Ahmed Ghedi and Abdihakim Ahmed received $7.3M in COVID relief funds meant for child nutrition programs

By Anders Hagstrom Fox News

Published August 27, 2026 10:55am EDT

FBI adds alleged covid fraudster to most wanted list

Fox News reports on the FBI adding Fahad Mohamed Nur, an alleged covid fraudster, to the agency’s Most Wanted List. Nur is accused of stealing $5 million from a kids’ meal program, laundering taxpayer dollars meant to feed children. Contributor Gerry Baker discusses the need for strict enforcement against fraud in large government programs, especially to restore public faith and deter future schemes.

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A judge in Minnesota sentenced two men to prison on Wednesday for running a massive pandemic fraud campaign.

Ahmed Ghedi was sentenced to over five years in prison, and Abdihakim Ahmed was sentenced to four and a half years. Prosecutors say the pair helped run the fraudulent child nutrition site Feeding Our Future, which claimed to be giving food to thousands of children each day in the Twin Cities area.

The pair received $7.3 million in COVID relief funds meant to help support the program. Instead, they used the money to buy a car and property, as well as share the cash with a Feeding Our Future employee.

EXCLUSIVE: FBI ADDS ALLEGED COVID FRAUDSTER ACCUSED OF TAKING $5M FROM KIDS’ MEAL PROGRAM TO MOST WANTED LIST

The FBI raided the Twin Cities nonprofit Feeding our Future in St. Anthony, Minn., on Thursday, January 20, 2022. The FBI says the St. Anthony-based nonprofit was part of a broad scheme to defraud the USDA of millions, funneling money from federally funded child nutrition programs to an array of entities to launder the money and use it for personal real estate, cars and other luxury items.(Elizabeth Flores/Star Tribune via Getty Images)

The judge also ordered the men to pay restitution, with Ahmed to pay $2,242,590 and Ghedi $2,862,451.

Their sentencing comes months after the mastermind behind the Feeding Our Future scam, Amee Bock, was sentenced to nearly 42 years in prison in May.

Bock ran the Feeding Our Future organization and was convicted of orchestrating $250 million in pandemic relief fraud.

Prosecutors told the court the nonprofit functioned as a “cash pipeline,” relying on a web of fake distribution sites, fabricated lists of children and kickbacks.

MINNESOTA MAN MARKS FBI’S FIRST ARREST FROM DOJ’S ‘MOST WANTED FRAUDSTERS’ LIST

Aimee Bock wipes tears from her face as she is sentenced in a sketch from federal court, Thursday, in Minneapolis. Bock, the former leader of a Minnesota nonprofit who was convicted in a $250 million fraud case, was sentenced to 42 years in prison.(Cedric Hohnstadt)

During sentencing, Bock told the federal court, “I understand I failed. I failed the public, my family, everyone.”

MINNESOTA FRAUD REPORT ACCUSES STATE AG OF ‘INCOMPETENCE, WILLFUL BLINDNESS OR WORSE’

U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger announces a major COVID-related fraud case in Minneapolis on Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2022, detailing charges against the director of Feeding Our Future and 46 others in what prosecutors call a massive scheme to steal more than $250 million meant to feed children during the pandemic.(Glen Stubbe/Star Tribune via Getty Images)

The sprawling investigation has led to the convictions of dozens of people, many hailing from the state’s large Somali community.

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The Feeding Our Future scheme spurred the Trump administration’s surge of federal officers to the Minneapolis-St. Paul area last winter, which led to violent protests and multiple fatal federal officer-involved shootings.

Fox News’ Alexandra Koch contributed to this report.

Anders Hagstrom is a reporter with Fox News Digital covering national politics and major breaking news events.

