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Video Appears To Show Islamic State Destroying Ancient City Of Nimrud

BAGHDAD (AP) — Islamic State militants hammered, bulldozed and ultimately blew up parts of the ancient Iraqi Assyrian city of Nimrud, destroying a site dating back to the 13th century B.C., an online militant video purportedly shows.

The destruction at Nimrud, located near the militant-held city of Mosul, came amid other attacks on antiquity carried out by the group now holding a third of Iraq and neighboring Syria in its self-declared caliphate. The attacks have horrified archaeologists and U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, who last month called the destruction at Nimrud "a war crime."

The seven-minute video, posted late Saturday, shows bearded militants using sledgehammers, jackhammers and saws to take down huge alabaster reliefs depicting Assyrian kings and deities. A bulldozer brings down walls, while militants fill barrels with explosives and later destroy three separate areas of the site in massive explosions.

"God has honored us in the Islamic State to remove all of these idols and statutes worshipped instead of Allah in the past days," one militant says in the video. Another militant vows that "whenever we seize a piece of land, we will remove signs of idolatry and spread monotheism."

The militants have been destroying ancient relics they say promote idolatry that violate their fundamentalist interpretation of Islamic law, including the ancient Iraqi city of Hatra, a UNESCO World Heritage site. Authorities also believe they've sold others on the black market to fund their atrocities.

Some of the figures in the video released Saturday at Nimrud appeared to have rebar, ribbed bars of steels designed to reinforce concrete that are a technique of modern building. An Iraqi Antiquities Ministry official, speaking Sunday on condition of anonymity as he wasn't authorized to talk to journalists, said all the items at Nimrud were authentic. In March, both Iraqi and United Nations officials warned the site had been looted and damaged.

The video conformed to other Associated Press reporting about the militants' attack.

The Assyrians first rose around 2,500 B.C. and at one point ruled over a realm stretching from the Mediterranean coast to what is present-day Iran. They left dozens of palaces and temples decorated with huge reliefs mainly depicting their kings' military campaigns and conquests, hunting lions and making sacrifices to the gods. Their main hallmark was the colossal winged man-headed lions or bulls, protective deities put at the entrances of palaces and temples weighing about 10-30 tons each.

Located on the eastern side of the Tigris River, Nimrud, or Kalhu, was founded in the 13th century B.C. During the reign of King Ashurnasirpal II, Nimrud served as the second capital for Assyrian Empire. Other Assyrian capitals were Ashur, Dur Sharrukin and Ninevah.

Excavations at Nimrud were first started by the British traveler and archaeologist Austen Henry Layard from 1845 to 1851, followed by other foreign and local excavation missions.

The city is surrounded by a four-side wall measuring 8 kilometers (5 miles) long. Among the ruins are the grand palace of Ashurnasirpal II, as well as the temples of Nabu, the god of writing and the arts, and other temples.

Among the most significant discoveries at Nimrud were four tombs of royal women. There, a collection of 613 pieces of gold jewelry and precious stones were unearthed. They survived the looting of the Iraqi National Museum that followed the U.S.-led invasion in 2003 as they were kept in a vault at the Central Bank of Iraq building by Saddam Hussein's government.

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Associated Press writer Maamoun Youssef in Cairo contributed to this report.

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Raw: Okla. Officer Shoots Gun Instead of Taser

TULSA, Okla. (AP) — Authorities have released video showing the fatal encounter of a black suspect with a white reserve sheriff's deputy who police said thought he was holding a stun gun instead of his handgun when he shot the man during a recent arrest in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

The video of the April 2 incident shows a Tulsa County deputy chase and tackle Eric Harris, 44, whom they accuse of trying to sell an illegal gun to an undercover officer.

A deputy is heard telling Harris, "I need you to roll on your stomach." At about the same time, a woman is heard in the background saying, "Stop fighting."

While the deputy is subduing Harris on the ground, a gunshot rings out and a man says, "Oh, I shot him. I'm sorry."

Authorities have identified the shooter as 73-year-old reserve deputy Robert Bates and said that he meant to use his stun gun.

