Australian police officer who used Taser on 95-year-old woman found guilty of manslaughter

A police officer who shocked a 95-year-old nursing home resident with a Taser was found guilty of manslaughter in an Australian court Wednesday.

A jury found Kristian James Samuel White guilty in the trial in Sydney after 20 hours of deliberation. White, who is on bail, could get up to 25 years in prison when he is sentenced later.

Clare Nowland, a great-grandmother who had dementia and used a walker, was refusing to put down the steak knife she was holding when the officer discharged his Taser at her in May 2023. Nowland fell backward after White shocked her and died a week later in hospital.

GRANDMOTHER, 95, DIES AFTER POLICE SHOCK HER WITH STUN GUN: 'COMMUNITY IS OUTRAGED'

Police said at the time that Nowland sustained her fatal injuries from striking her head on the floor, rather than directly from the device’s debilitating electric shock.

White's employment is under review and is subject to legal processes, NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb told reporters after the verdict.

"The court has found Claire Nowland died as a result of the actions of a police officer. This should never have happened," Webb said, as she offered her "deepest condolences" to Nowland's family. The state's police reviewed its Taser policy and training in January and no changes to it were made, she added.

In video footage played during the New South Wales Supreme Court trial, White was heard saying "nah, bugger it" before discharging his weapon, after the officers told Nowland 21 times to put the knife down. White, 34, told the jury he had been taught that any person wielding a knife was dangerous, the Guardian reported.

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But after an eight-day trial, the jury rejected arguments by White's lawyers that his use of the Taser was a proportionate response to the threat posed by Nowland, who weighed about 100 pounds.

The prosecutor argued that White's use of the Taser was was "utterly unnecessary and obviously excessive," local news outlets said.

The extraordinary case provoked debate about how officers in the state use Tasers, a device that incapacitates using electricity.

Nowland, a resident of Yallambee Lodge, a nursing home in the town of Cooma, was survived by eight children, 24 grandchildren and 31 great-grandchildren, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported.

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2,000-year-old fig unearthed in Ireland marks ‘oldest example of an exotic fruit’ discovered in the area

A fig dating back 2,000 years ago was found during excavations of Drumanagh in Dublin. The finding shines light on the foods that were traded between the Roman Empire and Ireland thousands of years ago. 

The 2,000-year-old fig is one of many items that have been unearthed during excavations in the area. Among other finds include metal and ceramic objects, as well as additional food remains, according to University College Dublin's release about the ancient find. Food remains were able to stay preserved due to their burned condition. 

The ancient fig provides new insights into the goods traded between the Roman Empire and Ireland. 

2,000-YEAR-OLD ROMAN ROAD DISCOVERED BY ARCHAEOLOGISTS IN LONDON

"Fig seeds dating to as far back as the 13th century have been recovered from excavations of medieval Dublin, Cork and other towns," Professor Merial McClatchie, director of the UCD Ancient Foods research group at UCD School of Archaeology, said per the news release. 

The ancient find is a first-of-its kind for Ireland. 

"An actual fruit has never been found in Ireland until now, but what is most important about the Drumanagh fig is its antiquity. It is without parallel in Ireland and is by far the oldest example of an exotic fruit found here," McClatchie said. 

Trade routes between the Roman Empire and Ireland allowed for the exchange of food. Before this find, it was unknown by researchers that figs made their way to Ireland thousands of years ago. 

NEW SUBWAY SYSTEM IN GREECE PUTS ARCHAEOLOGICAL FINDS DISCOVERED DURING CONSTRUCTION ON DISPLAY FOR PASSENGERS

"It’s thrilling to imagine someone enjoying such an exotic food here in Ireland so long ago," McClatchie said, per the news release. 

The excavations of Drumanagh have been led by Christine Baker, Heritage officer and archaeologist at Fingal County Council. 

She and her team were able to unearth many ancient objects beyond food remains. All the finds together have helped researchers better understand how people in Ireland lived thousands of years ago. 