特朗普禁止美国电网使用部分外国制设备

2026年8月27日 21:14 / 联合早报

• 特朗普以电网面临外国攻击风险为由宣布紧急状态，限制企业购买进口或安装部分外国制造的大容量电力系统设备。 – 行政令针对受美武器制裁国家及违反美利益的外国政府，虽未点名中国，但美方长期担忧中国制造电网零部件的安全隐患。 – 特朗普警告外国电网设备软件或隐匿数码后门，随着人工智能数据中心发展，美国对稳定供电依赖加深，瘫痪后果更严重。 – 美军同日宣布拨款二十二亿美元在五个基地建小型核反应炉，计划二〇二八年九月投运，以降低本土电网故障对军方影响。

美国总统特朗普星期三（8月26日）说，人工智能数据中心等高科技项目迅速发展，使美国更加依赖稳定电力供应；一旦电网瘫痪，造成的破坏将比过去更严重。图为美国得克萨斯州首府奥斯汀一座在建发电厂。 （法新社档案照片）

（华盛顿综合电）美国总统特朗普以电力需求不断增加、电网面临外国势力攻击风险为由，宣布全美进入紧急状态，并限制企业购买、进口或安装部分外国制造的大容量电力系统设备。

特朗普星期三（8月26日）签署行政令，称外国供应的大容量电力系统设备对美国国家安全、外交政策和经济构成非同小可的威胁。

行政令要求美国能源部长为继续使用和运行相关电网设备设定条件，以加强电网安全。特朗普当天也说，人工智能数据中心和其他高科技项目蓬勃发展，使美国越来越依赖稳定供电；一旦电网瘫痪，造成的破坏将比过去严重得多。

他警告，外国制造的电网设备软件可能隐匿数码“后门”，让其他国家能够控制，甚至停止设备运作。

大容量电力系统是指由高压输电线路、变电站和发电厂构成的电网，在全美范围内输送电力。

新措施针对美国实施武器制裁的国家，以及被视为违反美国利益的外国政府。行政令没有点名中国，但中国制造的电网零部件多年来一直让美国安全官员感到担忧。

美国及欧洲近年来已加强对中国制造电力设备的审查。欧盟今年早些时候已禁止公共能源项目使用中国制造的电源逆变器（inverter）。美国专家去年检查电网设备安全性时，也在中国制造的太阳能电源逆变器中发现一些未列入产品清单的部件。

国际能源署（IEA）数据显示，中国约占全球电池和太阳能电源逆变器制造产能的八成。美国商务部2020年的一项调查也指出，美国过去10年进口大量中国制造的大型电力变压器。

随着太阳能电源逆变器、电池管理系统等设备越来越普遍具备远程监控和控制功能，相关设备也带来潜在网络攻击风险。美国两党议员此前曾警告，中国科技公司华为生产的太阳能逆变器可能遭网络攻击，并对美国电网构成风险。美国网络安全和基础设施安全局（CISA）今年4月也曾警告，美国基础设施面对伊朗支持的网络攻击威胁。

与此同时，美国军方也在加强军事设施的能源自主能力。美军星期三宣布拨款22亿美元（约28亿新元），在美国五个军事基地建造小型核反应炉，以降低本土电网出现问题时对军事设施的影响。

美军计划争取在2028年9月让首个核反应炉投入运作。美国陆军负责设施与能源事务的高官瓦克斯曼在记者会上说：“我们现在知道，国内电网面临潜在风险。我们也知道，一旦发生冲突，我们未必能轻易将化石燃料输送到任何需要的地方。”

目前，美国陆军的重要基础设施在无法使用常规电网时，主要依靠柴油作为备用能源。

军方认为，这些小型核反应炉有望在未来为阿拉斯加或岛屿等偏远地区的军事设施提供能源。

特朗普禁止美国电网使用部分外国制设备

2026年8月27日 21:14 / 联合早报

• 特朗普以电网面临外国攻击风险为由宣布紧急状态，限制企业购买进口或安装部分外国制造的大容量电力系统设备。 – 行政令针对受美武器制裁国家及违反美利益的外国政府，虽未点名中国，但美方长期担忧中国制造电网零部件的安全隐患。 – 特朗普警告外国电网设备软件或隐匿数码后门，随着人工智能数据中心发展，美国对稳定供电依赖加深，瘫痪后果更严重。 – 美军同日宣布拨款二十二亿美元在五个基地建小型核反应炉，计划二〇二八年九月投运，以降低本土电网故障对军方影响。

美国总统特朗普星期三（8月26日）说，人工智能数据中心等高科技项目迅速发展，使美国更加依赖稳定电力供应；一旦电网瘫痪，造成的破坏将比过去更严重。图为美国得克萨斯州首府奥斯汀一座在建发电厂。 （法新社档案照片）

（华盛顿综合电）美国总统特朗普以电力需求不断增加、电网面临外国势力攻击风险为由，宣布全美进入紧急状态，并限制企业购买、进口或安装部分外国制造的大容量电力系统设备。