Harris screams, "He shot me. Oh, my God," and a deputy replies: "You f---ing ran. Shut the f--- up."

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In this screen shot from April 2, 2015 video provided by the Tulsa County Sheriff's Office, poli …

Harris then says he's losing his breath. A deputy replies, "F--- your breath."

Harris was treated by medics at the scene and eventually died in a Tulsa hospital.

The video was released over the weekend after Harris' family requested that it be made public. It was recorded by deputies with sunglass cameras, Tulsa County Sheriff's Office officials said. They said Bates believed he was holding a Taser and intended to incapacitate Harris when the fatal shot was fired.

An investigator who reviewed details of the shooting concluded that the deputy suffered a phenomenon known as "slips and capture."

Tulsa Police Sgt. Jim Clark, who was asked to investigate the shooting by the sheriff's office, has said Bates was a victim of a high stress phenomenon in which a person's behavior "slips" off the intended course of action because it's "captured" by a stronger response.

Results of the investigation were turned over to prosecutors, who will decide whether to file criminal charges.

An attorney for the family, Dan Smolen, did not immediately return a telephone call Sunday seeking comment. The family has not commented publicly since the video's release.

Reserve deputies are generally volunteers, often with other full-time jobs. Bates is an insurance company executive assigned to the Violent Crimes Task Force.

The sheriff's office told the Tulsa World that it has more than 100 reserve deputies, who the "have full powers and authority" of a deputy while on duty, and that it's not unusual for them to be on an assignment with units such as the Violent Crimes Task Force.

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis on Sunday marked the 100th anniversary of the slaughter of Armenians by calling the massacre by Ottoman Turks "the first genocide of the 20th century" and urging the international community to recognize it as such. Turkey immediately responded by recalling its ambassador and accusing Francis of spreading hatred and "unfounded claims."

Francis issued the pronouncement during a Mass in St. Peter's Basilica commemorating the centenary that was attended by Armenian church leaders and President Serge Sarkisian, who praised the pope for calling a spade a spade and "delivering a powerful message to the international community."

"The words of the leader of a church with 1 billion followers cannot but have a strong impact," he told The Associated Press.

Historians estimate that up to 1.5 million Armenians were killed by Ottoman Turks around the time of World War I, an event widely viewed by scholars as the first genocide of the 20th century.

Turkey, however, denies a genocide took place. It has insisted that the toll has been inflated and that those killed were victims of civil war and unrest.

Francis defended his words by saying it was his duty to honor the memory of the innocent men, women and children who were "senselessly" murdered by Ottoman Turks.

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Pope Francis arrives to celebrates an Armenian-Rite Mass on the occasion of the commemoration of the …

"Concealing or denying evil is like allowing a wound to keep bleeding without bandaging it," he said.

He said similar massacres are under way today against Christians who because of their faith are "publicly and ruthlessly put to death — decapitated, crucified, burned alive — or forced to leave their homeland," a reference to the Islamic State group's assault against Christians in Iraq and Syria.

Jeb Bush Says Pope Francis Won't Bring Big Change To Catholic Church (video)

Turkey has fiercely lobbied to prevent countries, including the Holy See, from officially recognizing the Armenian massacre as genocide and reacted strongly to Francis' declaration.

"The pope's statement, which is far from historic and legal truths, is unacceptable," Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu tweeted. "Religious positions are not places where unfounded claims are made and hatred is stirred."

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Pope Francis arrives to celebrates an Armenian-Rite Mass on the occasion of the commemoration of the …

The Foreign Ministry summoned the Vatican's envoy in Ankara, and then announced it was recalling its own ambassador to the Vatican for consultations.

In a statement, the ministry said the Turkish people would not recognize the pope's statement "which is controversial in every aspect, which is based on prejudice, which distorts history and reduces the pains suffered in Anatolia under the conditions of the First World War to members of just one religion."

It accused Francis of deviating from his message of peace and reconciliation during his November visit to Turkey.

