10 things you need to know today: August 13, 2017

White nationalists march in Charlottesville, Virginia, August 12, 2017

(Image credit: Steve Helber/Associated Press)

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1. 3 dead after violence at Charlottesville white nationalist rally
2. Trump under fire for vague Charlottesville response
3. Republicans and Democrats denounce violence, racism, domestic terror in Charlottesville
4. Justice Department launches civil rights investigation in Charlottesville
5. Guam prepares for potential North Korean strike on nearby waters
6. Iranian lawmakers respond to U.S. sanctions with military spending bump
7. Indian hospital under scrutiny after 60 children die in 5 days
8. Canadian pastor home after release by North Korea
9. Omarosa Manigault appearance at black journalism panel sparks controversy
10. World's oldest man dies at 113

last updated 13 August 2017

1. 3 dead after violence at Charlottesville white nationalist rally

Three people died in connection to the violence that broke out at a white nationalist rally and counter-protest in Charlottesville, Virginia, on Saturday. The first death was the result of what eyewitnesses described as a deliberate vehicle attack on a crowd of anti-racist demonstrators. Authorities have arrested James Alex Fields Jr. of Ohio on suspicion ramming his car into pedestrians, killing one, a 32-year-old woman, reportedly a paralegal named Heather Heyer, and injuring 19 more. At least 15 other people were wounded, and three other men were arrested on assorted charges related to protest violence. The other two deaths were state police officers, Lt. H. Jay Cullen and Trooper Berke M.M. Bates, killed in a helicopter crash outside the city. The cause of the crash remains undetermined, but foul play is not suspected.

President Trump came under broad criticism this weekend for failing to denounce white nationalism while commenting on the violence in Charlottesville Saturday. "We condemn in the strongest possible terms this egregious display of hatred, bigotry, and violence," Trump said, adding, "on many sides, on many sides." "Did Trump really say that he condemns the violence on 'many sides'?" asked Black Lives Matter activist DeRay Mckesson. "The white folks with tiki torches brought the violence, own it." It is "Very important for the nation to hear @potus describe events in #Charlottesville for what they are, a terror attack by #whitesupremacists," tweeted Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.).

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While President Trump's response to the violence in Charlottesville Saturday was slammed for its ambiguity, other politicians on both sides of the aisle were much more specific in their condemnation of the white nationalists' message, associations, and methods. "'White supremacy' crap is worst kind of racism," tweeted former Gov. Mike Huckabee (R), adding, "it's EVIL and perversion of God's truth." Lawmakers including Sens. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) and Cory Gardner (R-Colo.) labeled the vehicle attack domestic terrorism. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said this "reprehensible display of racism ... has no place in our society."

The Department of Justice has opened a federal civil rights investigation into the violence at Saturday's white nationalist rally and counter-protest in Charlottesville, Virginia. "The violence and deaths in Charlottesville strike at the heart of American law and justice," said Attorney General Jeff Sessions. "When such actions arise from racial bigotry and hatred, they betray our core values and cannot be tolerated." The vehicle attack that left one dead will be a central focus of the probe. Sessions reported the FBI is already working with state and local law enforcement at the scene.

Authorities in Guam are preparing for the possibility of North Korea firing non-nuclear missiles into nearby ocean waters later this month. Residents of the Pacific island U.S. territory have been warned of an "imminent missile threat" and instructed on how to stay safe. President Trump spoke with Guam's Gov. Eddie Baza Calvo (R) Friday, assuring him of Guam's safety and suggesting the news coverage could be a boon for the tourist industry. Tourism is "going to go up, like, tenfold with the expenditure of no money," Trump said, "so I congratulate you."

The Iranian parliament on Sunday voted to increase expenditures on the nation's ballistic missile program and Revolutionary Guards in response to new U.S. sanctions. Lawmakers described the spending bump as a way to "counter America's terrorist and adventurist actions." The legislation "was designed wisely so that it does not violate the nuclear deal and provide excuses for opposing sides," said Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, giving Iran "potential and actual options to confront hostile U.S. actions." Some members of parliament reportedly chanted the slogan "Death to America" when the bill passed.

India's Baba Raghav Das hospital, a public facility in the state of Uttar Pradesh, has come under scrutiny after some 60 children died in its care over the course of just five days. The hospital chief has been suspended amid allegations that many of the deaths stem from a shortage of oxygen supplies due to mismanagement and unpaid bills. Hospital staff and patients' families frantically attempted to provide manual oxygen support, but in many cases they were unsuccessful. "We will know — whether it was because of an oxygen shortage or due to a lack of proper treatment," promised top local official Yogi Adityanath. "Those found guilty will not be spared."

A Canadian pastor who was held in a North Korean prison for nearly two years returned to his home in Ontario Saturday, his family reported. A pastor at Light Korean Presbyterian Church, Hyeon Soo Lim was arrested in North Korea in December of 2015 and sentenced to hard labor for life on charges of attempting to overthrow Kim Jong Un's government. Canadian authorities negotiated for his release, which North Korean state media attributed to humanitarianism. "He's doing very, very well considering everything he has gone through," said Lim's son, James Lim.

White House aide and former Apprentice contestant Omarosa Manigault sparked controversy when she appeared in a panel discussion at the annual conference of the National Association of Black Journalists on Friday. The panel was titled, "Black and Blue: Raising Our Sons, Protecting Our Communities," and Manigault was asked to address President Trump's recent comments apparently endorsing policy brutality. "I'm not going to stand here and defend everything about Donald Trump," Manigault said, labeling the line of questions an inappropriate dismissal of her "family story."

Israel Kristal, the oldest man in the world, died Friday, his family reported Saturday, after becoming ill Thursday. He was 113, just one month shy of his 114th birthday. Born to an Orthodox Jewish family in Poland in 1903, Kristal lived through both world wars and survived imprisonment in Nazi Germany's Auschwitz concentration camp, where his first wife was murdered. Two of Kristal's children were also killed during the Nazi occupation of Poland, but in spite of "all that he went through ... he had a lot of optimism," said his daughter, Shula Koperstoch.

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Bonnie Kristian was a deputy editor and acting editor-in-chief of TheWeek.com. She is a columnist at Christianity Today and author of Untrustworthy: The Knowledge Crisis Breaking Our Brains, Polluting Our Politics, and Corrupting Christian Community (forthcoming 2022) and A Flexible Faith: Rethinking What It Means to Follow Jesus Today (2018). Her writing has also appeared at Time Magazine, CNN, USA Today, Newsweek, the Los Angeles Times, and The American Conservative, among other outlets.