Climber accused of stepping over dying sherpa in order to set K2 record



A Norwegian woman and her guide reportedly set a world record late last month for having summited the world's 14 highest peaks in three months and one day, beating the previous 2019 record of three months and five days held by Nirmal Purja.

While former professional skier Kristin Harila and Tenjin "Lama" Sherpa took home the bragging rights, they are accused of stepping over a dying 27-year-old to get it.

The Guardian reported that prior to deserting the body of Mohammed Hassan, a father of three young boys, on K2, Harila's shot at the record had already been plagued by scandal.

The prominent sherpa Mingma G criticized Harila over her team's heavy reliance on helicopters to shuttle in supplies and sherpas to higher camps — thereby opening the routes from above — particularly ahead of her ascent of Manaslu, the world's eighth-highest mountain.

Mingma G posted footage of the helicopter assistance to social media.

Her team suggested that Harila had only been flown to base camp and that her sherpa's advanced drop-offs were for their own safety.

Notwithstanding this apparent technological advantage, Harila proceeded to summit Pakistan's roughly 26,000 foot K2 on July 27.

Along the way, she came across Mohammed Hassan, a poorly dressed sherpa who had fallen off an edge in a troublesome spot called the "bottleneck," but was still very much alive, reported the Telegraph.

Harila's team was hardly the only one on the mountain that day. Among the many climbers crowding the slopes were Wilhelm Steindl and Philip Flämig, a climbing duo from Austria.

They suggested to Austria's Standard newspaper that Harila was far more interested in setting records than in saving lives.

The Austrian climbing duo referenced drone footage that shows climbers walking over Hassan's body rather than bothering to help him.

The Daily Mail has obtained the drone footage, which appears to show "people physically climbing over Hassan as he lies helpless in the deep snow."

Harila was reportedly among those who passed on by.

"He is being treated by one person while everyone else is pushing towards the summit. The fact is that there was no organised rescue operation although there were sherpas and mountain guides on site who could have taken action," said Flämig.

"Such a thing would be unthinkable in the Alps," said Steindl. "He was treated like a second-class human being. ... If he had been a Westerner, he would have been rescued immediately. No one felt responsible for him."

Steindl, who started a GoFundMe for Hassan's family, added, "What happened there is a disgrace. A living human was left lying so that records could be set."

According to Steindl, it would have only taken three or four people to save Hassan.

Lakpa Sherpa, an alpinist who took the video, told the Daily Mail, "The climbers have all spent a lot of money to do this climb and there is the value of time too for the climb. Hundreds of climbers tried to save him but they cannot give up their mission."

Harila offered a contrary account of what had happened in a statement on Instagram.

Despite noting that she wanted to first ask Hassan's family for permission, she went ahead anyway "because of all of the misinformation and hatred that is now being spread."

Harila claimed she and her team "did everything we could for him at the time. This happened at the most dangerous part of the deadliest mountain in the world, and you should remember that at 8000+ meters, your survival instincts impact the decisions you make."

The Norwegian climber said that she, her cameraman, Gabriel, and two others started their summit push around 8 p.m. on July 26.

"Around 2:15 [a.m.] the accident happened. I did not see exactly what took place, but suddenly Hassan had fallen and was hanging on the rope between 2 ice anchors. He was attached to the same rope as all of us, it was pitch black and we could hear him to the left side of us, away from the path. We could also see that he was hanging about 5m down but we did not know if he slipped and fell, or if a bit of snow collapsed below him."

Harila claimed that Hassan had been hanging upside down and was unable to climb up by himself. In addition to dangling without an oxygen mask, parts of his body were exposed to the elements.

The Norwegian detailed a few alleged attempts to get to the sherpa before her cameraman finally managed to give the fallen man some oxygen and "calming."

Having fastened a rope to Hassan, they allegedly attempted to move him "up closer to the path," at which point Harila claimed "an avalanche went off around the corner. ... At this stage, we decided to split up. Gabriel stayed with Hassan and his friend in the bottleneck."