"Our excavations have revealed more of the story of those living and working at Drumanagh," said Baker per the news release. "We now know there was an importation, not just of goods but of lifestyle. By these windswept cliffs people were consuming spelt bread, olive oil and figs, drinking from glass vessels and fine ceramic cups while wearing brooches and glass beads. The evidence so far points to a connection with Chester/Wirral area of Roman Britain during the first 200 years of the Roman conquest." 

Ireland has been a location full of food-related finds through the years. Another recent example of an ancient find in Ireland came from County Donegal, where a farmer found a 60-pound slab of bog butter on his land by means he called "pure luck." 

He found the bog butter after discovering a "cheesy" scent in the air. While bog butter is not considered an incredibly rare find in the area, with around 500 finds recorded in Ireland, it was more unique in its size. 

The 60-pound slab was described as one that could be "one of the biggest chunks of bog butter found in Ireland to date," according to Paula Harvey, an archaeologist who visited the site, per The Irish News. 

"It was just by pure luck that we came across it," Micheal Boyle, who found the bog butter said, per the Irish Examiner, explaining that he saw something in the ground, and was surrounded by a "cheesy smell," leading him to quickly conclude what he had discovered. 

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China releases 3 'wrongfully detained' Americans, White House says

China is releasing three Americans Wednesday who the White House says were "wrongfully detained," Fox News has confirmed.

"We are pleased to announce the release of Mark Swidan, Kai Li, and John Leung from detention in the People’s Republic of China," a National Security Council spokesperson said. "Soon they will return and be reunited with their families for the first time in many years. Thanks to this Administration’s efforts and diplomacy with the PRC, all of the wrongfully detained Americans in the PRC are home."

Mark Swidan of Texas was 38-years old when he went to China on business looking for flooring for construction work in November 2012. He was arrested after his driver and translator were allegedly found with drugs, the Texas Tribune has reported. 

A United Nations report determined that Swidan was not in possession of drugs on his person or in his hotel room, and records show he was not in China at the time of the alleged offense. 

CHINA FREES US PASTOR AFTER NEARLY 20 YEARS OF WRONGFUL DETAINMENT

The U.N. report said that the 11 other people arrested with Swidan as part of the alleged trafficking ring were unable to identify him and that the conviction was based on his visiting a factory that had once been used to manufacture methamphetamine. 

His mother Katherine Swidan told Fox News last year that she wanted President Biden to demand Mark's release.

"I want him to say his name. I want him to be strong and make some demands. Diplomacy is important, I understand that, but this has been going on too long," Katherine Swidan said at the time. "He is not well at all. He's lost 100 pounds."

CHINA DETAINS SUSPECT ACCUSED OF SPYING FOR BRITAIN'S SECRET INTELLIGENCE SERVICE 

Harrison Li, the son of Kai Li, told Fox News around a year ago that his father was detained in China while traveling there for a memorial service for his own mother.

"He was not allowed to get off the plane. As soon as he landed at Shanghai Pudong Airport, agents from the Ministry of State Security whisked him away and nobody has been able to see him outside of the prison ever since," Li said.

A website set up to raise awareness for Li said he had been held in China "since September 2016 on politically motivated charges of espionage and stealing state secrets. 

"He is currently serving a 10-year prison sentence at Shanghai’s Qingpu Prison," it added.

Leung, who has permanent residency in Hong Kong, was also sentenced on espionage charges in 2023, according to The Wall Street Journal.

He was first detained in April 2021. A friend of Leung told the newspaper that he was involved in charity work supporting low-income elderly people and students in Jiangsu province and has organized tours between the U.S. and China for musicians.  

Fox News’ Kate Sprague, Andrew Mark Miller and Kristine Parks contributed to this report. 

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Unidentified drones spotted over US bases in the UK, do not appear belong to 'hobbyists'

Unidentified drones have been spotted over joint U.S.-U.K. bases in the United Kingdom for nearly a week.

