The city of Omaha, located in Nebraska, is the subject of this article. On Saturday, residents began examining the debris following a tornado that tore through suburban Omaha, Nebraska. The tornado caused extensive damage to homes and businesses as it traveled miles across farmland and into residential areas.

A crowd assembled in the streets of the Elkhorn region in Omaha amidst the fragmented remnants of the residences. Nebraska Governor Jim Pillen intends to visit the area and after that conduct a press briefing on Saturday in Omaha.

The tornadoes that occurred on Friday night caused extensive destruction in the Midwest. One building collapsed, trapping numerous individuals inside, while hundreds of residences were either destroyed or damaged.

Residents Begin Going Through The Rubble After Tornadoes Hammer Parts Of Nebraska And Iowa

Multiple injury incidents have been documented. However, no deaths have been reported.

Three individuals sustained injuries in Lancaster County, Nebraska, as a result of a tornado striking an industrial structure, leading to its collapse while containing 70 occupants. Multiple individuals were confined. However, all individuals were successfully removed from the premises, and the injuries sustained were deemed non-fatal, as stated by the police.

A devastating tornadoes traveled a considerable distance on Friday, first affecting agricultural land before causing significant damage to residences and other buildings in the suburban areas of Omaha. Omaha has a population of 485,000 people and a metropolitan area of approximately 1 million.

Images shared on social media platforms also depict extensive destruction in the small town of Minden, Iowa, which is located approximately 30 miles (48 kilometers) northeast of Omaha.

During a briefing on Friday, Jeff Theulen, the top deputy of the Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office, stated that 40 to 50 homes had been entirely demolished. Two injuries were documented, but none risked the individuals’ lives.

According to him, school buses have been sent to provide transportation for residents who require it to leave the area. He requested that others refrain from entering the area due to its high level of hazard, characterized by fallen power lines and heaps of debris where houses once stood.

“It is truly distressing to witness these individuals who have suffered the loss of their homes, vehicles, and essentially their entire livelihood until they are able to reconstruct it,” he expressed.

The Saturday forecast was foreboding. The National Weather Service issued tornado watches for northern Texas and western Oklahoma on Saturday morning.

“There is a possibility of tornadoes, potentially significant tornadoes, occurring on Saturday afternoon and evening,” stated Bruce Thoren, a meteorologist from the weather service in Norman, Oklahoma.

Areas of Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, and Arkansas were under tornado warnings. Meteorologists warned that significant hail and powerful gusts of wind could occur.

Omaha police Lieutenant Neal Bonacci reported that numerous residences in Omaha, particularly in the Elkhorn district in the city’s western region, sustained damage on Friday. In response, police officers and firefighters visited households to provide assistance.

Several recently constructed, spacious residences in a specific section of Elkhorn sustained significant damage. A minimum of six structures were severely damaged, with one completely demolished and others experiencing significant damage to their upper sections. A multitude of emergency cars swiftly arrived at the location.

Residents Begin Going Through The Rubble After Tornadoes Hammer Parts Of Nebraska And Iowa

According to Pat Woods, a resident of Elkhorn, we observed the touchdown of the object approximately 200 yards away before seeking shelter. “We were able to perceive its approach.” Upon our arrival, we discovered that our fence had disappeared. As we gazed towards the northwest, we observed that the entire neighborhood had vanished.

Kim Woods, his spouse, stated, “The entire residential area located to the north of our location has been severely devastated.”

According to Dhaval Naik, who claims to work with the owner of the residence, three individuals, including a toddler, were present in the basement of the destroyed house during the tornadoes. However, they managed to escape unharmed.

A video from KETV-TV depicted the evacuation of a woman from a destroyed residence in Blair, a city located to the north of Omaha. The woman was transported on a stretcher.According to Bonacci, two individuals were brought for medical care, both of whom sustained minor injuries.

“The few serious injuries were prevented because people were given warnings,” stated Omaha Police ChiefTodd Schmaderer.

A tornado warning was issued in the Omaha vicinity on Friday afternoon, coinciding with the scheduled departure of students from school. Several schools implemented a shelter-in-place protocol for kids until the storm subsided.

“Was it a single continuous tornado or were there multiple tornadoes?” Kern from the National Weather Service inquired.

According to her, the agency intended to dispatch numerous teams in the next few days to assess the quantity and intensity of the tornadoes. This process could last up to a fortnight.

A tornado struck an area on the eastern periphery of Omaha, causing direct damage to sections of Eppley Airfield, the city’s airport. Aircraft operations were temporarily suspended to assess the damage, but the facility was subsequently reopened, according to Steve McCoy, Chief Strategy Officer of the Omaha Airport Authority.

Residents Begin Going Through The Rubble After Tornadoes Hammer Parts Of Nebraska And Iowa

Although the tornadoes did not directly strike the passenger terminal, McCoy stated that individuals promptly sought refuge in storm shelters until the tornadoes subsided.

Following its path through the airport, the tornado over the Missouri River entered Iowa, specifically to the north of Council Bluffs.

According to sheriff’s officials, in Lancaster County, three individuals sustained injuries as a result of the collapse of an industrial facility. Additionally, there have been reports of a train that has tipped over near Waverly, Nebraska.