特朗普星期三（8月26日）签署行政令，称外国供应的大容量电力系统设备对美国国家安全、外交政策和经济构成非同小可的威胁。

行政令要求美国能源部长为继续使用和运行相关电网设备设定条件，以加强电网安全。特朗普当天也说，人工智能数据中心和其他高科技项目蓬勃发展，使美国越来越依赖稳定供电；一旦电网瘫痪，造成的破坏将比过去严重得多。

他警告，外国制造的电网设备软件可能隐匿数码“后门”，让其他国家能够控制，甚至停止设备运作。

大容量电力系统是指由高压输电线路、变电站和发电厂构成的电网，在全美范围内输送电力。

新措施针对美国实施武器制裁的国家，以及被视为违反美国利益的外国政府。行政令没有点名中国，但中国制造的电网零部件多年来一直让美国安全官员感到担忧。

美国及欧洲近年来已加强对中国制造电力设备的审查。欧盟今年早些时候已禁止公共能源项目使用中国制造的电源逆变器（inverter）。美国专家去年检查电网设备安全性时，也在中国制造的太阳能电源逆变器中发现一些未列入产品清单的部件。

国际能源署（IEA）数据显示，中国约占全球电池和太阳能电源逆变器制造产能的八成。美国商务部2020年的一项调查也指出，美国过去10年进口大量中国制造的大型电力变压器。

随着太阳能电源逆变器、电池管理系统等设备越来越普遍具备远程监控和控制功能，相关设备也带来潜在网络攻击风险。美国两党议员此前曾警告，中国科技公司华为生产的太阳能逆变器可能遭网络攻击，并对美国电网构成风险。美国网络安全和基础设施安全局（CISA）今年4月也曾警告，美国基础设施面对伊朗支持的网络攻击威胁。

与此同时，美国军方也在加强军事设施的能源自主能力。美军星期三宣布拨款22亿美元（约28亿新元），在美国五个军事基地建造小型核反应炉，以降低本土电网出现问题时对军事设施的影响。

美军计划争取在2028年9月让首个核反应炉投入运作。美国陆军负责设施与能源事务的高官瓦克斯曼在记者会上说：“我们现在知道，国内电网面临潜在风险。我们也知道，一旦发生冲突，我们未必能轻易将化石燃料输送到任何需要的地方。”

目前，美国陆军的重要基础设施在无法使用常规电网时，主要依靠柴油作为备用能源。

军方认为，这些小型核反应炉有望在未来为阿拉斯加或岛屿等偏远地区的军事设施提供能源。

英国三机场遭网络攻击 870万名客户个资外泄

2026年8月27日 22:00 / 联合早报

英国曼彻斯特机场集团星期四（8月27日）说，旗下三座机场遭网络攻击，约870万名客户的个人资料被窃取。图为一名空中交通管制员在曼切斯特机场的控制塔内工作。 （彭博社档案照）

英国曼彻斯特机场集团说，旗下三座机场遭网络攻击，约870万名客户的个人资料被窃取。

法新社报道，曼彻斯特机场集团（Manchester Airports Group，简称MAG）星期四（8月27日）说，事件涉及曼彻斯特机场、伦敦斯坦斯特德机场和东米德兰兹机场。

网络攻击事件发生于上周末，并于星期二（25日）被集团发现。外泄资料包括电邮地址、电话号码、车辆注册号码和邮政编码，涉及停车场、贵宾休息室、快速通关服务预订及机场无线网络登记等。

MAG强调，事件没有影响机场运作，旅客安全和航空保安也未受影响，银行及支付资料没有遭泄露。集团说，已立即控制风险，并与专业顾问合作，加强保护客户资料及系统。

MAG称，攻击来自“未经授权的第三方”，暂未透露更多详情。

Ancient gold treasures stolen from Spanish museum in “super-fast” raid

August 27, 2026 / 9:08 AM EDT / CBS/AFP

Thieves on Thursday raided the Treasure of Villena — one of the greatest Bronze Age gold collections — in the latest high-profile heist at a European museum, officials said.

The raid on the 50-plus mainly gold objects in the Spanish town of Villena lasted just minutes.

