Woman fatally shoots boyfriend in YouTube stunt

A Minnesota woman killed her boyfriend Monday by shooting at a book he was holding over his chest, in a YouTube video stunt gone wrong. Monalisa Perez,19, was attempting to make a viral video with boyfriend Pedro Ruiz III, 22, to post to their YouTube account, according to a Norman County Sheriff's Department arrest report.

Perez, who is seven months pregnant, called 911 on Monday evening, saying she had accidentally shot her boyfriend in the chest while they were making a video, according to the arrest report.

She has been charged with second degree manslaughter. CNN has not been able to reach the public defender assigned to Perez for comment.

"They were in love. They loved each other. It was just a prank gone wrong," Ruiz's aunt, Claudia Ruiz, told CNN affiliate KVLY. "It shouldn't have happened like this. It shouldn't have happened at all." The couple had one child and were expecting their second together, his aunt told the news station.

He thought the book would stop the bullet

Perez told police that her boyfriend wanted to make a YouTube video of her shooting a book and had been talking about it for awhile. He held the book up to his chest and convinced Perez to shoot at him, believing the book would stop the bullet.

Perez told police that Pedro convinced her it was a safe stunt by showing her a different book he had previously shot where the bullet did not go all the way through, according to the arrest report. He set up two cameras to film the whole thing, hoping a video of the dangerous stunt would go viral.

She fired from about a foot away with a .50-caliber Desert Eagle handgun while he held the book to his chest. It did not stop the bullet, and paramedics on the scene said Ruiz died from a single gunshot wound to the chest.

They wanted more YouTube viewers

The couple wanted more YouTube viewers, his aunt told KVLY. "I don't know why they thought the book was supposed to stop the bullet."

The video of the fatal shooting is being treated as evidence and has not been posted, according to the criminal complaint. "Me and Pedro are probably going to shoot one of the most dangerous videos ever. HIS idea not MINE," Perez tweeted Monday night, likely referring to the deadly stunt.

Perez faces up to 10 years in jail and a fine of up to $20,000 if she is convicted of the manslaughter charge against her. She has been released on bail, and as a condition of her release she cannot possess firearms, needs to notify her attorney of her whereabouts and has to wear a GPS monitor, according to court documents. She will be back in court on July 5.

'Good Samaritan' bullied, beaten and called a kidnapper after helping lost child'

A Florida police department is warning people of the dangers of spreading false information after a good Samaritan was mistaken for a kidnapper and had his name and picture spread across Facebook.

The man was watching a softball game with friends in Lakeland, Florida, over the weekend when he noticed a 2-year-old girl walking around the sports complex alone, according to a statement from the Lakeland Police Department.

Concerned, the man approached the girl and walked with her in an attempt to locate her parents.

One independent witness confirmed this to authorities, according to the police incident report.

The parents of the girl were told that their daughter had been seen with the man, walking towards a playground, police said. The parents believed that their daughter was being kidnapped.

Sgt. Gary Gross of the Lakeland Police Department told CNN that the girl's father and some of his friends took the girl and attacked the man.

"They grabbed that child and took him from behind and knocked him to the ground and started kicking and hitting him," Gross said.

Lakeland police said in their statement that "this incident truly involved a good Samaritan trying to assist a lost child finding their parents."

Gambia: The business of human trafficking

According to the United Nations, 26,000 unaccompanied minors crossed the Mediterranean to Europe last year; most of those coming from sub-Saharan Africa were Gambians.

In the past three years, almost 15,000 people lost their lives trying to reach European shores. 

Undeterred, young men and women continue to take this route in what the UN's describes as the biggest humanitarian catastrophe of our times. 

The UN estimates the illegal trade of smuggling people to be worth more than $35bn, and it is booming.

Despite joint efforts by police forces from Europe and Africa, few smugglers have been arrested or prosecuted.

Mohammed Lamine Janneh, also known as L-Boy, help many execute this journey. For many, he is a hero. Families save up for years and take loans in order to send one of their children on this journey.

But who profits from this? Do these young men and women know the risks they are taking? How much do they pay for this journey?

L-Boy, guides us through the business of human trafficking, and explain why travelling to Europe through Libya or the "backway" as it is known here is an open secret.