Approximately 10,000 customers in the Omaha area experienced a power outage, as reported by the Omaha Public Power District. On Saturday morning, the number had decreased to slightly over 4,300.

Pillen, the governor of Nebraska, announced on the social media platform X that he had directed the allocation of state resources to assist in the emergency response and help first responders evaluate the extent of the damage.

SOURCE – (AP)

A rapper in Iran who rose to prominence for his rhymes about Mahsa Amini’s death in 2022 and criticism of the Islamic Republic has been sentenced to death, his lawyer and rights campaigners said Thursday.

The death sentence handed down to 33-year-old metal shop worker Toomaj Salehi remains unclear, as even Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency and judiciary have yet to formally announce it.

However, the announcement attracted immediate worldwide criticism from US and UN experts, who saw it as a symptom of Tehran’s ongoing assault on all dissent following years of large rallies in the country.

“Art must be allowed to criticize, provoke, and push the boundaries in any society,” a panel of United Nations independent experts on Iran said in a statement Thursday.

The news broke on Wednesday, following a report by Iran’s reformist The Shargh newspaper reported that Salehi had been sentenced to death by a Revolutionary Court in Isfahan, a key Iranian city recently attacked by an apparent Israeli attack. Closed-door sessions, secret evidence, and scant rights for people on trial are common in Iran’s revolutionary courts.

Rapper to Appeal Sentence

Amir Raisian, Salehi’s lawyer, told The Associated Press on Thursday that he had received notice of the death sentence against his client. Raisian said he intended to seek an appeal.

Salehi’s case arises from Amini’s death in 2022, following her arrest by police for not wearing a hijab to their liking. According to United Nations investigators, Iran was responsible for Amini’s death and forcefully suppressed mostly peaceful rallies during a months-long security crackdown that killed more than 500 people and jailed over 22,000 others.

Salehi rapped about Amini in one YouTube video, saying, “Someone’s crime was dancing with her hair in the wind.”

In another lyric, he prophesies the end of Iran’s theocracy. “Your entire past is dark, the government that sucked the light out of your eyes. We begin at the base of the pyramid and work our way up. This is the year of failure after forty-four years in power.”

His other songs were obscene, criticizing the all-volunteer Basij component of Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard and mentioning Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Salehi was first sentenced to six years in prison, but he was released after Iran’s Supreme Court returned the case to the lower court due to irregularities in his original sentence.

Released on Bond

Salehi was released on bond, but was arrested again in November after claiming in a video message that he had been tortured following his detention in October 2022. At the time, state media aired a video of him blindfolded and apologizing for his statements, which were most likely uttered under duress.

Iran’s judiciary refused to acknowledge the death sentence, despite IRNA referring to “reports” that he had received it.

A death sentence based on the reversal of a lesser sentence is exceedingly unprecedented in Iran, presumably indicating how seriously Iran’s theocracy took Salehi’s statements. It also comes after other journalists, activists, and singers have been targeted after the “Women, Life, and Freedom” protests against Amini.

An Iranian artist, who received a Grammy presented by US first lady Jill Biden, was condemned to more than three years in prison for his hymn supporting the 2022 protests Activists quickly denounced the rappers sentence.

“This grotesque manipulation of the judicial process aims to silence dissent,” Hadi Ghaemi of the New York-based Center for Human Rights in Iran stated. “Toomaj’s detention arises from his public opposition to state tyranny. It is critical that supporters of free speech and dissent come together to demand his immediate release.”

Washington criticized the sentencing as well.

“This is just another example of the Iranian regime’s horrific and pervasive human rights abuses,” said State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel on Wednesday. “We once again condemn the Iranian regime’s … use of the death sentence as a tool to suppress people’s human rights and fundamental freedoms.”

The following information is from an article published by the Associated Press: Rarely has there been such a lucrative opportunity as betting on Donald Trump’s failure.

Despite significant buying activity from Trump supporters and volatile fluctuations that frequently coincide with the candidate’s current polling results, legal proceedings, and public statements on Truth Social, a tenacious group of primarily non-professional Wall Street investors have successfully earned millions of dollars in recent weeks by speculating that the stock price of Trump’s social media company, Truth Social, will continue to decline.

Rooting For Trump To Fail Has Made His Stock Shorters Millions

Many of the interviewed investors, as reported by The Associated Press, claim that their pessimistic investments using “put” options and other trading instruments are motivated not by their personal opinions of the former president (most of whom do not hold a favorable view), but rather by their confidence in the dismal financial performance of a company that earned less money last year than the average Wendy’s hamburger franchise.

“This company is not profitable. … “It is illogical,” stated Elle Stange, an advertising executive from Boise, Idaho, who approximates that she has earned $1,300 by wagering against Trump Media & Technology shares. “He overestimates his abilities as a businessman.” Many of his ventures fail rapidly.

Jeff Cheung, an IT security professional in Seattle, is certain that this will eventually reach a value of zero.

