Latest news with #forensicmedicine
France 24
2 days ago
- Health
- France 24
In Syria's Sweida, bodies wait to be identified at overwhelmed hospital
"We have handed 361 bodies over to family members, but we still have 97 unidentified corpses," a forensic medicine official at facility said on condition of anonymity. Clashes erupted on July 13 in Syria's Druze-majority province of Sweida between local fighters and Sunni Bedouin, spiralling and drawing in government forces, tribal allies of the Bedouin and the military of neighbouring Israel. Witnesses, Druze factions and a monitor have accused government forces of siding with the Bedouin and committing abuses including summary executions when they entered Sweida last week. More than 1,100 people, most of them Druze fighters and civilians, have been killed, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor, whose toll also includes several hundred government security personnel. Health authorities have not released a comprehensive death toll. More than 450 bodies had been taken to Sweida's main hospital by Sunday evening, while bodies were still being collected from streets and homes in the city. "The dead bodies sent a terrible smell through all the floors of the hospital," said nurse Hisham Breik, who said he had not left the facility since the violence began. "The situation has been terrible. We couldn't walk around the hospital without wearing a mask," he said, his voice trembling, adding that the wounded included women, children and the elderly. Medical personnel have been working in tough conditions at the hospital, which has seen clashes around it and has been flooded with wounded, some of whom were lying in the corridors. Bodies have yet to be removed from villages in Sweida province's north and west, the hospital administration and health workers said. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said that hospitals and health centres in Sweida province were out of service, with "reports of unburied bodies raising serious public health concerns". Humanitarian access to Sweida "remains highly constrained", it said a statement late Sunday. 'Catastrophe' The Sweida national hospital has remained open despite the dire situation that has also included supply shortages and water and power cuts. A first Syrian Red Crescent convoy entered Sweida on Sunday carrying UN humanitarian assistance including food, water, medical supplies and fuel, OCHA said. A Red Crescent official told AFP the supplies included body bags. Another convoy facilitated by the Red Crescent was to leave Damascus on Monday, OCHA said. But as the supplies were unloaded on Sunday, activist Moatasem Aflak, who works for a body affiliated with the Sweida health department, told AFP that the aid "doesn't cover everything required". "We received water and medical supplies but we need more because we are facing a medical catastrophe," he said, adding that a list of requirements had been handed to the Red Crescent. "We haven't yet been able to count the bodies" and some families have been unable to arrive to identify their loved ones, Aflak said. "We are trying to cooperate with the Red Crescent to put the bodies in bags and establish a mass grave to transfer them to," he added. According to the United Nations, the violence has displaced more than 128,000 people, an issue that has also made collecting and identifying bodies more difficult.
Al Bawaba
27-05-2025
- Al Bawaba
Horrific murder leaves man without ears in Turkey
Published May 27th, 2025 - 06:08 GMT ALBAWABA - A man in his fifties sparked widespread concern in Turkey when he was horrifically murdered in Denizli province. His ears were cut off and allegedly stolen, which prompted local police to launch an investigation into the matter in question, as reported by Erem News. 56-year-old farmer Khaled Terry was found dead in his garden by one of his neighbors, with several reports indicating that he was found earless with severe damage to his face. However, local media reported that Terry didn't suffer from stab wounds or other injuries, raising further questions about the nature of the murderer. Horrific murder leaves man without ears in Turkey Additionally, when an investigation was launched at the scene, local police couldn't locate the ears, deeming them stolen. Khaled Terry's body was transferred to the forensic medicine department as part of the investigation. The suspect's identity remains unknown, but investigations are underway. © 2000 - 2025 Al Bawaba (
News.com.au
15-05-2025
- News.com.au
Erin Patterson trial: Victoria's chief toxicologist tells jury death cap mushroom toxins found