Below an adapted transcript of the episode, that has been edited for clarity purposes.

Crossing Europe 

Al Jazeera: How many people did you help to cross to Europe? 

L-Boy: Around almost 1,000 migrants, from 2011 up to 2016.

Al Jazeera: Why are there so many people who want to go to Europe?

L-Boy: I think people normally try to go to Europe ... because they are hopeless in their country. The unemployment rate is too high.

I cannot call it the illegal route. You know, when the other way is not possible, you use the other way L-Boy, human trafficker

You normally go to school, have your qualifications and you cannot have any job and normally those who should come here to create more employment for us were denied by the ex-president.

So that's why people find it very difficult to survive here, so normally they use the "backway" to go to Europe to find a better life.

I call them economic migrants.

Al Jazeera: When you say "backway" you mean the illegal route to Europe?

L-Boy: I cannot call it the illegal route. You know, when the other way is not possible, you use the other way.

Al Jazeera: You say when the legal way is not possible?

L-Boy: I don't say the legal way, but the normal way.

Initially, we had a shortage of embassies in Gambia, so to have the visa before was very difficult, because the former president was not cooperating very well with the Europeans.

So by then, the easiest way to access Europe, was to go through the other way, that is by land, but I cannot call it is an illegal way, because I don't see it as illegal.

'Mediator between them and the agents' 

Al Jazeera: Tell me how did you help these people who want to go to Europe. What exactly did you do?

L-Boy: My role in the process was to be the mediator between them and the agents on the way. Like the agents at Mali, from Mali, you go to Niger.

From Niger, at the border there, Agadez. From Agadez to Saba and from Saba to Libya. So I got my own agents, on all those points, and all the money was paid to me.

We have experience, for me specifically, none of my people have died or get lost. L-Boy

I gave them my own receipt or my card with my telephone number, indicating that they have paid me.

So when they reached those points … they just needed to present my card, my card contained my number, and also my signature, so the agents ... knew that these people came from me, so directly they would call me to confirm.

Al Jazeera: Did you help them to cross the Mediterranean?

L-Boy: Obviously, I did that also, because I got an agent that lives in Libya.

So when they reached there, that agent was working under me, so I just needed to contact the agent, and said, that the boy has already paid me, so the agent would give them a ticket so they can cross the Mediterranean.

Al Jazeera: When they made it across, if they made it across, did you help them on the European side?

L-Boy: Obviously, because normally, when they reached there, they still contacted me, to seek advice and also because I have been helping many people, who are already there, they are more experienced, so normally I used to link them with the people that went earlier. 

Most of them when they reach Italy, they don't stay there, they find their way to other destinations like Germany, Finland, Sweden, Austria and other places.

Al Jazeera: But what if they don't make it alive through the Mediterranean. What if they die on the route?

L-Boy: We have experience, for me specifically, none of my people died or got lost.

Normally, what I did experience is that they were at times kidnapped by the Arab people.

'Kidnapped by Libyans' 

Al Jazeera: So you say that once they are in Libya, they are kidnapped by Libyans?

L-Boy: Yeah, some are kidnapped, you know, normally, those Arabs ... they raid their camps.

So when they raid the camp, they kidnap some of them, and take them to prison, or normally at their own local prison, so they used to be kidnapped at times.

They don't need anything from them, the only thing they need from them is the money.

So they contacted me, and when they contacted me, I would also contact the parents or their sponsors ... and we saw how best to take them out from those prisons or other detentions. 

Al Jazeera: This year alone International Organisations repatriated 800 Gambians that were detained in Libya. 

Many are still being held in various detention centres across the country. 

For those that have come back to Gambia, it is an uneasy return home, ashamed to have come back to their families empty handed. 

'How much would I have to pay you?'

Al Jazeera: If I wanted to go to Europe, to Italy and Germany, how much would I have to pay you?

L-Boy: $2,000

Al Jazeera: So it costs $2,000 to get from Banjul to the coast, shores of Europe?

L-Boy: Yeah, from Banjul up to Italy.

Nicolas: Who were the people that came to you asking to go to Europe?