Fox News’ Jennifer Griffin reports that four U.S. military bases in the U.K. that house the American F-15 Strike Eagle and F-35 fighter jets have been targeted by "swarms of small drones" since Wednesday, Nov. 20. 

Military officials say they are "alarmed" at what appears to be a coordinated effort to test security at RAF Lakenheath, RAF Mildenhall and RAF Feltwell in eastern England, as well as RAF Fairford in southwestern England.

The U.K. military has sent around 60 personnel to protect the bases being targeted by multiple drone incursions.

RUSSIAN FORCES CAPTURE FORMER BRITISH SOLDIERS FIGHTING FOR UKRAINE IN KURSK: REPORT

A senior U.S. official told Fox that the drones do not appear to be those of "hobbyists." Witnesses say they are small quadcopters and octocopters and are more sophisticated than those that can be bought off the shelf. 

Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said earlier Tuesday that none of these drone incursions have impacted the base residents, the facilities or U.S. assets on the bases. 

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"We, of course, always maintain the right to defend ourselves if we deem something to be a threat," Ryder said. 

U.S. officials have not revealed the origin of the drones, but the coordinated nature suggests an aggressive state actor that began a day after Ukraine used long-range American ATACMs to target Russia after President Biden lifted restrictions on the use of longer-range missiles. 

Soon after, President Vladimir Putin said his country had the right to strike nations that allow their weapons to be used against Russia.

The U.K. Defense Ministry said it is working closely with U.S. and local police to find out what these drones are doing and whether a foreign adversary is involved. 

"The number of systems has fluctuated, and they have ranged in sizes and configurations," U.S. Air Forces Europe said in a statement. "Our units continue to monitor the airspace and are working with host-nation authorities and mission partners to ensure the safety of base personnel, facilities and assets."

The incursion of drones comes a month after Fox first reported that surveillance drones flew for 17 days near Langley Air Force Base in Virginia last December. Those drones were large but pose a similar challenge to base commanders. 

Lakenheath is home to the 48th Fighter Wing, which the U.S. Air Force describes as the foundation of its combat capability in Europe. Mildenhall hosts the 100th Air Refueling Wing, and Feltwell is a hub for housing, schools and other services. Fairford is home to the 501st Combat Support Wing Headquarters and the 420th Air Base Squadron.

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6 dead as protests erupt in Pakistan over jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan

Supporters seeking the release of imprisoned Pakistani former Prime Minister Imran Khan broke through a ring of shipping containers blocking off the capital on Tuesday, and battled security forces despite a government threat to respond with gunfire. Six people have died in the violence.

Thousands of security forces have poured into central Islamabad in an attempt to quell protests in support of Khan that have gripped the capital and its surrounding areas since Sunday. The popular politician has been in jail for over a year and faces more than 150 criminal cases that his party says are politically motivated.

Authorities say only courts can order the release of Khan, who was ousted in 2022 through a no-confidence vote in Parliament. He has been imprisoned since his first conviction in a graft case, in August 2023.

FORMER PAKISTANI PRIME MINISTER IMRAN KHAN SENTENCED TO 10 YEARS IN PRISON IN CIPHER CASE

On Tuesday, Pakistan’s army took control of D-Chowk, a large square in downtown Islamabad’s Red Zone, which houses key government buildings and is where visiting Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko is staying. Paramilitary rangers and police were also out in force and some fired warning shots into the air.

Still, Khan’s wife, Bushra Bibi, who is leading the protests, made slow progress toward the square in a heavily guarded convoy, surrounded by well-wishers.

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi threatened that security forces would respond with live fire if protesters fired weapons at them.

"We have now allowed police to take any decision according to the situation," Naqvi said later while visiting the square.

IMPRISONED FORMER PAKISTANI PM IMRAN KHAN ADDRESSES IMF IN ELECTION AUDIT PUSH

Protester Shahzor Ali said people were on the streets because Khan had called for them to be there. "We will stay here until Khan is among us. He will decide what to do next," Ali said.

"If they again fire bullets, the bullet will be responded with the bullet," he said.