Samples taken from a dehydrator were found to contain toxins 'exclusively' linked to death cap mushrooms, jurors in Erin Patterson's trial have been told. Victoria's chief toxicologist Dimitri Gerostamoulos was called to give evidence on Thursday about a series of tests conducted at the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine. He told the court the Institute was provided with a series of items for testing by police on August 29, 2023 – a month after Ms Patterson hosted a fatal lunch at her Leongatha home. The items were leftovers from the lunch, a fruit platter, a white jug containing a brown liquid, and vegetable matter or debris located in a dehydrator. Prosecutor Sarah Lenthall told Dr Gerostamoulos the jury a day earlier had heard from mycologist Camille Truong, who examined the leftovers under a microscope and found no traces of death cap mushrooms. Asked to explain how the Institute's testing differed, he said 'we don't rely on visual detection of compounds'. 'We rely on sensitive instruments to be able to detect very low quantities that are not visible,' he said. Dr Gerostamoulos said no testing was conducted on the fruit platter, and no amanitins – toxins found in death cap mushrooms – were detected in the brown liquid. But he said samples of meat, pastry and mushroom paste from the lunch were tested. In three of four mushroom paste samples no alpha-amanitin or beta-amanitin toxins were found, but in one sample they detected beta-amanitin. Beta-amanitin toxins were also detected in one meat sample, he said. In samples supplied of 'vegetable matter' located in a dehydrator, Dr Gerostamoulos said both alpha-amanitin and beta-amanitin toxins were detected. Questioned by Justice Christopher Beale if those toxins were 'exclusively' found in death cap mushrooms, Dr Gerostamoulos responded: 'Yes'. Dr Gerostamoulos is expected to return to the witness box when the trial resumes on Friday morning. Ms Patterson is facing trial after pleading not guilty to the murder of three of her husband's relatives and the attempted murder of one more. Simon Patterson's parents, Don and Gail Patterson, and his aunt Heather Wilkinson died from death cap mushroom poisoning in the week after eating a beef wellington at Ms Patterson's home on July 29, 2023. Heather's husband, Ian Wilkinson, recovered after spending a month and a half in hospital. Prosecutors allege Ms Patterson deliberately spiked the lunch with 'murderous intent', while her defence argues the case is a 'tragic accident'. The trial continues.
Daily Mail
14-05-2025
- Daily Mail
Horror as monitor lizard is found devouring a newborn baby in Thailand
This is the horrifying moment a monitor lizard was found devouring a newborn baby in Thailand today. The seven-foot beast sparked alarm when it was seen scampering around the grassy wasteland with the infant's remains in its jaws. Paramedics and animal catchers arrived at the scene in Samut Prakan on the outskirts of Bangkok, where they found the killer reptile gnawing on the baby's body in the thick, tall grass. However, it fled under the concrete fence when they tried to catch it. Footage shows the Godzilla-like creature hiding in its swampy nook and feasting on the baby's dismembered lower half while officers recovered the head and torso nearby. Rescue volunteer Chaiwat Boonmee said: 'The monitor lizard had dragged the baby's body under a nearby house, making it difficult to recover the remaining parts. 'The rest of the body was handed over to the Institute of Forensic Medicine for a post-mortem examination to determine the cause of death.' A resident who reported the gruesome discovery to police said he had initially mistaken the baby's remains for a fish. He said: 'At first, I thought the monitor lizard had caught a fish. But upon closer inspection, I saw that it was actually a baby's body and quickly called for help. 'I felt sick to my stomach because the baby had been torn to pieces by the animal.' Authorities believe the baby had been born around two days earlier before being killed and eaten alive by the ravenous reptile. Police said an investigation was underway to locate the child's parents for legal action. Under Thai law, abandonment of a child under nine years old is punishable with a prison term of up to three years, a fine of up to £135, or both. Monitor lizards are a common predator in Southeast Asian countries. However, they usually feed on fish or small snakes and rarely attack humans. Back in 2020, a newborn baby boy was eaten by monitor lizards after being dumped next to a pond. The infant was discovered by a group of boys who went to play by the waterside in Nakhon Si Thammarat, southern Thailand. One 10-year-old child reported the find to a security guard and told police he had smelled something strange then noticed a black bag next to the pond. Police officers and ambulance crew attended the scene and searched the waterside where the baby was found. They believe that the bite wounds on the infant's body were from monitor lizards, which live in the pond and normally eat fish and scraps of food from bins.
