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Wednesday briefing: Truck terror arrives in New York
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Top story: Attack suspect named as Sayfullo Saipov
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Good morning – Warren Murray here with overnight developments.
A national of Uzbekistan living in the US since 2010 has been named as the suspect shot and arrested after a vehicle ploughed down a bicycle and pedestrian path in New York City. Eight people were killed and at least 11 others injured, in what authorities are calling a terrorist attack. We’ve got the main points for you in this briefing and are continuing to cover the aftermath live. Here is our latest news wrap, as well as a rundown on what we know so far.
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The pick-up style utility vehicle also hit a school bus, injuring two adults and two children inside. The Tuesday afternoon attack happened near Manhattan’s prestigious Stuyvesant public high school, and a few blocks from the One World Trade Center at 9/11 “ground zero”.
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The suspect has been named as Sayfullo Saipov, 29, and he remains under guard in hospital. Police shot the driver after he got out of the vehicle wielding what were described as paintball and pellet guns. Law enforcement officials told reporters that as he emerged the driver was heard yelling “Allahu Akbar”, Arabic for “God is great”. He was filmed running through the streets before police gunfire brought him down.
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The victims are still being identified this morning. Five friends from Argentina having a high school reunion are known to be among the dead, along with a Belgian woman. The pick-up had been hired from the hardware chain Home Depot, and the modus operandi followed the pattern of recent attacks in Europe. New York’s governor, Andrew Cuomo, called it a “lone wolf” attack and authorities said they had no evidence of an ongoing threat or wider plot. Officials and witnesses have been on camera describing the terrible scenes.
The Islamic State group routinely claims responsibility for such atrocities – seeking to increase its notoriety, whether or not it is directly involved. Donald Trump saved them the effort, tweeting: “We must not allow Isis to return, or enter, our country after defeating them in the Middle East and elsewhere. Enough!” That was his second tweet about the incident. His first was to condemn the “very sick and deranged person” responsible. The president’s “thoughts, condolences and prayers” for the victims and families eventually arrived in a third tweet that came some time later.
Brexit picks your pocket – The vote to leave the EU is already costing British households more than £600 a year through damaged living standards and lost economic growth, according to one of the UK’s leading forecasters. NIESR has also scaled back its expectations for Britain’s GDP growth and says inflation continues to go up while wages stall. The Bank of England is expected to raise interest rates from 0.25% to 0.5% on Thursday: a double-edged sword, aiming to shore up the pound and stem inflation, but adding to household costs such as mortgage repayments.
‘They turned a blind eye’ – Stories have continued to swirl about MPs engaging in sexual harassment or misconduct and the parliamentary authorities doing little or nothing about it. “I felt so alone: how could they not care?” said one staffer, telling how she complained fruitlessly for months after being pushed on to a hotel room bed. The Labour activist Bex Bailey has said she was raped at a party event in 2011 but told to keep quiet by a party official. There is deep nervousness in Westminster as a spreadsheet continues to circulate that contains the names of 40 Conservative MPs, including 15 ministers, and allegations about their behaviour.
In another overnight development, Damian Green, Theresa May’s deputy, is understood to have instructed lawyers to dispute an article in the Times relating to allegations that he made “inappropriate advances” towards Kate Maltby, a female academic involved in Conservative politics. “This untrue allegation has come as a complete shock and is deeply hurtful, especially from someone I considered a personal friend,” said a statement from Green.
Beyond politics – the Old Vic theatre, which was run by Kevin Spacey for 11 years, has expressed “deep dismay” at allegations against him, while a special Emmy award for the actor will not go ahead. And an events manager has told how confusion and shame led her to drop a police complaint against Harvey Weinstein after a London hotel room encounter in the early 1990s when she was a 19-year-old intern at Miramax.
Stomach drug’s cancer link – Long-term use of drugs known as proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) for acid reflux might more than double the risk of stomach cancer, a study has found. The findings by the University of Hong Kong and University College London have been published in the journal Gut (now there’s one for the coffee table). The bug Helicobacter pylori is also linked to stomach ulcers and cancer, but participants in the study were treated beforehand to wipe it out. Patients on H2 blockers, another class of drugs that reduce stomach acid production, had no increase in cancer prevalence compared with those on PPIs. The authors concluded no firm cause and effect could be drawn, but doctors should “exercise caution when prescribing long-term PPIs”.
Mystery of Trump-Russia professor – There is much intrigue around the UK-based Maltese academic who allegedly lured one of Donald Trump’s advisers with promises of “dirt” from Russia on Hillary Clinton. Joseph Mifsud’s profile includes being a onetime head of the now-vanished London Academy of Diplomacy, a member of the politics faculty at the University of Stirling, and an honorary professor at the University of East Anglia. Mifsud is the professor referred to in the guilty plea entered by George Papadopoulos as part of the Trump-Russia investigation. Trump is portraying Papadopoulos as a “low-level volunteer” but it seems he was something of a rising star within the president’s camp before he dropped off the radar. Speaking of dropping off: as Robert Mueller’s Trump-Russia investigation continues to cast a shadow over the White House, Trump’s Gallup approval rating has fallen to 33%.
End of the ride – Amsterdam has finally banned the notorious “beer bikes” ridden by drunken tourists along its famed canals. The mobile binge sessions are essentially bar tables pedalled along by patrons, who have left residents less than charmed with their rowdiness and public urination. As from Wednesday “the beer bicycle may be banned from the city centre to stop it from being a nuisance”, the Amsterdam district court said in a statement.
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Jess Cartner-Morley looks at services like Rent the Runway in New York and Girl Meets Dress in the UK that offer temporary, subscription-based access to designer garments for a fraction of their sticker price. Welcome to the brave new age of the “closet in the cloud” …
Sport
José Mourinho defended his decision to snub Romelu Lukaku for a second-half penalty, taken and scored by Daley Blind, in Manchester United’s fourth win from four Group A matches: a 2-0 victory over Benfica that sees them move to within a point of the Champions League knockout phase. Antonio Conte, meanwhile, questioned his side’s hunger, desire and will to fight and suggested some players at Chelsea have been guilty of complacency as his team were embarrassed by Roma. And Celtic will reflect on a bittersweet night as their hopes of progressing were ended by Bayern Munich, despite a stirring performance in Glasgow.
The 400m world record holder, Wayde van Niekerk, has been forced to pull out of next year’s Commonwealth Games in Australia after seriously injuring his knee during a celebrity touch rugby match. And the Houston Texans defensive end, Jadeveon Clowney, responded to the team owner apparently describing NFL players as “inmates” when the majority of the roster knelt for the national anthem by dressing in a prison jumpsuit at a Halloween party.
Business
Asian shares have been higher on optimism about global economic growth following gains on Wall Street. China’s yuan has firmed against the US dollar, which has been backpedalling this week on expectations that Donald Trump will appoint interest rate dove Jerome Powell as the next head of the Federal Reserve.
The pound has been trading at $1.327 and €1.141 overnight.
The papers
Only a handful of the first editions got the late-breaking New York attack on their front pages. The Times and the Guardian carried images of the chaos, while the Mirror also led on the attack and its death toll.
The rest were dominated by the Westminster sexual harassment and assault scandal. The Mail covered the story of Labour activist Bex Bailey, 25, who was allegedly attacked by a senior party official when she was 19. The Times also splashed on Bailey, a former member of the party’s national executive committee. The Telegraph also led on the alleged cover-up and Jeremy Corbyn’s decision to call an inquiry. The Guardian says Westminster has been “shaken by two new claims of sexual assault” as well as the separate account from a staffer of being forced on to a bed by an MP during an official visit to Europe.
The Sun takes a strangely lighthearted approach to the Kevin Spacey allegations with the headline “Sleazy Spacey showed me his clock” and a story about a barman claiming to have been flashed at by the actor. From opposite ends of the spectrum, the FT and the Express focus on Brexit. The pink paper voices fears that no deal will “trigger need for 5,000 extra border staff”, while the Express calls for Brexit to arrive sooner because “The EU is costing us £267m a week”.
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