“The alarm at the Villena Museum went off around 5:20 a.m.,” said a spokesman for the town council, adding that by 5:24 a.m. the thieves had already left the building.

The operation was “super-fast and super-professional,” the spokesman said.

“They’ve taken most of the treasure,” the mayor of Villena, Fulgencio Cerdan, told journalists, his voice breaking.

“We are absolutely devastated, I’m even trembling. The truth is that for those of us from Villena, this destroys us. It’s part of our heritage, of our wealth,” Cerdan said.

The 29 bracelets, 11 bowls, three bottles and other miscellaneous pieces in the Treasure of Villena are kept in a small museum in the Alicante province town.

The Villena Museum Villena Museum / Facebook

Though mainly gold, there are also pieces of silver, iron and amber, all dating back to about 1,000 BC. The treasure was discovered in 1963 by Jose Maria Soler in a vessel sunk in a dried-out riverbed in Villena.

While the treasure’s historical value is incalculable, the gold alone is worth around $2 million, according to the mayor.

“No failure” by the museum

The thieves arrived in several vehicles and apparently entered the museum “through a window,” according to the Spanish government’s deputy representative in Alicante, Manuel Pineda.

“All security systems were activated,” according to the Villena spokesman, who insisted there had been “no failure” by the museum.

Shortly before the robbery, another alarm went off at the city’s sports center and authorities were investigating whether that was a diversion created by the thieves, the spokesperson added.

Last October, thieves broke into the Louvre museum in Paris in broad daylight, escaping in less than eight minutes with jewelry worth $102 million. The suspected thieves have been arrested and charged, but none of the jewels have been recovered except for a crown that was dropped as the group escaped.

There have since been a series of brazen raids in institutions across Europe.

Four works “of extraordinary value” by Renaissance artist Antonello da Messina were stolen from a museum in Sicily, Italy’s culture ministry said Sunday.

Two days earlier, Italian police said they had recovered paintings by Renoir, Cezanne and Matisse worth over $10.4 million that were stolen from the Magnani-Rocca Foundation museum near Parma. The artworks were stolen in less than three minutes, local media reported.

Last month, burglars stole millions of dollars worth of jewelry from the museum of French luxury glassmaker Lalique in a daring early morning raid.

Last October, a woman was arrested and charged over the theft of gold from the Natural History Museum in Paris.

In September 2025, thieves snatched three porcelain works worth millions of dollars and classed as national treasures in a heist at the Adrien Dubouche National Museum in Limoges in central France.

42天未有新病例 世卫宣布乌干达伊波拉疫情结束

2026年8月27日 22:21 / 联合早报

世界卫生组织星期四（8月27日）宣布，乌干达已连续42天没有出现新伊波拉确诊病例，本轮由本迪布焦型伊波拉病毒引发的疫情正式结束。（路透社档案照）

世界卫生组织宣布，乌干达已连续42天没有出现新伊波拉确诊病例，本轮由本迪布焦型伊波拉病毒引发的疫情正式结束。

新华社报道，世界卫生组织非洲区域办事处星期四（8月27日）发文告说，乌干达最后一名伊波拉患者于7月16日结束治疗并出院，之后连续42天未报告新的确诊病例。42天相当于伊波拉病毒最长潜伏期的两倍，完成这一监测期是一个关键节点。

根据世卫组织标准，自最后一名确诊患者不再具有病毒传播能力之日起，连续42天无新增确诊病例，一国方可宣布疫情结束。

世卫组织说，在国际合作伙伴的支持下，乌干达通过强有力的政府领导和一系列早期、全面的措施，迅速阻断了本土传播，防止疫情进一步扩散。这些措施包括病例发现与确诊、接触者追踪、隔离和临床救治、感染预防与控制、社区参与，以及加强医疗机构和入境口岸的监测。

乌干达本轮伊波拉疫情于5月15日暴发。一名来自刚果（金）东部地区的患者入境后，被确诊感染本迪布焦型伊波拉病毒。乌本轮疫情累计报告20起确诊病例，其中15起为来自刚果（金）的输入型病例，五起为本土传播病例，累计死亡在两起。

英国三机场遭网络攻击 870万名客户个资外泄

2026-08-27 22:00 / 联合早报

英国曼彻斯特机场集团星期四（8月27日）说，旗下三座机场遭网络攻击，约870万名客户的个人资料被窃取。图为一名空中交通管制员在曼切斯特机场的控制塔内工作。 （彭博社档案照）

