FORT WALTON BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Just two days before a sheriff's deputy in Florida shot him dead, U.S. Air Force airman Roger Fortson called home to find out what his 10-year-old sister wanted for her birthday.
It was a typical gesture for the 23-year-old from Atlanta, who doted on the girl and was devoted to helping her, a younger brother and his mom prosper, his family says.
Click to Gallery
FORT WALTON BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Just two days before a sheriff's deputy in Florida shot him dead, U.S. Air Force airman Roger Fortson called home to find out what his 10-year-old sister wanted for her birthday.
FILE - The family of Botham Jean hug after unveiling the street sign for Botham Jean Boulevard which is named after their slain son and brother in Dallas on Saturday, March 27, 2021. (Juan Figueroa/The Dallas Morning News via AP, File)
Airman shot by deputy doted on little sister and aimed to buy mom a house, family says
Airman shot by deputy doted on little sister and aimed to buy mom a house, family says
FILE - This photo provided by the U.S. Air Force, shows Senior Airman Roger Fortson in a Dec. 24, 2019, photo. (U.S. Air Force via AP, File)
“He was trying to give me everything that I never could get for myself,” his mother, Chantemekki Fortson, said Thursday at a news conference in Fort Walton Beach, where her son was living when he was killed.
He was her “gift,” she said, the man who taught her to love and forgive and served as her co-worker and counselor.
An Okaloosa County sheriff’s deputy shot Fortson on May 3. Sheriff's officials say he acted in self-defense while responding to a call of a disturbance in progress at the apartment complex. But civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who is representing the Fortson family, has accused the deputy of going to the wrong apartment and said the shooting was unjustified.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is investigating.
At Thursday's news conference, Chantemekki Fortson held a large framed portrait of her son in dress uniform. He joined the Air Force in 2019, the same year he graduated from Ronald McNair — a majority Black high school in metro Atlanta’s DeKalb County where roughly half of students don't graduate in four years.
Air Force service was a lifelong dream, and Fortson rose to the rank of senior airman. He was stationed at Hurlburt Field near Fort Walton Beach.
“Where we come from, we don’t end up where Roger ended up,” his mother said.
Fortson, a gunner aboard the AC-130J, earned an Air Medal with combat device, which is typically awarded after 20 flights in a combat zone or for conspicuous valor or achievement on a single mission. An Air Force official said Fortson’s award reflected both — completing flights in a combat zone and taking specific actions during one of the missions to address an in-flight emergency and allow the mission to continue. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to provide additional details that had not been made public.
But his service, like almost everything else he did, had a larger purpose.
“He was trying to help his family have a better life,” Crump said Thursday.
That meant serving as a role model for his 16-year-old brother, his mom said, saving up to try to buy her a house, and getting her a new car. His nickname was “Mr. Make It Happen.”
Chantemekki Fortson recalled that her son, then in high school, accompanied her in an ambulance to the hospital when she was giving birth to her daughter and tried to tell the doctor how to deliver the baby.
The girl and his brother were always in his thoughts. Fortson was assigned to the 4th Special Operations Squadron as a special missions aviator, where one of his roles was to load the gunship’s 30mm and 105mm cannons.
Chantemekki Fortson said her son was injured while loading a plane and was in such severe pain he thought he would die. But he told his mom he had to push through for his brother and sister.
He was also by her side when she got into an accident a short time later and needed to go to the emergency room.
“That’s the kind of gift he was,” she said. "They took something that can never be replaced.”
Thanawala reported from Atlanta. Associated Press writer Tara Copp in Washington contributed.
FILE - This photo provided by the U.S. Air Force, shows Senior Airman Roger Fortson in a Dec. 24, 2019, photo. (U.S. Air Force via AP, File)
FILE - The family of Botham Jean hug after unveiling the street sign for Botham Jean Boulevard which is named after their slain son and brother in Dallas on Saturday, March 27, 2021. (Juan Figueroa/The Dallas Morning News via AP, File)
Airman shot by deputy doted on little sister and aimed to buy mom a house, family says
Airman shot by deputy doted on little sister and aimed to buy mom a house, family says
FILE - This photo provided by the U.S. Air Force, shows Senior Airman Roger Fortson in a Dec. 24, 2019, photo. (U.S. Air Force via AP, File)
The International Criminal Court's chief prosecutor said Monday that he’s seeking arrest warrants for both Israeli and Hamas leaders in connection with their actions during the seven-month war.