L-Boy: Normally they were students, and some were unemployed youths, both boys and girls, to be specific most of them were teenagers.

Al Jazeera: Why do teenagers come to you to go to Europe?

L-Boy: It's expectations, because they think once they are in Europe, they will have everything. The expectation is high, that when you are in Europe, you'll have a better life, better living conditions, better education, better food to eat, and all the things. 

A dangerous trip

Al Jazeera: Which part of the journey is the most dangerous? 

L-Boy: From Saba to Tripoli became the most difficult one.

Al Jazeera: Why?

L-Boy: Because it is the desert. Initially, around 2012 to 2011, it only took them four days to move from Saba to Tripoli, but later in 2016, it took them about 3 weeks to enter Tripoli.

Al Jazeera: How much money have you made doing this? 

L-Boy: 1,000,000 Gambian dalasi ($21,800) 

Al Jazeera: Do you sometimes feel guilty for what you do?

I was helping the hopeless to enter Europe ... even their parents used to call me to thank me always L-Boy

L-Boy: To feel guilty? I don't feel guilty. Instead of feeling guilty, I feel proud.

Al Jazeera: Why do you feel proud?

L-Boy: Because I was helping the hopeless to enter Europe, so when they are in Europe, they become more hopeful, and even [depended on] by their families here.

Even their parents used to call me to thank me always. Even still now, whenever they see me, they respect me, they honour me. They thank me.

Al Jazeera: So this has really built your reputation in the community that you've helped at least some people to cross to Europe?

L-Boy: Yes, I can say it has increased my profile, but ever since I was a student, my profile was always high ... but I can say it has increased my reputation in the society.

Source: Al Jazeera News

Tanzania bans unprocessed food crop exports

There has been a shortage of maize in neighbouring Kenya

Tanzania has banned the export of food grain following concerns over an increase in food smuggling to neighbouring countries.

At the weekend, the authorities seized 10 trucks of food products reportedly heading to Kenya at Tarekea in North Tanzania.

Speaking at a national Eid al-Fitr ceremony in northern Tanzania's Kilimanjaro region, Prime Minister Kassim Majira warned that food smuggling threatens food security in the country.

“From today on, whoever will be caught smuggling food to neighbouring countries, the contraband cargo will be confiscated and handed to the National Food Reserve, and the truck used for smuggling will be donated to the Police Force” he said.

The government would now only allow export of processed food items such as maize flour because that will benefit local industries.

He added that businesspeople should take food products from where they are abundant and sell them where there is scarcity.

Kenya has recently been hit by food shortages, in particular maize, the staple food in East Africa. The situation has opened up market opportunities for Tanzanian businesspeople.

Venezuela crisis: Helicopter launches attack on Supreme Court

Venezuela's Supreme Court has been attacked by grenades dropped from a helicopter in what President Nicolás Maduro called a "terrorist attack".

Footage on social media shows a police helicopter circling over the city before shots and a loud bang are heard.

The police officer said to have piloted the stolen aircraft issued a statement denouncing the "criminal government". His whereabouts are unknown.

It comes after mass protests against the political and economic crisis.

The Supreme Court is regularly criticised by the Venezuelan opposition for its rulings which bolster Mr Maduro's hold on power.

What happened?

In an address from the presidential palace, President Maduro said the helicopter had flown over the Supreme Court and also the justice and interior ministries.

Officials quoted by Reuters news agency said four grenades were dropped on the court and 15 shots had been fired at the interior ministry.

No injuries were reported but Mr Maduro said "a social event" had been taking place at the Supreme Court and the attack could have caused "dozens of deaths". One of the grenades failed to detonate, he added.

Police surrounded the Supreme Court after the grenades were dropped

President Maduro is facing regular protests against his government

Mr Maduro has placed the military on alert.

"I have activated the entire armed forces to defend the peace," he said. "Sooner or later, we are going to capture that helicopter and those who carried out this terror attack."

Who flew the helicopter?

The police officer identified himself as Oscar Pérez in video statements posted on the social media platform Instagram.

Appearing in military fatigues and flanked by armed, masked men in uniform, he appealed to Venezuelans to oppose "tyranny".