Harila claimed she spent 1.5 hours in the area trying to help Hassan before pressing onward under the alleged presumption the 27-year-old might be getting more help.

Not until she made her way back down the mountain did Harila acknowledge Hassan had died, writing, "We saw that Hassan had passed and we were ourselves, in no shape to carry his body down."

Maintaining she had done her best, Harila told the Telegraph, "Given the conditions, it is hard to see how he could have been saved."

She said of Hassan's passing, "My heart and thoughts and prayers go out to the family and loved ones of Hassan and I feel very sad about this whole situation."

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'Time for the protesters to hear our jackboots on the ground': Royal Canadian Mounted Police in group chat allegedly celebrate violence against protesters



Members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in a group chat allegedly celebrated violence against Ottawa protesters, with officers making declarations such as "time for the protesters to hear our jackboots on the ground.”

The RCMP issued a statement on the matter Sunday saying it's "aware of the material circulating on social media pertaining to a chat group that includes some of its members, and we can confirm that we are looking into the matter. This material is not representative of those who have committed themselves to serving Canadians with integrity and professionalism.

What are the details?

Rebel News posted screenshots of what the outlet said are RCMP members bragging about using brutal force against protesters as authorities began arresting truckers and moving demonstrators out over the weekend.

In one message, an officer allegedly begged, "Don't kick all of them out until next weeks group gets our turn."

In another message, an officer allegedly declared, “Time for the protesters to hear our jackboots on the ground."

Another message allegedly celebrated a video showing police on horseback trampling protesters: "Just watched the horse video — that is awesome." The same individual allegedly added, "We should practice that manoeuvre."

Here's video presumably of that incident: (Content warning: language):

WATCH: Close up of peaceful protestors in Ottawa protesting mandates being trampled by the mounted unit.\n\nYes, this is Canada in 2022.pic.twitter.com/I776GdTIwe
— K2\ud83c\udf41\ud83d\ude9b (@K2\ud83c\udf41\ud83d\ude9b) 1645225843

Police on horseback knocked down at least two people in the video, including an elderly woman on a mobility scooter.

Rebel News said it has not yet been able to authenticate the content of the texts.

What else has been happening?

Far-left Prime Minister Justin Trudeau last week invoked rare emergency powers to end the Freedom Convoy trucker protests against vaccine mandates. The Canadian House of Commons on Monday approved his emergency powers.

Last Thursday, police arrested key leaders of the Freedom Convoy — Tamara Lich and Chris Barber — in Ottawa. The crackdown escalated Friday and into Saturday as police made 150 arrests.

Interim Ottawa Police Chief Steve Bell on Saturday told reporters that individuals who attended the Freedom Convoy protests in the city could face criminal charges and financial sanctions — even if they return home without incident.

A Romanian-born trucker who's been a Canadian for 20 years — and was beaten by Ottawa police after he said he peacefully surrendered to them over the weekend — noted that while they may have broken his body, they'll never break his spirit.

Incident of woman allegedly trampled by Canadian police horse under investigationyoutu.be

Video: Trucker protest in Ottawa escalates as police clash with Freedom Convoy demonstrators, 150 arrested as authorities retake Parliament Hill area



The Freedom Convoy protests have been happening in Ottawa for three weeks, but clashes between law enforcement and demonstrators escalated on Friday and into Saturday.

The Ottawa Police Department said on Friday, "Protesters are assaulting officers, have attempted to remove officer’s weapons. All means of de-escalation have been used to move forward in our goal of returning Ottawa to its normalcy."

The Ottawa Police added, "The protesters continued their assaultive behavior with the police line, to prevent an escalation or further injury, mounted officers were sent in to create critical space between the police line and protesters. This is done to create a safe distance."

However, mounted police charged into a crowd of demonstrators on Friday, knocking down at least two people, including an elderly woman on a mobility scooter.