英国曼彻斯特机场集团说，旗下三座机场遭网络攻击，约870万名客户的个人资料被窃取。

法新社报道，曼彻斯特机场集团（Manchester Airports Group，简称MAG）星期四（8月27日）说，事件涉及曼彻斯特机场、伦敦斯坦斯特德机场和东米德兰兹机场。

网络攻击事件发生于上周末，并于星期二（25日）被集团发现。外泄资料包括电邮地址、电话号码、车辆注册号码和邮政编码，涉及停车场、贵宾休息室、快速通关服务预订及机场无线网络登记等。

MAG强调，事件没有影响机场运作，旅客安全和航空保安也未受影响，银行及支付资料没有遭泄露。集团说，已立即控制风险，并与专业顾问合作，加强保护客户资料及系统。

MAG称，攻击来自“未经授权的第三方”，暂未透露更多详情。

One unexpected price surge most Americans don’t see is raising the stakes for Trump before November

August 27, 2026 9:56am EDT / Fox News

The cost of diesel may be invisible to homebuyers, but it can add pressure throughout the construction process

By Amanda Macias

Builders warn diesel prices are starting to squeeze every phase of home construction

Builders largely dodged the tariff-driven material spikes many feared, National Association of Home Builders CEO Jim Tobin says rising diesel fuel costs are now putting fresh pressure on construction crews and the overall price of building homes.

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The fuel most Americans rarely think about is becoming a new hurdle for President Donald Trump’s push to make housing more affordable, as the Iran war raises costs for construction sites.

With the midterm elections approaching, the diesel surge underscores the political tension facing Trump and congressional Republicans as they promise to bring down housing costs while war-driven energy prices add new pressure to home construction.

Builders are already wrestling with expensive financing, labor, materials and costs tied to regulations and permitting that Republicans have pledged to reduce. Because diesel powers the trucks and heavy equipment used throughout the construction process, higher prices can make it harder to deliver the lower-priced homes needed to ease America’s affordability crunch.

AMERICA’S HOUSING MARKET COULD RUN OUT OF SOMETHING MORE IMPORTANT THAN HOMES

Unlike gasoline, which drivers notice immediately, diesel’s economic impact is often slower but broader, filtering through supply chains before reaching consumers.(Scott Varley/MediaNews Group/Daily Breeze/Getty Images)

Jim Tobin, president and CEO of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), told Fox News Digital that diesel is “critical to construction.”

“Diesel, which our workers use when they’re hauling materials on trucks and moving dirt on sites, has seen a spike, and that has really put a little bit of pressure on home building in the short term here.”

Unlike gasoline, which is felt most directly by motorists, diesel powers the trucks hauling lumber, concrete, appliances and other supplies to construction sites, as well as the heavy equipment that prepares lots and builds new homes.

The national average price of on-highway diesel climbed to $5.65 a gallon this week, up nearly $2.00 from a year ago, according to data compiled by the Energy Information Administration. Diesel’s year-over-year increase has been far sharper than gasoline’s, with the national average for regular gas at about $4.09 a gallon.

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The added pressure comes as Trump has made housing affordability a key part of his second-term agenda. In March, he signed an executive order directing federal agencies to reduce regulatory barriers that raise construction and homeownership costs, with an emphasis on speeding permitting and expanding supply.

THE SURPRISING HIDDEN COST QUIETLY ADDING NEARLY $132K TO NEW HOME PRICES REVEALED

Housing industry leaders say states that have prioritized homebuilding have been better positioned to accommodate population growth and economic expansion.(Joshua Lott/Bloomberg/Getty Images)

But even as the administration targets regulatory costs, builders say other expenses can quickly offset those savings.

Tobin said the industry has so far seen only a modest impact from tariffs on construction inputs. But he has begun hearing from manufacturers announcing price increases, particularly those tied to steel and aluminum costs. Diesel adds another layer of pressure by raising the cost of both getting materials to a job site and completing the work once they arrive.

The issue is especially significant in fast-growing states across the South and Southwest, where an influx of residents, businesses and capital has fueled demand for new housing.

“States that find themselves ahead of the curve are planning those two critical components, infrastructure and housing, together,” Tobin said. “They’re going to be better prepared for growth in the future.”

