Joe and Claryce Holcombe have alleged in their claim that the Air Force’s actions “directly caused this horrific tragedy,” as they failed to follow their own policies by not reporting the shooter’s criminal history to the FBI.

Mr Holcombe told CNN: “We want to see this sort of thing not happen again, and I think if the Air Force had have done its job properly this wouldn’t have happened.”

Crystal Holcombe, 36, and three of her children, Greg, 13, Emily, 11, and Megan, 9, were all killed, while her husband John Holcombe, was among the massacre’s few survivors.

His parents, 60-year-old Bryan and Karla Holcombe, 58; brother, 36-year-old Marc Holcombe, and Marc’s 18-month-old daughter, Noah, were also killed when Devin Patrick Kelley, opened fire at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, killing 26 people and injuring 20.

The family’s claim states: “Although (Kelley) undoubtedly ‘pulled the trigger’ that resulted in injuries and death of J.B. Holcombe and others, the failures of the US Air Force, and others, allowed the shooter to purchase, own and/or possess the semiautomatic rifle, ammunition and body armour he used.”

On Wednesday, the Air Force released a statement which said that it’s “review of its reporting processes to civilian law enforcement in the Devin P. Kelley case has prompted immediate actions to correct reporting deficiencies and prevent future occurrences”.

The review also found the error…

Researchers at Leeds and York universities have concluded 182 venues have registered to hold same-sex weddings, while approximately half of those have actually hosted one.

They reported: “Over half of the places of worship that have solemnized a same-sex marriage have done so on only one occasion.

“Nineteen places of worship report that they have solemnized one same-sex marriage, eight report that they have solemnized two same-sex marriages, and four report that they have solemnized three same-sex marriages.

“Only five places of worship have solemnized four or more same-sex marriages, with the highest number of same-sex marriages solemnized in any place of worship reported as 10.”

The academics said the number remains “very small”, compared to the 40,000 places of worships currently prohibited from holding same-sex weddings.

Baptists, Lutherans, Unitarians, the United Reformed Church, and other designated religions – included Buddhists – were included in the study.

The academics conclude that same-sex couples wanting to marry in a religious setting face a “significant disadvantage”, compared to heterosexual couples.

Study co-author, Dr Silvia Falcetta, from York’s Department of Sociology, said: “This report shows that same-sex couples are at a significant disadvantage to different-sex couples, because same-sex couples are more likely to live in an area where there is no scope to be married in a place of…

Evan Mawarire – who launched the #ThisFlag protest campaign on social media – was found not guilty by High Court judge Priscilla Chigumba after state prosecutors failed to prove their case.

He appealed to the country’s new leadership to drop other prosecutions of people who demonstrated against former president Robert Mugabe.

The ruling came as Zimbabweans wait to see whether new President Emmerson Mnangagwa, a former deputy of Mr Mugabe, follows through on pledges of democracy after years of violations of basic freedoms.

There are still some Zimbabweans “in prison for political reasons, in terms of having stood up against the regime” of Mr Mugabe, Mr Mawarire said outside the courthouse in Harare, the capital.

“Many are still appearing in court over the next few weeks and I want to urge this new government and administration to drop those charges and let those people go, because they did not commit any crime at all.”

Mr Mawarire, who stood in the dock with a Zimbabwean flag, said he was “absolutely elated” at his acquittal but claimed it was too soon to tell whether it reflected a trend towards more independence in the judiciary, which was often subject to political pressure during the Mugabe era.

“It could be evidence of a freer Zimbabwe but I think also this case had no legs from the beginning,” Mr Mawarire said.

“I think that a lot more needs to be seen for us to determine whether this is a free judiciary going forward.”

A Christian peer who founded a parliamentary group to monitor North Korea also encouraged believers to pray that China might exercise wisdom as its key mediator.

Co-chair of the group, Lord Alton, told Premier: “Wisdom should be at the forefront of the situation on all sides in dealing with North Korea.

“Simply increasing the retoric and name-calling makes a dangerous situation even more dangerous.”

Officials in South Korea and the United States have been monitoring the trajectory of the missile, which Seoul claims launched from an early north of Pyongyang early on Wednesday.

Urging North Korea to adher to cease actions which might esalate tensions, China aso said it was “seriously concerned” by the apparent latest missle launch.

The test was condenmed as a “provocative action” by Russia, which warned the move could damage efforts to resolve the ongoing crisis.

Lord Alton added: “I am not surprised that they [the North Koreans] have cranked up the rachet, this is something that they have done seriously.”

Click here to listen to Premier’s Alex Williams speaking with David Alton: