Mother of British-Israeli sisters killed in West Bank attack dies in hospital
The mother of two British-Israeli sisters killed in a shooting attack in the West Bank has died of her wounds.
Israel’s Hadassah hospital announced the death of Lucy Dee, 45, on Monday.
She had been in a coma after the family’s car was attacked by suspected Palestinian militants on Friday.
The scene of the attack in the Jordan Valley area of the West Bank
Her daughters, Maia and Rina Dee, aged 20 and 15, died at the scene when their car was shot at and forced off the road.
The husband and father of the victims – who witnessed the attack from another car – was unharmed, but Mrs Dee was airlifted to hospital in a critical condition.
Rabbi Leo Dee broke down at his daughters’ funeral on Sunday as he paid tribute to his “beautiful angels”.
He also spoke of his hopes that his wife would recover.
“How will I explain to Lucy what has happened to our two precious gifts?” he asked.
The attack happened near Hamra, about 30 miles north of Jerusalem, but the family are believed to have lived in a settlement near Bethlehem.
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Rabbi’s tribute after daughters killed
Maia and Rina Dee’s siblings clutched their bodies at the funeral
Sky’s Middle East correspondent said the targeting of cars with Israeli number plates in the West Bank had become “far more commonplace in the last few weeks”.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited the scene and has vowed to catch the killers.
He said extra border police and IDF (Israel Defence Forces) had been called up “to confront the terror attacks”.
The Board of Deputies of British Jews tweeted that “our hearts go out to the Dee family”.
“Our community, alongside Jewish communities around the world, mourns their loss. May their memories be for eternal blessing,” it added.
Rabbi Dee was senior rabbi at Radlett United Synagogue in Hertfordshire from 2011-2014 and assistant rabbi in Hendon, north London, from 2008-2011.
The family moved back to Israel in 2014, said Mordechai Ginsbury, a rabbi at the Hendon synagogue.
He said the Dees were the “nicest, loveliest people” and he was “so, so sorry”.
“To think that in a few moments, so senselessly and painfully, this has happened, such a tragic loss of life, of goodness, is just devastating,” added Mr Ginsbury.
A car drove at people in Tel Aviv on Friday. Pic: AP
Alessandro Parini, 30, was killed in the attack. Pic: Facebook
Italian tourist Alessandro Parini was also killed on the same day as the attack on the Dee family when a car drove at people in the coastal city of Tel Aviv.
Police shot the attacker dead as he reached for his weapon but five other tourists, including Britons, were hurt in the incident near the Charles Claure Promenade.
An Israeli security source identified the assailant as an Israeli Arab from the town of Kafr Qassem.
Friday’s attacks came after Israel launched early morning strikes on Lebanon and Gaza in response to rocket attacks on Thursday that it blamed on militant group Hamas.
Tensions are also high in the region following police raids on Al Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem as the Muslim and Jewish festivals of Ramadan and Passover coincide.
Read more:
Why is there tension over Jerusalem holy site?
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Why did police raid Al Aqsa Mosque?
Stun grenades and tear gas were fired in the early hours of Wednesday after several hundred Palestinians remained after prayers.
Israeli police said they tried to clear them peacefully but that a small group – some of whom had fireworks, sticks and stones – barricaded themselves in.
Locals blamed Israeli authorities for the violence while Jordan and Egypt, who have been involved in peace talks, condemned the police’s actions.
UK
Harshita Brella: International manhunt under way for husband after woman’s body found in car boot
An international manhunt is under way for the husband of a murdered woman, whose body was found in the boot of a car.
The body of Harshita Brella was found in east London on Thursday, tens of miles away from her home in Corby.
On Sunday, Northamptonshire Police said they were looking for Pankaj Lamba – who they believe has left the country.
Sky News understands she had been under the protection of a court order designed for victims of domestic abuse.
“Our inquiries lead us to suspect that Harshita was murdered in Northamptonshire earlier this month by her husband Pankaj Lamba,” said chief inspector Paul Cash.
“We suspect Lamba transported Harshita’s body from Northamptonshire to Ilford by car.”
“Fast track” enquires were made after the force was contacted on Wednesday by someone concerned about Ms Brella’s welfare. After she failed to answer the door at her home in Skegness Walk, Corby, a missing person investigation was launched.
Her body was found inside the boot of a vehicle on Brisbane Road, Ilford, in the early hours of Thursday morning.
A post mortem – conducted at Leicester Royal Infirmary on Friday – established she had been murdered.
Harshita Brella, 24, from Corby. Her body was found in a car in east London. Pic: Northamptonshire Police
More than 60 detectives are working on the case, with lines of enquiry including going house to house and property searches, as well as looking at CCTV and ANPR.
“We are of course continuing to appeal for any information that will help us piece together exactly what happened as we work to get justice for Harshita,” said chief inspector Cash.
“I urge anyone listening to or reading this statement, that if you saw anything suspicious in the past week or have any information, no matter how small, please contact us. We would always rather receive well-meaning information that turns out to be nothing as opposed to not receiving it all.”
Pankaj Lamba. Pic: Northamptonshire Police
Force referred to police watchdog
On Saturday, Northamptonshire Police said it had made a mandatory referral to the Independent Office for Police Conduct due to previous contact between the force and the victim.
Northamptonshire Police previously said officers had been conducting investigations at three locations: Skegness Walk and Sturton Walk in Corby and Brisbane Road, Ilford, where Ms Brella’s body was found.
East Midlands Special Operations Major Crime Unit (EMSOU) and Northamptonshire Police said they were working “around the clock to establish the circumstances behind her death, including the exact location and timeframe in which it took place”.
State-of-the-art technology has been used to create a voice for King Richard III – giving him a Yorkshire accent.
A digital avatar of the medieval king’s head went on display in front of excited history fans at York Theatre Royal.
Richard III was king of England from 1483 until his death at the Battle of Bosworth in 1485, at the age of 32.
His remains were found in a car park in Leicester in 2012 by historian Philippa Langley.
Speaking about the recreation, she said: “We’ve got leading experts in their fields who have been working on this for 10 years and so everything has been meticulously researched, meticulously evidenced, so you are seeing the most accurate portrayal of Richard III”.
A team based at Face Lab at Liverpool John Moores University created the avatar based on the reconstruction of Richard III’s head with the help of a craniofacial expert.
Experts from various fields helped put the pieces of the puzzle together, including speech and language therapy, dentistry, forensic psychology and archaeology.
His voice has been created by Professor David Crystal, a leading linguist in 15th-century pronunciation. He admitted that it’s impossible to know exactly how he spoke, but this is as close as they will get.
The king was born in Northampton but spent a lot of his life in Yorkshire. His parents were also from the north of England.
Vocal coach Yvonne Morley-Chisholm spent a decade researching how the monarch would have sounded. She worked with the actor Thomas Dennis who was chosen as his body and face were such a good physical match.
Speaking to Sky News, she said people will be shocked at how different he sounded compared with traditional portrayals of the king on stage and screen.
The coach and actor also examined the king’s letters and diary so that “as you pronounced a word that’s how you would write it”.
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The voice shows the change in pronunciation over the centuries – from regional variations to the Queen’s English.
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History fans at the unveiling were delighted with the accent, with one telling Sky News: “Northerners are known to be happy, positive, all those lovely qualities.”
Born in Northampton but a northerner through and through, technology has brought the king’s speech back to life
South Yorkshire Police have warned pet owners to “step up before someone dies” after receiving 13 reports of dangerous dogs in less than 48 hours.
One man was attacked by his own American bulldog in Sheffield on Thursday afternoon, the force said, when he attempted to separate it and a pocket bully inside a property.
The owner suffered lacerations to his face, neck and head, and was taken to hospital, while his dog was seized and remains in police kennels.
Warning: Distressing images below
Another incident saw a woman walking home with her baby in a carrier on her chest, when she was approached by a loose XL bully who began to show aggression and jump up to her baby.
An elderly woman and her grandchild were attacked by another loose dog in Sheffield.
“As dogs causing harm and fear in our communities continues to place significant demand on our force, we’re urging owners to step up, before someone dies,” South Yorkshire Police said in a statement.
Some of the injuries caused by the American bulldog attack. Pic: South Yorkshire Police
The warning comes after 10-year-old Savannah Bentham was killed at her family’s home in North Yorkshire by their dog on 1 November.
Read more:
Murdered woman found in car boot ‘may have been ‘targeted’
How victims of road accidents are being forgotten and failed
Chief Inspector Emma Cheney, leading the work on dangerous dogs across South Yorkshire, said: “Recently we have sadly seen another fatal incident in the UK of a dog causing death.
“People think it won’t happen to them, that their dog won’t cause harm, but it can happen to anyone. Any dog can cause fear and harm and owners who do not step up and prevent harm to our communities will not be tolerated.
“You are responsible for your dog’s actions, and we continue to put people before the courts.
“We only have a limited number of resources, attending dangerous dog incidents takes officers away from other calls. If every owner steps up and makes small changes, we can make a difference.”
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