NEW YORK >> Luigi Mangione has publicly spoken out for the first time since his arrest for the assassination of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, thanking his supporters in a statement released on a new website launched by his legal team.

“I am overwhelmed by — and grateful for — everyone who has written me to share their stories and express their support,” Mangione said. “Powerfully, this support has transcended political, racial and even class divisions, as mail has flooded MDC (the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn) from across the country, and around the globe.”

“While it is impossible for me to reply to most letters, please know that I read every one that I receive,” he continued. “Thank you again to everyone who took the time to write. I look forward to hearing more in the future.”

In a separate statement on LuigiMangioneInfo.com, his attorneys said they launched the new site “due to the extraordinary volume of inquiries and outpouring of support” for their client. They said they plan to provide answers to frequently asked questions and dispel misinformation, adding their intent is to “share factual information regarding the unprecedented, multiple prosecutions” against Mangione.

The 26-year-old Ivy League graduate is facing multiple criminal charges in New York, Pennsylvania and federal court in connection with Thompson’s murder. The CEO was gunned down in Midtown Manhattan on the morning of Dec. 4 in what authorities called a “premeditated, preplanned, targeted attack.”

Thompson had been visiting the city from Minnesota for an investor conference sponsored by Minnetonka-based UnitedHealthcare at The Residences by Hilton Club, where he was slated to give a speech later in the day.

Police said Thompson was walking from his hotel toward the venue on West 54th Street near Sixth Avenue, when he was ambushed by a masked gunman around 6:45 a.m. The father of two was fatally struck in the attack and pronounced dead some 30 minutes later.

After a dayslong manhunt, Mangione was arrested at a McDonald’s in Atloona, Pennsylvania. He was allegedly found with a silencer and 3D-printed gun, which police said matched three shell casings found at the murder scene.

The ammo had been marked with the words “delay,” “deny” and “depose” — referencing a phrase often used to describe the insurance industry’s tactics for delaying claims and maximizing profits.

Man in Austria randomly stabs six, killing one

VIENNA >> A 23-year-old man stabbed six passersby in southern Austria on Saturday in what police said was a random attack that left a 14-year-old dead and five others injured.

The suspect was detained in the city of Villach, where the attack took place, police said. He is a Syrian national with legal residence in Austria, they said.

Police spokesperson Rainer Dionisio said a motive was not immediately known. He added that police were investigating the attacker’s personal background. “We have to wait until we get secure information,” he said.

A 42-year-old man who works for a food delivery company witnessed the incident from his car, police said. He drove toward the suspect and helped to prevent things from getting worse, Dionisio told Austria’s public broadcaster ORF.

The victims were all men, with two seriously injured and two sustaining minor injuries, police said. Later on Saturday, police said a fifth person, also a man, was injured in the attack.

British tourists are detained in Iran

A British couple who had been on a motorcycle tour around the world were detained in Iran, Britain’s Foreign Office said Saturday.

The couple, Craig and Lindsay Foreman, were last heard from on social media in early January. But this past week, Iranian state media reported that two British nationals had been detained on suspicion of “security crimes.”

Britain’s Foreign Office confirmed their detention after the Iranian reports, and Saturday issued a statement on behalf of the couple’s family.

“This unexpected turn of events has caused significant concern for our entire family, and we are deeply focused on ensuring their safety and well-being during this trying time,” the family said.

The Foremans, both in their mid-50s, were on a motorcycle tour to Australia, where Lindsay Foreman, was set to deliver a paper at a conference on psychology. They reside in Spain, where Lindsay Foreman worked as a psychologist and life coach and Craig Foreman as a carpenter.

The couple’s detention first came to light when Iranian state media published a photograph of Britain’s ambassador to Iran, Hugo Shorter, meeting with two British citizens accused of “security crimes.”

Eastern U.S. braces for flooding, snow

Much of the U.S. East endured a renewed round of harsh, soggy weather Saturday, with snowstorms predicted in the Northeast and heavy winds bringing the threat of tornadoes to the Mississippi Valley.

Kentucky, Tennessee, West Virginia and Arkansas were under flood warnings, and people were warned by the National Weather Service to stay off roads. Parts of western Kentucky could face up to 8 inches of rain.

Gov. Andy Beshear preemptively declared a state of emergency in Kentucky, where flash flooding was expected into Sunday. Flash flooding hit some roads in Bowling Green.

Meanwhile heavy snow was expected to blanket mch of New England and then transition to sleet, making travel nearly impossible. The heaviest accumulations — possibly a foot or more — were expected in upstate New York and portions of northern New England.

Stampede kills 14 at India train station

NEW DELHI >> At least 15 people were killed in a stampede at a railway station in India’s capital of New Delhi, an official said Sunday.

Delhi’s caretaker chief minister Atishi, who uses only one name, said that the bodies were brought to the capital’s Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narain Hospital.

The stampede happened late Saturday while thousands of people were gathered at the New Delhi railway station and waiting to board a train to the site of the Maha Kumbh Hindu festival in northern India.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that he was “distressed by the stampede.”

“My thoughts are with all those who have lost their loved ones. I pray that the injured have a speedy recovery. The authorities are assisting all those who have been affected by this stampede,” he said on X.

At least 30 people were killed in a stampede at the six-week festival last month after tens of millions of Hindus gathered to take a dip in sacred river waters.

Doctors tell ailing pope to get ‘absolute rest’

ROME >> Doctors on Saturday prescribed “absolute rest” for Pope Francis and modified the treatment for his respiratory tract infection, the Vatican said, a day after the 88-year-old pope was admitted to a hospital following a weeklong bout of bronchitis.

On doctors’ orders, Francis won’t deliver his traditional Sunday noon blessing, which he could have done from his hospital room if he was well enough.

The Argentine pope, a known workaholic who keeps up a grueling pace despite his many ailments, was admitted to Rome’s Gemelli hospital on Friday after his bronchitis worsened. It was his fourth hospitalization since his 2013 election and raised questions about his increasingly precarious health.

Preliminary tests showed that he had a respiratory tract infection, which was confirmed Saturday.

— From news service reports