A police officer identifying himself as Oscar Pérez made a statement on Instagram

"We are a coalition of military employees, policemen and civilians who are looking for balance and are against this criminal government," he said.

"We don't belong to any political tendency or party. We are nationalists, patriots and institutionalists."

He said the "fight" was not against the security forces but "against the impunity of this government. It is against tyranny".

It is not clear how much support, if any, the officer has.

Mr Maduro said the pilot had worked for former Interior and Justice Minister Miguel Rodriguez Torres, but was no longer with him.

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Analysis: Will Grant, BBC News, in Mexico

It is generally an exercise in futility trying to predict if some new twist in Venezuela's long-running crisis is a "turning point" for the country.

There have been scores of seemingly decisive moments over the past few months - from the initial decision to strong-arm the national assembly, to the latest death of a teenage protester in Caracas - that quickly faded into the general malaise afflicting the oil-rich nation.

However, the sight of an apparently disaffected member of the security forces dropping grenades on the Supreme Court and allegedly firing on government buildings is extreme, even by Venezuela's standards.

Whether "Oscar Pérez" is indeed part of a coalition of like-minded "military employees, policemen and civilians" or just a rogue policeman is hard to say.

Certainly President Maduro was quick to dub the incident "a terrorist attack" and used it as a reason to "activate" the armed forces to keep the peace.

However, earlier in the day he, too, had thrown down the gauntlet to his opponents. "If the Bolivarian Revolution was at risk," he said, "what we couldn't do with votes, we would do with arms." The opposition in Venezuela took that as an overt threat.

This helicopter incident may also pass quickly, or it may be more serious. Certainly though, the security situation in Venezuela could hardly be worse ahead of a highly controversial election next month over the government's plan to create a new constituent assembly.

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Why now?

There have been almost daily anti-government protests in Venezuela for over two months as the country's economic and political crisis worsens.

The Supreme Court in Caracas was the target of the attack

Those opposed to the government say they are determined to keep protests going until fresh elections are called and the government is ousted.

More than 70 people have been killed in protest-related violence since 1 April, according to the chief prosecutor's office.

Could this have been a coup attempt?

Although President Maduro called the incident an attack by "terrorists" seeking a coup it is not clear how much support, if any, the police officer has.

Earlier on Tuesday, Mr Maduro reiterated his allegations that the US was supporting coup attempts against his government and warned President Donald Trump that Venezuela would resist such a move.

On Monday, he announced that five people had been arrested, accused of plotting against him and preparing for a US invasion.

Hugo Chávez is still a popular figure among supporters of Nicolas Maduro

However, Venezuela certainly has a history of coup attempts:

§  In 1992, the late Hugo Chávez tried to overthrow the government of President Carlos Andres Pérez. The attempt failed and Chávez was arrested and imprisoned. He would eventually be elected president in 1998

§  In 2002, Chávez himself survived an attempted coup by rebel military officers

§  Months later, security officials foiled another attempt by leading political and military opposition figures

John Magufuli's pregnant schoolgirl ban angers Tanzanian women

Tanzania's President John Magufuli has been condemned for comments that girls who give birth should not be allowed to return to school.

An online petition has been set up and a pan-African women's organisation is mobilising to get the president to apologise and reverse his comments.

Mr Magufuli warned schoolgirls at a rally on Monday that: "After getting pregnant, you are done."

A law passed in 2002 allows for the expulsion of pregnant schoolgirls.

The law says the girls can be expelled and excluded from school for "offences against morality" and "wedlock".

Women's rights groups have recently been urging the government to change the law.

Mr Magufuli, who was speaking at a public rally in Chalinze town, about 100km west of the main city Dar es Salaam, said that young mothers would be distracted if they were allowed back in school:

"After calculating some few mathematics, she'd be asking the teacher in the classroom: 'Let me go out and breastfeed my crying baby.'"

He said that men who impregnate the schoolgirls should be imprisoned for 30 years and "put the energy they used to impregnate the girl into farming while in jail".

At least 8,000 Tanzanian girls drop out of school every year due to pregnancy, says Human Rights Watch

The president also criticised rights organisations who have been pushing the government to reverse the law:

"These NGOs should go out and open schools for parents. But they should not force the government [to take back the pupils].