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Higher diesel costs are putting added pressure on builders already facing high labor and material expenses.(Rebecca Noble/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Builders are also grappling with a persistent shortage of construction workers. Tobin said the industry is roughly 250,000 workers short, raising labor costs and contributing to project delays.

More homes are needed to ease price pressures, but each increase in the cost of labor, land, materials, financing or fuel makes that task harder. Diesel may not appear on a buyer’s closing documents, but its cost can still be felt long before they get the keys.

The White House did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

Amanda Macias covers the intersection of business, economics and politics, with a focus on how policy decisions shape markets, businesses and American workers.

Ratko Mladic, so-called “Butcher of Bosnia,” convicted of genocide, dies in prison at 84

August 27, 2026 10:31 AM EDT / AP

Ratko Mladic, the Bosnian Serb general who oversaw atrocities in Bosnia in the 1990s, has died in prison at age 84, the Serbian state RTS television and the official Bosnian Serb television reported.

The reports said Mladic died in a U.N. prison hospital in The Hague, Netherlands. A family member of Mladic, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the situation, confirmed the reports for the AP and said Mladic’s son, Darko Mladic, was on the way to the Hague.

U.N. court officials told the AP in a statement that they could not immediately confirm Mladic’s death.

The U.N. tribunal for war crimes committed during the wars in Yugoslavia in the 1990s sentenced Mladic to life in prison in 2017 in what was considered a key step toward bringing justice to the victims. He had been in custody since 2011 after many years on the run.

The ruthless, blue-eyed former communist officer turned nationalist warlord was one of the most notorious figures of the conflict that left more than 100,000 people dead and over 1 million homeless. He commanded his troops to “scorch the brains” of the Bosnian Muslims and boasted of being a “Serbian God.”

Ratko Mladic arrives in court as he appeals his genocide conviction in June 2021, at The Hague in the Netherlands. Jerry Lampen/ANP/AFP via Getty Images

When the ethnic war in Bosnia started in 1992, Mladic became the commander of the Bosnian Serb troops and took control of large swaths of the country to form a Serb mini-state.

Serbs under Mladic’s control laid siege to the capital, Sarajevo, and other cities and villages, established concentration camps for detained non-Serb civilians and enemy soldiers, and systematically killed prisoners.

In Sarajevo, Serb troops kept the city isolated while killing civilians with snipers. In 1995, Mladic’s troops slaughtered more than 8,000 Muslim men and boys in Srebrenica — the only post-World War II case of genocide in Europe.

But Mladic himself and his admirers among the Serbs have never repented. He was seen by many as a patriot fighting for the first pan-Serbian state. Defiant, Mladic acted bullishly during his trial and yelled at the judges when sentenced to life in prison.

Mladic was born March 12, 1942, in the tiny Bosnian village of Bozinovici, in the hills 40 kilometers (25 miles) south of Sarajevo. Like other protagonists in the Yugoslav conflict, he imbibed nationalism from his family’s fate in World War II — his own father was killed by Croats.

A communist-era officer, Mladic sided with the Serbs as Yugoslavia disintegrated in the war. Mladic first led a Serb insurgency in Croatia before taking over the Bosnian Serb army that was backed by Serbia and then-President Slobodan Milosevic, who also died in the custody of the Hague court in 2006 while on trial for genocide.

Mladic was known for his obsession with his nation’s history. He saw Bosnia’s war as a chance for revenge against the onetime 500-year-long Ottoman occupation of Serbia. He often referred to Bosnia’s Muslims as Turks and boasted of revenge when his troops overran the protected U.N. enclave of Srebrenica in 1995.

Carried away by Serb dominance in firepower and international ignorance, Mladic was convinced of his final victory.

“The time has come … for revenge against Turks in these regions,” Mladic said after taking over Srebrenica.

A U.N. “safe haven” for Muslims, Srebrenica ended up overrun by Serbs who separated the men and boys, forced them to strip, killed them and bulldozed their bodies into mass graves in a brutal rampage that lasted for over a week.

The Srebrenica survivors said one image forever will be imprinted in their minds: Mladic handing out candy to Muslim children who had been rounded up on the town’s square and reassuring them that everything would be all right — even patting one child on the head.