Protester Fareeda Bibi, who is not related to Khan’s wife, said people have suffered greatly for the last two years.

"We have really suffered for the last two years, whether it is economically, politically or socially. We have been ruined. I have not seen such a Pakistan in my life," she said.

Police so far have used tear gas in an attempt to disperse the crowds. The dead include four members of the security services and one civilian who were killed when a vehicle rammed them on a street overnight into Tuesday. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif denounced the attack, saying an "anarchist group" was deliberately targeting law enforcement personnel. There was no claim of responsibility for the ramming. A police officer died separately.

Scores of people have also been injured, including journalists who were attacked by demonstrators. Dozens of Khan supporters beat a videographer covering the protest for The Associated Press and took his camera. He sustained head injuries and was treated in a hospital.

VISITATION PRIVILEGES REVOKED FOR IMPRISONED EX-PAKISTANI PM IMRAN KHAN AFTER REPORTS OF POSSIBLE ATTACK

Pakistani media have mostly stopped filming and photographing the rally, instead focusing on the security measures and the city’s deserted streets.

By Tuesday afternoon, fresh waves of protesters made their way unopposed to their final destination in the Red Zone. Most demonstrators had the flag of Khan’s party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, around their shoulders or wore its tricolors on accessories.

Naqvi said Khan’s party rejected a government offer to rally on the outskirts of the city.

Information Minister Atta Tarar warned there would be a severe government reaction to the violence.

He said the government did not want Bushra Bibi to achieve her goal of freeing Khan. "She wants bodies falling to the ground. She wants bloodshed," he said.

In a bid to foil the unrest, police have arrested more than 4,000 Khan supporters since Friday and suspended mobile and internet services in some parts of the country and messaging platforms were also experiencing severe disruption in the capital.

Khan’s party relies heavily on social media to demand Khan’s release and uses messaging platforms such as WhatsApp to share information, including details of events. The X platform, which is banned in Pakistan, is no longer accessible, even with a VPN.

On Thursday, a court prohibited rallies in the capital and Naqvi said anyone violating the ban would be arrested. Travel between Islamabad and other cities has become nearly impossible because of shipping containers blocking the roads. All educational institutions remain closed.

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Trump, Congress looking to put suffocating sanctions on 'kangaroo' ICC over Netanyahu arrest warrant

JERUSALEM — The scandal-plagued International Criminal Court’s decision to issue arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Jewish state’s former defense minister has brought the court into the crosshairs of a potent American sanctions regime.

The ICC last week slapped arrest warrants on Netanyahu and ex-Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for their war plans involved in rooting out Hamas terrorism in the Gaza Strip.

Hamas slaughtered nearly 1,200 people on Oct. 7, 2023, in southern Israel, including over 40 Americans. 

Israeli news outlet Kan said President-elect Trump’s administration plans to initiate sanctions against the ICC judges who issued the warrants, including the court’s chief prosecutor, Karim Khan.

THUNE THREATENS INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT WITH SANCTIONS IF IT DOESN'T DROP NETANYAHU WARRANT FOR ARREST

The British chief prosecutor, Khan, is currently the subject of a probe based on allegations that he committed sexual misconduct, something that he has vigorously denied, noting that there was "no truth to suggestions" of such behavior, according to reports.

Avi Bell, a professor of law at the University of San Diego and Bar Ilan University in Israel and founding dean of the Israel Law and Liberty Forum's annual program on law and democracy, told Fox News Digital, "Several years ago, the ICC threatened to charge American soldiers for alleged crimes in Afghanistan. The fact that the ICC lacked jurisdiction did not cause the ICC to pause even for a second. It was only President Trump’s sanctions against the ICC (during his first term) that forced the ICC to obey the law and drop its threat to prosecute Americans. Sanctions against the ICC will work; persuasion will not."

Trump’s nominee for national security adviser, Mike Waltz, announced on X, "You can expect a strong response to the antisemitic bias of the ICC and U.N. come January."  