"I'm giving out free education for students who have really decided to go and study, and now you want me to educate the parents?"

The BBC's Sammy Awami in Tanzania reports that the crowd at the rally applauded the president's comments.

At least 8,000 Tanzanian girls drop out of school every year due to pregnancy, according to a Human Rights Watch report.

'Betrayal'

The online petition says that the president's support for the expulsion law would end the education of many girls and "propagate more discrimination".

It instead calls for the girls to be protected from early pregnancies while in school.

The African Women's Development and Communication Network, Femnet has also expressed its outrage.

"With all the work we have done to emancipate Africa's girl-child from the shackles of discrimination and violation, a sitting president turns around to "re-victimze" and treat their situation like a terrible infectious disease which other girls must be protected from," said its head Dinah Musindarwezo.

Lawyer Kavinya Makau called Mr Magafuli's sentiments a" betrayal of the highest order."

Two weeks ago, Tanzania's Vice-President Samia Suluhu called for young mothers to be readmitted to school, saying they should not be denied a right to education.

Prince Harry Recalls Princess Diana's Funeral and Admits No One Wants to Be King or Queen

Prince Harry has seen and done a lot in his 32 years.

In a candid conversation with Newsweek's Angela Levin, Harry looks back on the death of his mother, Princess Diana, who was killed in a car crash in 1997. "She had the most wonderful sense of humor and always wanted to make things fun for us," he says, "as well as protect us."

Sharing fond memories his mother—and carrying on her charitable legacy—comes easily. But talking about Diana's funeral is much more difficult for Harry, who was 12 at the time. "My mother had just died, and I had to walk a long way behind her coffin, surrounded by thousands of people watching me while millions more did on television. I don't think any child should be asked to do that, under any circumstances," Harry recalls. "I don't think it would happen today."

Harry "shut down" his emotions for nearly two decades, until his older brother Prince William encouraged him to seek professional help at age 28. "My search began when I was in my mid-20s," says Harry, who admits he partied too hard. "I needed to fix the mistakes I was making."

The prince now wants to be seen as a passionate, emotional person. "Sometimes, I can have too much passion," he tells Newsweek. "It has got me into trouble in the past, partly because I cannot stand the idea of people mincing around the subject rather than just getting on with it."

Now that he's older, Harry can better appreciate his role in the royal family.

"My mother died when I was very young. I didn't want to be in the position I was in, but I eventually pulled my head out of the sand, started listening to people and decided to use my role for good. I am now fired up and energized and love charity stuff, meeting people and making them laugh," says Harry, who retired from the army two years ago. "I sometimes still feel I am living in a goldfish bowl, but I now manage it better. I still have a naughty streak too, which I enjoy and is how I relate to those individuals who have got themselves into trouble."

Maintaining an "ordinary life" is a top priority. "My mother took a huge part in showing me an ordinary life, including taking me and my brother to see homeless people. Thank goodness I'm not completely cut off from reality. People would be amazed by the ordinary life William and I live. I do my own shopping. Sometimes, when I come away from the meat counter in my local supermarket, I worry someone will snap me with their phone. But I am determined to have a relatively normal life, and if I am lucky enough to have children, they can have one too," says Harry, who is now fifth in line to the throne. "Even if I was king, I would do my own shopping."

In a time when stars are "Just Like Us," he hopes there's still an air of mystery about the royal family. "It's a tricky balancing act," says Harry, who declines to discuss his personal life. "We don't want to dilute the magic…The British public and the whole world need institutions like it."

"The monarchy is a force for good, and we want to carry on the positive atmosphere that the Queen has achieved for over 60 years," he continues, "but we won't be trying to fill her boots."

Along with his brother and sister-in-law, Kate Middleton, Harry has been shaking things up a bit. "We are involved in modernizing the British monarchy. We are not doing this for ourselves but for the greater good of the people. Is there any one of the royal family who wants to be king or queen?" Harry asks. "I don't think so, but we will carry out our duties at the right time."

With so much attention on Prince George and Princess Charlotte, now is the time for Harry to "make something of my life," he tells Newsweek. "I feel there is just a smallish window when people are interested in me before [the siblings] take over, and I've got to make the most of it."