Several European countries recognize the massacres as genocide, though Italy and the United States, for example, have avoided using the term officially given the importance they place on Turkey as an ally.

The Holy See, too, places great importance in its relationship with the moderate Muslim nation, especially as it demands that Muslim leaders condemn the Islamic State group slaughter of Christians.

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Prelates wait for the start of an Armenian-Rite Mass celebrated by Pope Francis on the occasion of t …

But Francis' willingness to rile Ankara with his words showed once again that he has few qualms about taking diplomatic risks for issues close to his heart. And the massacre of Armenians is indeed close to the Vatican's heart given that Armenia is held up as the first Christian nation, dating from 301.

That said, Francis is not the first pope to call the massacre a genocide. St. John Paul II wrote in a 2001 joint declaration with the Armenian church leader, Karenkin II, that the deaths were considered "the first genocide of the 20th century."

But the context of Francis' pronunciation was different and significant: in St. Peter's during an Armenian rite service with the Armenian church and state leadership in attendance on the 100th anniversary of the slaughter. And his call for international acknowledgement of what happened went beyond what John Paul had written.

Francis' words had a deeply moving effect among Armenians in the basilica, many of whom wept. At the end of the service, the Armenian Apostolic Church's Aram I thanked Francis for his clear condemnation and recalled that "genocide" is a crime against humanity that requires reparation.

The Armenian president, Sarkisian, praised Francis for "calling things by their names."

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Pope Francis, left, is greeted by the head of Armenia's Orthodox Church Karekin II, during an Ar …

In the interview, he acknowledged the reparation issue, but said "for our people, the primary issue is universal recognition of the Armenian genocide, including recognition by Turkey."

He dismissed Turkish calls for joint research into what transpired, saying researchers and commissions have already come to the conclusion and there is "no doubt at all that what happened was a genocide."

The lead sponsor of a new U.S. congressional resolution recognizing the genocide, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA), said he hoped the pope's words would "inspire our president and Congress to demonstrate a like commitment to speaking the truth about the Armenian genocide and to renounce Turkey's campaign of concealment and denial."

The definition of genocide has long been contentious. The United Nations in 1948 defined genocide as killing and other acts intended to destroy a national, ethnic, racial or religious group, but many dispute which mass killings should be called genocide and whether the terms of the U.N. convention on genocide can be applied retroactively.

Reaction to the pope's declaration on the streets in Istanbul was mixed.

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Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan, center, arrives to attend an Armenian-Rite Mass celebrated by Pop …

"I'm glad he said it," said Aysun Vahic Olger. "When you look at history, there's proof of it."

However, Mucahit Yucedal, 25, said he felt genocide is a "serious allegation."

"I don't support the word genocide being used by a great religious figure who has many followers," he said.

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AP writers Suzan Fraser in Ankara and Desmond Butler and Ayse Wieting in Istanbul contributed to this report.

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The robot has been developed by the International Research Institute for Nuclear Decommissioning (IRID) and Hitachi-GE Nuclear Energy to investigate hard-to-access areas of the plant. It consists of three segments: the robot's main body and two compact crawlers. The robot can assume a long, straight shape for passing through narrow spaces, such as pipes. Alternatively, it can rotate its crawlers by 90 degrees in relation to its central body to assume a U-shape, with the crawlers providing better stability when travelling over flat surfaces.

The robot is 9cm in height. Depending on the position of its crawlers, it is 25cm to 64cm in length and between 6.5cm and 27cm in width. Weighing 7.5kg, the robot is operated via a 40m cable.

"We believe this will lead us to figuring out how to decommission the reactor," Ryo Shimizu, spokesman for plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), told NBC News.

TEPCO hoped to take a look inside the vessel containing one of the three reactors, which underwent a meltdown in the 2011 nuclear disaster.

A group of approximately 40 workers sent the remotely-controlled device,allegedly capable of withstanding high levels of radiation, into the vessel at 11:20 a.m. The robot stopped functioning after covering two thirds of the route at approximately 2:10 p.m., according to the Tokyo Electric Power Co.

So there is still no sign of the corium...