Karim Khan's announcement came as Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant — one of those for whom Khan is seeking a warrant — said the military would expand its operations in the southern Gaza city of Rafah in its efforts to crush Hamas.
Khan said he believes Gallant, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and three Hamas leaders — Yehia Sinwar, Mohammed Deif and Ismail Haniyeh — are responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza Strip and Israel. Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz and Hamas militant leaders each immediately denounced the announcement.
U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan met with Gallant and the Israeli military leadership in Tel Aviv earlier Monday. Sullivan’s visit comes two weeks into the military’s foray into Rafah, where troops have been battling Hamas fighters and escalating bombardment.
President Joe Biden's administration has opposed a full-fledged invasion of Rafah because of fears for the civilian population. So far Israeli forces have mainly been operating in eastern parts of the city, but the fighting has already triggered an exodus of more than 810,000 Palestinians, according to the United Nations.
Israel launched its offensive after Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack, in which militants stormed into southern Israel, killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted about 250.
The war has killed at least 35,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which doesn’t distinguish between combatants and civilians. Around 80% of the population of 2.3 million Palestinians has been displaced within the territory, often multiple times.
“I emphasized to him (Sullivan) Israel’s duty to expand the ground operation in Rafah, to dismantle Hamas and to return the hostages,” Gallant said in a post on X.
In his visit, Sullivan was also discussing postwar plans for Gaza at a time when Netanyahu faces criticism from the other members of his War Cabinet. Netanyahu’s main political rival, Benny Gantz, has threatened to leave the government if a plan is not created by June 8 that includes an international administration for postwar Gaza.
Currently:
— ICC prosecutor seeks arrest warrant for Israeli and Hamas leaders, including Netanyahu.
— Senior Republican close to Trump criticizes Biden’s arms holdup in speech to Israeli parliament.
— Pro-Palestinian protesters set up a new encampment at Drexel University.
Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Gaza at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war
Here's the latest:
BEIRUT, Lebanon — The Hamas militant group has denounced a request by the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court to seek the arrests of its leaders, as well as top Israeli leaders.
In a statement Monday, Hamas accused the prosecutor of trying to “equate the victim with the executioner.” It said it has the right to resist Israeli occupation, including “armed resistance.”
It also criticized the court for seeking the arrests of only two Israeli leaders and said it should seek warrants for others.
ICC chief prosecutor Karim Khan said Monday that he is seeking arrest warrants for Israeli leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and three Hamas leaders: Yehia Sinwar, Mohammed Deif and Ismail Haniyeh. Khan says all are responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza Strip and Israel during the seven-month war between Israel and Hamas.
Both Sinwar and Deif are believed to be hiding in Gaza as Israel tries to hunt them down. But Haniyeh, the supreme leader of the Islamic militant group, is based in Qatar and frequently travels across the region.
TEL AVIV, Israel — Israel’s foreign minister says the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court’s decision to seek arrest warrants against Israeli leaders is “a historic disgrace that will be remembered forever.”
Israel Katz said Monday he would form a special committee to fight back against any such action and would work with world leaders to ensure that any such warrants are not enforced.
THE HAGUE, Netherlands — The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court says he's seeking arrest warrants for Israeli and Hamas leaders, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in connection with their actions during the seven-month war between Israel and Hamas.
Karim Khan said that he believes Netanyahu, his defense minister Yoav Gallant and three Hamas leaders — Yehia Sinwar, Mohammed Deif and Ismail Haniyeh — are responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza Strip and Israel.
The prosecutor must request the warrants from a pre-trial panel of three judges, who take on average two months to consider the evidence and determine if the proceedings can move forward.
Israel is not a member of the court, and even if the arrest warrants are issued, Netanyahu and Gallant do not face any immediate risk of prosecution. But Khan’s announcement deepens Israel’s isolation as it presses ahead with its war, and the threat of arrest could make it difficult for the Israeli leaders to travel abroad.
