By Prarthana Mitra
Students and staff at Santa Fe High School became the latest victims of gun violence in America, three months after the deadly Parkland school shooting. US President Donald Trumps highly-anticipated nuclear deal with North Korea is now on the verge of collapse only weeks after it seemed too good to be true. The US administration is in crosshairs again for defending Israels latest attack on Palestinians protesting at the border.
Meanwhile, Prince Harry, sixth in line to the British throne tied the knot with girlfriend actress Meghan Markle on Saturday amidst family, friends and eminent guests.
Breaking barriers: Harry and Meghans fairy tale wedding
Around 600 notable guests thronged St. Georges Chapel in Windsor Castle on Saturday to witness the royal wedding between Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, a wedding that was unique in more ways than one. The two announced their engagement earlier this year, and have been involved in humanitarian work together ever since. The princes older brother, Duke of Cambridge Prince William served as the best man, while the grooms father Prince Charles walked the glowing bride down the aisle. Apart from eminent guests, around 2000 civilians were invited to watch the procession of the newlyweds in Windsor. Set to be the new English Duchess of Sussex, her African-American heritage was, however, central to the royal wedding that included a moving sermon by a black episcopal priest.
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Santa Fe students face the gunfire in 20th school shooting this year
A seventeen year old gunman entered the Texan school and wounded ten students and teachers fatally, leaving ten other injured. The suspect, later identified as Dimitrios Pagourtzis had also left explosives around the school.
According to a report, this is at least the 20th school shooting this year, after the heinous Parkland shooting earlier this year, whose survivors have reached out to their compatriots in Santa Fe in solidarity and support. This is the deadliest attack since the February 14 massacre, which throws light once again on the lawmakers failure to act on issuing regulations on gun control in America, while the Texan governor was heard blaming too many entryways as a reason for the shooting. How the Santa Fe community and the rest of the state react to the shooting will likely determine if, and how, lawmakers respond, both in Texas and on the federal level.
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Trump and Kim agree to disagree on nuclear deal
As the progress made in denuclearisation agreements between Kim Jong Un and the Trump administration hit some snags this week, the Koreans are threatening to cancel the summit planned in Singapore on June 12, as the White House desperately scrambles to salvage the summit, which they have already declared as a big win. The week has been filled with misunderstandings between American and Korean representatives who have not been able to come to a mutually agreeable decision despite several models being proposed regarding the denuclearisation. The denuclearization dilemma, as has been proven this week, stems from both nations using this word to mean different things. For the North Koreans, denuclearization means arms control concessions on their part in exchange for an end to the US military alliance with South Korea. For the United States, it means CVID complete, verifiable, and irreversible denuclearization.
On Thursday, President Donald Trump threatened that Kim Jong Un could suffer a similar fate if we dont make a deal. Pyongyangs said it may cancel the summit although trump is still hopeful for a successful meeting.
Crisis at Gaza escalates with fresh onslaught on Palestinians
Earlier this week, as Israelis celebrated the transfer of the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, the Gaza-Israel border turned bloody soon after Israeli soldiers shot and killed more than 60 Palestinian protesters, besides wounding over a thousand. In the seventh week of protests against the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip, Palestinians were protesting the Israeli-Egyptian blockade, and demanding their right to return to lands in Israel that hundreds of thousands of Palestinians fled or were evicted from during the creation of the Jewish state.
Although the protest was largely peaceful, the Israeli military had accused some of the protestors of hurling Molotov cocktails and carrying explosives. The international community has strongly condemned Israels Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for its response and the US for backing Israels use of force.
Prarthana Mitra is a writer at Qrius