WATCH: Close up of peaceful protestors in Ottawa protesting mandates being trampled by the mounted unit.\n\nYes, this is Canada in 2022.pic.twitter.com/I776GdTIwe
— K2\ud83c\udf41\ud83d\ude9b (@K2\ud83c\udf41\ud83d\ude9b) 1645225843
Overhead photo of police on horseback facing off with protesters in Ottawa today \n @Brett_Gundlock \n\nhttps://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/gallery-in-photos-ottawa-police-say-action-imminent-to-remove-truck-convoy/\u00a0\u2026pic.twitter.com/iJr5nHA6E1
— Matt Frehner (@Matt Frehner) 1645228231

The Ottawa Police claimed that "no one has been seriously injured or passed away in any of today's police actions." One officer reportedly had a minor injury.

Early Friday night, the Ottawa Police announced that it had arrested over 100 people and towed 21 vehicles.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford said on Friday, "There are indications we are now starting to see progress."

Interim Ottawa Police Chief Steve Bell added, "We're in control of the situation on the ground and continue to push forward to clear our streets. We will work day and night until this is completed."

On Saturday morning, the Ottawa Police said its officers would be using helmets and batons.

PROTESTORS: We told you to leave. We gave you time to leave. We were slow and methodical, yet you were assaultive and aggressive with officers and the horses. Based on your behaviour, we are responding by including helmets and batons for our safety.

By noon, the Ottawa and Gatineau Police closed the Chaudières Bridge to "prevent an influx of protesters into Ottawa for everyone's safety." The Chaudière Bridge crosses the Ottawa River about half of a mile west of Parliament Hill.

According to the Associated Press, police "aggressively pushed back protesters" and retook the streets in front of Canada's Parliament building from the Freedom Convoy protesters.

Police surge against the freedom protestors in Ottawa, forcing them towards Parliament Hill.\n\nFootage by @PuffinsPicturespic.twitter.com/aBXmpuPFoR
— The Post Millennial (@The Post Millennial) 1645281490


This is the scene in front of Parliament Hill right now. Police are aggressively pushing forward. We are nearly in front of Peace Tower now. #cdnpolipic.twitter.com/22f241zHdL
— Rachel Emmanuel (@Rachel Emmanuel) 1645284656

As the protesters were being driven away from Parliament Hill, demonstrators sang, "O' Canada."

Freedom protestors sing O Canada as police drive them away from Parliament Hill.\n\nFootage by @PuffinsPicturespic.twitter.com/YRm3onH8DH
— The Post Millennial (@The Post Millennial) 1645290028

CTV anchor Graham Richardson said authorities had retaken Wellington Street and the area surrounding Parliament Hill by noon.

Ottawa Police admitted that they used "a chemical irritant in an effort to stop the assaultive behavior and for officer safety."

On Saturday, the New York Times reported, "Canadian police officers advanced on demonstrators at gunpoint, smashing truck windows and arresting protesters in front of the country’s Parliament building, an aggressive escalation in the government's effort to finally end the protests that have roiled the nation’s capital for three weeks."

The New York Times acknowledged that the trucker protest has been overwhelmingly peaceful, "The protests had been by and large nonviolent, evoking the atmosphere of a carnival. But they ensnarled traffic across the capital, disrupted business, and annoyed residents with incessant honking. Organizers inflated bouncy castles in the street, and people brought small children and dogs. D.J.s spun music from flatbed trucks-turned stages. At one point people soaked in a hot tub erected in front of the Parliament building."

By 1 p.m., Ottawa Police said that they had arrested 47 on Saturday and towed 38 vehicles.

The major crackdown of the protest occurred after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau invoked the Emergencies Act earlier this week, which enabled law enforcement to set up a secure zone with roughly 100 checkpoints, suspend driver's licenses, and freeze bank accounts of protesters.

On Thursday, police arrested key leaders of the Freedom Convoy – Tamara Lich and Chris Barber.