Both Sinwar and Deif are believed to be hiding in Gaza as Israel tries to hunt them down. But Haniyeh, the supreme leader of the Islamic militant group, is based in Qatar and frequently travels across the region.
There was no immediate comment from either side.
TEL AVIV, Israel — Israel Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said the military would expand its operations in the southern Gaza city of Rafah in talks Monday with a U.S. envoy.
U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan met Monday with Gallant and the Israeli military leadership in Tel Aviv. Sullivan’s visit comes two weeks into the military’s foray into Rafah, where troops have been battling Hamas fighters and escalating bombardment.
The Biden administration has opposed a full-fledged invasion of Rafah because of fears for the civilian population. So far Israeli forces have mainly been operating in eastern parts of the city, but the fighting has already triggered an exodus of more than 810,000 Palestinians, according to the U.N.
“I emphasized to him (Sullivan) Israel’s duty to expand the ground operation in Rafah, to dismantle Hamas and to return the hostages,” Gallant said in a post on X.
In his visit, Sullivan was also discussing postwar plans for Gaza at a time when Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces criticism from the other members of his War Cabinet. Netanyahu’s main political rival Benny Gantz has threatened to leave the government if a plan is not created by June 8 that includes an international administration for postwar Gaza.
On Sunday, Sullivan held talks with Netanyahu to discuss an ambitious U.S. plan for Saudi Arabia to recognize Israel and help the Palestinian Authority govern Gaza in exchange for a path to eventual statehood. Netanyahu has rejected the creation of a Palestinian state.
Sullivan met Monday with Gantz, whose office said the two discussed “prospects for advancing normalization with Saudi Arabia.”
DAMASCUS — Suspected Israeli airstrikes on Monday killed several people in the vicinity of the city of Homs in central Syria, pro-government media and a war monitor said.
According to the pro-government Al-Watan newspaper, four people died and four others were wounded., The U.K.-based opposition war monitor Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the strikes killed at least six members of the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. There was no official confirmation of the strikes.
The observatory said the strikes hit next to a gas station south of Homs, in an area used by pro-Iranian militias, and at a Hezbollah site next to a school southwest of Homs, near the Syrian-Lebanese border. It said the strikes were the 40th time Israel had hit inside of Syria since the beginning of the year.
There was no immediate comment from Israeli officials. Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes on targets inside government-controlled parts of Syria in recent years, but rarely acknowledges them. When it does, it has said that it is seeking to stop Iran from expanding its foothold in Syria.
Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh speaks during a press briefing after his meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 26, 2024. The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court said Monday he is seeking arrest warrants for Israeli and Hamas leaders, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in connection with their actions during the seven-month war between Israel and Hamas. Haniyeh is one of the three Hamas leaders believed to be responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza Strip and Israel. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi, File)
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant pauses while making a brief statement to the media with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, not pictured, at The Kirya, Israel's Ministry of Defense, Monday, Oct. 16, 2023, in Tel Aviv. The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court said Monday, May 20, 2024, he is seeking arrest warrants for Israeli and Hamas leaders, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in connection with their actions during the seven-month war between Israel and Hamas. Netanyahu, his defense minister Gallant, and three Hamas leaders, are believed to be responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza Strip and Israel. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, Pool, File)
Ricarda Louk, writes on the flag-covered coffin of her daughter Shani Louk during her funeral in Srigim, Israel, on Sunday, May 19, 2024. Louk, a 22-year-old German-Israeli, was killed while fleeing a music festival during Hamas' Oct. 7 attack and her body was taken into Gaza. Israeli forces recovered her remains last week along with those of three other Israelis killed during the attack, which ignited the war in Gaza. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)
Palestinians are waiting for aid trucks to cross in central Gaza Strip on Sunday, May 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
Palestinians look at the destruction after an Israeli strike on a residential building in Nuseirat Refugee Camp, Gaza Strip, Sunday, May 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Ismael Abu Dayyah)
Palestinians search for survivors after an Israeli airstrike on a residential building in Nuseirat Refugee Camp, Gaza Strip, Sunday, May 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Ismael Abu Dayyah)