One of Trump’s key Senate partners, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., upped the ante in a recent Fox News interview, saying, "To any ally, Canada, Britain, Germany, France, if you try to help the ICC, we’re going to sanction you."

Rabbi Abraham Cooper, the associate dean for the L.A.-based Simon Wiesenthal Center, warned democratic states that they could face persecution from the judicial activism of the world’s top war crimes court based in The Hague, Netherlands.

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He told Fox News Digital, "The warrant from a kangaroo court makes a mockery of justice and is a victory for Iran and its terrorist lackeys. Israeli leaders are guilty of defending their citizens from genocidal terrorists. France and the Netherlands were the first to confirm they would arrest PM Netanyahu and the list could reach 124 nations. Democracies beware you could be next."

Both the Clinton and George W. Bush administrations branded the ICC a defective judicial system for Americans and rejected joining the international body.

"The arrest warrants against Netanyahu and Gallant are legally a joke, but they constitute a very serious development," Bell said. "Under Karim Khan’s predecessors as ICC prosecutor, the ICC was merely ineffective. Khan has ushered in an era of political buffoonery in which the court devotes the bulk of its resources to political grandstanding. With the new indictments, the court is grandstanding on behalf of terrorists and some of the world’s worst criminals."

When approached for a comment about Bell’s criticism, ICC spokesperson Fadi El Abdallah told Fox News Digital, "We don’t comment on such declarations."

The legal scholar urged countries to walk away from the ICC, saying, "The ICC will only desist from its course if it is forced to pay a heavy price. Countries should withdraw from the Rome Statute and cease paying dues. They should impose sanctions on the ICC and forbid cooperation with the ICC. And so long as the ICC persists in issuing warrants for persons over whom it has no jurisdiction on trumped-up charges, ICC personnel should face criminal sanctions for attempted kidnapping and support for terrorism."

The ICC, which commenced operations in 2002, bases its authority on the signatories of the Rome Statute, which outlines four core international crimes that the court will prosecute: genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and crimes of aggression, all of which are "not subject to any statute of limitations" but limited to only crimes that occurred after the statute came into force.

When asked if anti-Jewish sentiments animated the ICC warrants, Bell said, "I do not get the impression that the warrants are due to the ICC judges’ personal antisemitism. The ICC has always preyed on the politically weak: formerly African countries and now the Jewish state. It is widespread antisemitism in the West, especially among progressives, that makes Israel politically weak and vulnerable. The ICC may be bigoted, but the ICC’s attempt to prosecute Israelis despite their legal innocence is really a sign of a much greater institutional moral depravity than mere bigotry."

BIDEN REVERSES TRUMP, LIFTS SANCTIONS ON INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT

Gabriel Noronha, a former U.S. Department State adviser on Iran who is now a fellow at the Jewish Institute for National Security of America, told Fox News Digital the ICC has known that it could face penalties for its legal action against the Mideast’s only democracy, Israel, but the ICC "decided to ignore diplomacy and face the repercussions of the United States." 

He added that U.S. sanctions would mean that affected ICC personnel will not be able to secure visas to enter the U.S. and their property and bank accounts will be frozen in America. 

"The sanctions could be pretty broad and include family members," Noronha noted.

Noronha echoed Graham's remarks. A second Trump administration, he said, could implement a "Diplomatic strategy to impose penalties on countries that cooperate with these particular ICC warrants."

Some European countries have already slammed the ICC decision. Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg wrote on X, "The ICC decision to issue arrest warrants for Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant is utterly incomprehensible. International Law is non-negotiable and applies everywhere, at all times. But this decision is a disservice to the Court‘s credibility."

He continued, "It is absurd to create an equivalence between members of a democratically elected government and the leader of a terrorist organization."

The ICC also issued an arrest warrant for the already dead Hamas terror leader Muhammad Deif.

Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala flatly dismissed the International Criminal Court’s decision to issue arrest warrants against Israeli leaders.

"The ICC’s unfortunate ruling undermines authority in other cases by equating the elected representatives of a democratic state with the leaders of an Islamist terrorist organization," he wrote on X.

