish media report.

The suspect's lawyers refused to enter a plea for the accused while the media were present and the judge ordered the rest of the hearing to be behind closed doors. The judge also imposed a name ban on both the suspect and the victims.

The suspect will be remanded in a closed psychiatric ward for 24 days, authorities said.

Speaking to reporters earlier on Monday, police chief Soeren Thomassen said they believed the suspect - described as "an ethnic Dane" - was acting alone and was not helped by anyone else.

DROUGHT EMERGENCY DECLARED IN NORTHERN ITALY

Italy has declared a state of emergency in five northern regions surrounding the Po River amid the worst drought in 70 years.

Emilia-Romagna, Friuli Venezia Giulia, Lombardy, Piedmont and Veneto will be given €36.5m (£31m; $38m) in emergency funds to tackle the water shortage.

The drought threatens more than 30% of Italy's agricultural produce, according to the agricultural union Coldiretti.

Several municipalities have already announced water rationing.

Unusually hot weather and low rainfall across winter and spring have compounded water shortages in northern Italy.

"The state of emergency is aimed at managing the current situation with extraordinary means and powers," the Italian government said.

It said it could take further measures if the situation did not improve.

The Po is Italy's longest river, flowing eastward for more than 650km (404 miles).

Farmers in the Po Valley say salty seawater is now seeping into the river, destroying crops.

Over the weekend, at least seven people died after being caught in an avalanche sparked by the collapse of a glacier in the northern Italian Alps.

Prime Minister Mario Draghi said this was "without doubt" linked to global warming.