Convinced of the power of his army, he used to tell his soldiers: “When I give you guarantees, it’s as if they are given by God.” To clear the way for his helicopter to land, he would tell air traffic controllers: “Here speaks Ratko Mladic — The Serbian God.”

Sarajevans still remember his commands to the Serb gunmen pounding the Bosnian capital in early 1992. He issued his orders through a military radio system, not bothering to scramble the signal, which was picked up and taped by the Sarajevo police.

“Turn toward Velesici, there are no Serbs there,” Sarajevans could hear Mladic ordering his artillery to pound the Sarajevo suburb.

“Scorch their brains,” he told his gunmen.

Bosnian Serb commander Gen. Ratko Mladic near a United Nations flag at Sarajevo Airport on May 17, 1993. Jerome Delay/AP

Faced with the U.N. tribunal’s genocide indictment, Mladic in 1996 began his fugitive years in Han Pijesak, a military compound in eastern Bosnia built for former Yugoslav communist leader Josip Broz Tito and designed to withstand a nuclear attack.

With his wife, Bosa, Mladic settled down to imposed domesticity, passing the time caring for bees and goats. His 23 goats reputedly bore the names of foreign dignitaries he despised, such as Madeleine Albright, the former U.S. secretary of state.

Surrounded by security guards, he occasionally ventured out of the dense pine forest to mark events such as the anniversary of the Bosnian Serb army and St. Vitus Day, a religious festival marking the 1389 Serb defeat by the Turks at Kosovo.

When in the late 1990s his trail grew too hot in Bosnia, Mladic moved with family into a suburban villa in the Serbian capital, Belgrade.

In Belgrade, he was seen attending his son’s wedding. He showed up at soccer games, dined in plush restaurants and frequented elite cafes, refusing to give interviews and smiling quizzically when photographed.

When Milosevic was ousted from power in October 2000, and Yugoslavia’s new pro-democracy authorities signaled they might hand Mladic over to the tribunal, tabloids reported that he had left Belgrade for Bosnia.

But true to his style, Mladic countered those rumors and others that said he was terminally ill in Belgrade. Before going underground in 2002, he was repeatedly seen in public, sometimes with his guards and sometimes alone, driving a boxy Yugo car on the streets of the capital.

He completely disappeared from public view in 2008 and was finally arrested in May 2011 in a village near Belgrade where he was hiding in a relative’s modest house.

In court in The Hague, a frail-looking old man was far from an image of Mladic from the war days. But his unrepentant nature and defiance were intact.

“Everything you said is pure lies. Shame on you!” he yelled at the U.N. judges when they handed down the conviction.

Already in poor health upon arrest in 2011, Mladic is believed to have suffered multiple strokes during his years on the run and was hospitalized on several occasions while in custody.

42天未有新病例 世卫宣布乌干达伊波拉疫情结束

2026-08-27 22:21 / 联合早报

世界卫生组织星期四（8月27日）宣布，乌干达已连续42天没有出现新伊波拉确诊病例，本轮由本迪布焦型伊波拉病毒引发的疫情正式结束。 （路透社档案照）

世界卫生组织宣布，乌干达已连续42天没有出现新伊波拉确诊病例，本轮由本迪布焦型伊波拉病毒引发的疫情正式结束。

新华社报道，世界卫生组织非洲区域办事处星期四（8月27日）发文告说，乌干达最后一名伊波拉患者于7月16日结束治疗并出院，之后连续42天未报告新的确诊病例。42天相当于伊波拉病毒最长潜伏期的两倍，完成这一监测期是一个关键节点。

根据世卫组织标准，自最后一名确诊患者不再具有病毒传播能力之日起，连续42天无新增确诊病例，一国方可宣布疫情结束。

世卫组织说，在国际合作伙伴的支持下，乌干达通过强有力的政府领导和一系列早期、全面的措施，迅速阻断了本土传播，防止疫情进一步扩散。这些措施包括病例发现与确诊、接触者追踪、隔离和临床救治、感染预防与控制、社区参与，以及加强医疗机构和入境口岸的监测。

乌干达本轮伊波拉疫情于5月15日暴发。一名来自刚果（金）东部地区的患者入境后，被确诊感染本迪布焦型伊波拉病毒。乌本轮疫情累计报告20起确诊病例，其中15起为来自刚果（金）的输入型病例，五起为本土传播病例，累计死亡在两起。