By Friday morning, exactly one month after Trump Media’s IPO caused its stock to soar to $66.22, it had sharply declined to $38.49. According to an investigation by AP using data from research firms FactSet and S3 Partners, investors who use puts and engage in “short selling” have currently accumulated paper profits of at least $200 million. This figure does not consider the fees associated with puts, which can vary from one deal to another.

However, novice traders, who often only risk a few thousand dollars each, believe that the stock’s volatility makes it premature to claim success. Currently, they are capitalizing on their investments, allowing other bets to remain active, and discreetly observing the most recent fluctuations in stock prices in various locations such as their office cubicle, kitchen table, or even while using the toilet.

Other alarming occurrences have occurred, such as last week, when the stock ticker for the former president, DJT, suddenly increased by around 40% within a span of two days.

“I am uncertain about the future movement of the stock,” states Richard Persaud, a day trader from Schenectady, N.Y., as he checks his iPhone during the sudden increase in stock prices. “The current valuation is excessively inflated.”

Those who spoke with the AP perceived it as an additional political advantage to be aware that their bets resulted in a 50% decline in the value of Trump’s 65% investment. If any of their forecasts prove accurate, they may eventually reduce it to zero, rendering it difficult for him to utilize it to pay his substantial legal expenses or fund his Republican presidential campaign.

They still have a considerable distance to cover. The value of Trump’s interest remains at $4 billion.

Typically, investors anticipating a decline in a stock’s value, particularly a bold group of hedge fund traders known as “short sellers,” will conduct extensive research. They will thoroughly examine financial accounts, acquire specialized knowledge in a particular business, engage in discussions with competitors, and may even seek assistance from “forensic accountants” to uncover concealed vulnerabilities in financial records.

There is no requirement for Trump Media’s case. The corporation’s comprehensive 100-page financial report, which is situated in Sarasota, Florida, contains all the necessary information. The company incurred significant losses of $58 million in the previous year despite generating only $4 million in income from advertising and other sources.

According to the auditor’s assessment, the losses incurred by Trump Media are significant and cast doubt on its capacity to continue operating.

Is this a dream scenario for a short seller? Or is it a terrifying dream?

Manny Marotta, an inexperienced trader, has two computer screens at his house. One screen is used for business, while the other displays the movements of DJT stock, allowing him to assess his gains or losses.

Rooting For Trump To Fail Has Made His Stock Shorters Millions

The situation appeared unfavorable early this week.

The legal writer from suburban Cleveland had earned a profit of approximately $4,000 on the purchase of “put” options made in the previous weeks. However, the television display that morning depicted investors, likely affluent individuals, purchasing substantial quantities of DJT shares, causing the stock to rise once more.

“The value of my options is decreasing with each passing minute,” remarks Marotta, further stating that DJT is being manipulated. “It’s absurd.”

Anticipating a decrease in stock value is particularly agonizing for “short sellers,” who incur a fee to borrow shares from other individuals. The concept is to promptly sell the items based on intuition and thereafter repurchase the same quantity at a significantly lower price prior to returning them to the lender. Short sellers are able to keep the profit they make from the difference after deducting a small fee.

In the instance of DJT, the charge is far from being modest.

At one point early this month, the annual cost reached 565%, which implies that short sellers would have only two months before any potential profits would be completely offset by fees, even if the company became worthless. According to data from Boston University’s Karl Diether and Wharton’s Itamar Drechsler, who have researched short selling over the past twenty years, just three other equities in recent memory have surpassed this exceptionally high rate.

If there is a significant increase in purchasing by Trump supporters who view it as a means of endorsing their candidate, the potential losses might rapidly escalate.

“It is alarming,” states Drechsler, who compares purchasers of Trump’s stock to steadfast sports enthusiasts. “It embodies all the characteristics that one would typically hope the stock market does not possess.”

According to Shannon Devine, a spokesperson for Trump Media, the company now possesses a substantial amount of $200 million in cash and has no outstanding debts. Devine also criticized the Associated Press (AP) for allegedly favoring those who openly oppose Donald Trump.

Seattle trader Cheung views DJT’s unusual traits as a motive to place a bet against the company rather than avoiding it. Once the lock-up period expires, the ex-president is expected to sell his shares, causing a significant decline in the market and price decline. Furthermore, suppose he chooses not to do so. In that case, other individuals with insider information whose lock-up periods are ending will be apprehensive that he would take action, prompting them to swiftly take advantage of the opportunity to sell at a favorable price before it declines.

Rooting For Trump To Fail Has Made His Stock Shorters Millions

“The individual who sells out first will make the most profit,” Cheung asserts. “All individuals will engage in selling.”

However, he is taking measures to mitigate any financial losses by hedging some of his “put” wagers with the acquisition of “calls.” The latter are likewise financial instruments derived from an underlying asset, but they have an inverse relationship with the stock price, resulting in profits when the stock price increases. Cheung anticipates that regardless of whether the puts or the calls generate profits, he will earn sufficient returns from one to compensate for the loss incurred by the other.

If this appears excessively intricate, a more straightforward approach exists to generate profits by placing bets against Trump.

Offshore betting firms, which have designated President Joe Biden as the frontrunner for the 2024 election, are accepting 2024 election wagers.

SOURCE – (AP)