'We feel very numb' Bewilderment, horror and one simple question: why?
The Guardian|July 31, 2024
How does a community come to terms with an attack that hits with such ferocity, such barbarity, such searing horror that it is beyond even the stuff of nightmares?
Josh Halliday Hannah Al-Othman
'We feel very numb' Bewilderment, horror and one simple question: why?

What sort of society do we live in when a highlight of the summer holidays, in the middle of a sunny day at the seaside, turns into what witnesses likened to "a scene from a horror movie"? And perhaps the most pressing question being asked by families in Southport and beyond: why? "The whole community is feeling very numb," said one woman, whose seven-year-old daughter was friends with one of the three young girls killed at a Taylor Swiftthemed holiday club in Southport on Monday.

"Her friend and two others are no longer here," she added. "She's struggling to get her head round it but she has asked a lot of questions about why would someone do that, and who did it. I hope we get answers that we need so that we can move forward." Detectives were trying to answer that crucial question - why? - by combing the background of the 17-year-old suspect, who was born in Cardiff and whose family live five miles from the crime scene in the village of Banks.

Three girls, Bebe King, six, Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, and Alice Dasilva Aguiar, nine, have died and five other children remain in a critical condition after the knife rampage at the Hart Space, a community hub used for yoga classes and antenatal workshops.

"Why? Why? These parents need that answer. Why this has happened," said Kyon Tysoe, 50, holding back tears after leaving a teddy and flowers at the police cordon protecting the crime scene. "It's a seaside town. We're supposed to have fun here. We're not supposed to have roads closed off and multiple murders. The biggest question is why." Joanne Abbey, who is due to give birth to her first child next month, said she had taken part in yoga classes at the Hart Space during her pregnancy, describing it as a "gorgeous, lovely, calm space".

هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة July 31, 2024 من The Guardian.

ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.

هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة July 31, 2024 من The Guardian.

ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.

المزيد من القصص من THE GUARDIAN مشاهدة الكل
First mass 24-hour event to help people put down their phones
The Guardian

First mass 24-hour event to help people put down their phones

Haunted by a pile of unread books? Or taunted by outdoor kit lurking in the cupboard? If you are one of the British adults who spends on average five hours a day looking at screens rather than participating in pastimes, perhaps it's time to join the offline revolution.

time-read
2 mins  |
September 21, 2024
No longer the king of bling The staggering fall of rap star Sean 'Diddy' Combs
The Guardian

No longer the king of bling The staggering fall of rap star Sean 'Diddy' Combs

Brooklyn's grim Metropolitan Detention Center is, for the foreseeable future, home to Puff Daddy, AKA Sean Combs, one of the best-known voices in American entertainment and whose business empire once seemed to know no bounds.

time-read
4 mins  |
September 21, 2024
Brandenburg stakes Last-minute push by German far right in key regional election
The Guardian

Brandenburg stakes Last-minute push by German far right in key regional election

B jörn Höcke shielded his eyes from the lights as he peered from the stage into the crowds gathered on a square in front of a gothic church in central Cottbus.

time-read
2 mins  |
September 21, 2024
'It's guerrilla war' The fire teams facing arson chaos in Amazon
The Guardian

'It's guerrilla war' The fire teams facing arson chaos in Amazon

The occupants of the military tents at this remote jungle camp in Brazil's wild west T survey the hellscape surrounding them.

time-read
3 mins  |
September 21, 2024
"The horror of it' Trial of husband and 50 men accused of wife's rape shakes France
The Guardian

"The horror of it' Trial of husband and 50 men accused of wife's rape shakes France

On the narrow streets of stone houses with pastel-blue shutters, residents of Mazan were appalled that this picturesque village in Provence was being referred to in the media as \"the village of the rapists\".

time-read
4 mins  |
September 21, 2024
West End revival Will a traffic ban lure shoppers back to Oxford Street?
The Guardian

West End revival Will a traffic ban lure shoppers back to Oxford Street?

From the rooftop of John Lewis's flagship store, the London mayor, Sadiq Khan, laid out the changes planned for Oxford Street below: \"We want a public realm that is world class, green, healthy and safe but also increases footfall in the shops.\"

time-read
2 mins  |
September 21, 2024
Live and let fly James Bond chopper firm awaits decision on £1bn deal
The Guardian

Live and let fly James Bond chopper firm awaits decision on £1bn deal

The Merlin helicopter sitting on a factory floor in Yeovil is a sight familiar to James Bond aficionados from the climactic shootout of the 2012 film Skyfall.

time-read
2 mins  |
September 21, 2024
The Guardian

Mental illness is Britons' biggest health concern, survey finds

Mental health has overtaken cancer and obesity as the health issue that is the biggest cause of concern for most Britons, a global survey reveals.

time-read
2 mins  |
September 21, 2024
Noise, crime, crowds Rise in tourism stokes tensions in bustling Lake District town
The Guardian

Noise, crime, crowds Rise in tourism stokes tensions in bustling Lake District town

Even on a weekday afternoon at the very tail end of summer, Bowness-onWindermere is bustling with life. Outside the town's pubs and bars, drinkers sip lager and sparkling wine in the warm September sun.

time-read
3 mins  |
September 21, 2024
EU's new proposals on youth mobility will put Starmer 'reset' to test
The Guardian

EU's new proposals on youth mobility will put Starmer 'reset' to test

Fresh proposals to allow young people to move between Britain and the EU will be presented to the British government within weeks, in what is seen as a significant early test of Labour's \"reset\" in relations with Brussels.

time-read
2 mins  |
September 21, 2024