Conservative Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán accused the ICC of "interfering in an ongoing conflict for political purposes," saying the decision to issue the warrant for Netanyahu over his conduct of the war in Gaza undermined international law and escalated tensions.

The U.S. and the European Union have classified Hamas as a foreign terrorist organization.

The Associated Press and Fox News' Peter Aitken contributed to this article.

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Russian forces capture former British soldier fighting for Ukraine in Kursk: report

Russian forces captured a former British Army soldier who was fighting with Ukrainian troops in the Kursk region, according to reports on Monday.

In a video, the prisoner of war was sitting on a bench with his hand restrained as he identified himself as 22-year-old James Scott Rhys Anderson.

Russia’s Tass news agency reported on Monday that Russian security officials confirmed a British mercenary had been captured in the Kursk area.

"I was in the British Army before, from 2019 to 2023, 22 Signal Regiment," Anderson told Russian authorities while being recorded. "Just a private. I was a signalman. One Signal Brigade, 22 Signal Regiment, 252 Squadron."

RUSSIA TRICKS YEMENI MEN TO FIGHT IN UKRAINE UNDER HOUTHI SCHEME

He expressed regret for joining Ukraine in its fight against Russia, explaining he had nearly lost everything.

When he left the military, he got fired from his job and applied on the International Legion (of Ukraine) webpage.

"I had just lost everything. I just lost my job. My dad was away in prison. I see it on the TV," Anderson said while shaking his head. "It was a stupid idea."

RUSSIA IS SUPPLYING HOUTHIS WITH SATELLITE DATA TO ATTACK SHIPS IN THE RED SEA: REPORT

The International Legion for Defense of Ukraine was created at the request of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy after Russia’s full-scale invasion of the country in February 2022.

The Associated Press reported that the Legion is a unit of Ukraine’s ground forces that mainly consists of foreign volunteers.

Anderson reportedly served as an instructor for Ukrainian troops and was deployed to the Kursk region against his will.

In the video, he said his commander took his stuff — passport, phone and other items — and ordered him to go to the Kursk region.

UKRAINE TO ANALYZE FRAGMENTS OF MISSILE FIRED BY RUSSIA CAPABLE OF CARRYING NUCLEAR WARHEADS

"I don’t want to be here," Anderson said. 

The AP could not independently verify the report, but if confirmed, it said this could be one of the first publicly known cases of a Western national getting captured on Russian soil while fighting for Ukraine.

The U.K. Embassy in Moscow told the wire officials were "supporting the family of a British man following reports of his detention" though no other details were provided.

Anderson’s father, Scott Anderson, told Britain’s Daily Mail that his son’s Ukrainian commander informed him the young man had been captured.

The senior Anderson also said his son served in the British military for four years, worked as a police custody officer, and then went to Ukraine to fight. He told the paper he tried to convince his son not to join the Ukrainian military, and now fears for his safety.

"I’m hoping he’ll be used as a bargaining chip, but my son told me they torture their prisoners, and I’m so frightened he’ll be tortured," he told Britain’s Daily Mail.

While being questioned, the younger Anderson talked about how he got to Ukraine from Britain, saying he flew to Krakow, Poland from London Luton. From there, he took a bus to Medyka in Poland, which is on the Ukrainian border.

Anderson’s capture comes amid reports Russia is recruiting hundreds of Yemeni men to fight in its war in Ukraine by luring them to Russia under false pretenses in coordination with the Houthi terrorist network, as reported by the Financial Times.

A senior Ukrainian defense official told Fox News that Moscow is trying to involve as many foreign mercenaries as possible in its war against Ukraine, whether from its allies or proxies in poor, impoverished countries.

The Ukrainian Ministry of Defense similarly confirmed the report to Fox News and said, "Russi[a] has escalated this war twice recently. First, when they brought North Korean fighters, and second, when they used [a] ballistic missile in Ukraine."

Fox News Digital’s Caitlin McFall and Nana Sajaia, as well as The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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