| Kenyan authorities investigate local role in Nairobi attack Posted: 18 Jan 2019 02:08 PM PST  Officials have released few details about the five-man assault team that carried out Tuesday's siege at the dusitD2 hotel complex, an attack that killed 21 people and was claimed by al Shabaab, a Somalia-based al Qaeda affiliate. How did he get to where he is?" said a private security official in Kenya, who asked not to be identified for operational reasons. "If al Shabaab can replicate this model, then there is a fundamental problem." All five assailants were killed in Tuesday's attack, the country's president said in a televised address the next morning.
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| The Latest: Falling tree kills 1 as storm lashes California Posted: 16 Jan 2019 07:41 PM PST  SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The Latest on California storms (all times local):
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| TSA officers open up about what the government shutdown is doing to their families Posted: 18 Jan 2019 07:22 AM PST  Shutdown threatens the financial security of TSA agents across the country, including at Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport.
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| 'Thousands' more children separated from parents at US border in 2017-18 Posted: 17 Jan 2019 07:40 PM PST  Thousands more children were forcibly separated from their parents after illegally crossing the US-Mexico border from 2017-2018 than originally admitted by President Donald Trump's administration, an official report said Thursday. The inspector general of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), which was given responsibility for the children, said the total number separated under the administration's "zero-tolerance policy" toward illegal immigrants remains unknown.
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| Mexican airline trolls Americans with brilliant ad Posted: 18 Jan 2019 06:53 AM PST  While the debate over immigration and a border wall between the United States and Mexico has helped grind the U.S. federal government to a halt, Mexico's national airline, AeroMexico, is trolling Americans with a new ad called "DNA Discounts." The ad features purported residents of Wharton, Texas, a town about 60 miles southwest of Houston, professing a variety of opinions about Mexico and its citizens. The ad also drops some knowledge about the long history of immigration from Mexico to the U.S., and notes that many in southern and southwestern states have a touch of Mexican DNA. Things get flipped when the airline reveals it's offering flight discounts to Americans, including those Wharton residents, based on the amount of Mexican DNA they have (i.e., 18 percent DNA equals an 18 percent discount). That certainly turns opinions around. As one recipient says, "I love discounts!" Of course, it's such a brilliant ad, it's hard to tell if those Wharton residents are real or just actors and if this whole DNA discount thing is real or satirical. Aeromexico, which has gotten political before, isn't saying much, but we've reached out for comment and will update this post when we hear back. Either way, it's a brilliant gambit that undermines the vitriol so many Americans have expressed at our neighbors to the south, and does so without ever directly mentioning the political turmoil, the wall, or even President Trump. Instead, it directs that energy at a sense of shared community, including the tagline, "There are no borders within us." Not a bad way to spread a powerful message.
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| The Latest: Officer to plead not guilty after man's death Posted: 18 Jan 2019 02:09 PM PST ![The Latest: Officer to plead not guilty after man's death]( "The Latest: Officer to plead not guilty after man's death") NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The Latest on the criminal case against a white Nashville police officer who shot and killed an armed black man who was fleeing (all times local):
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| Omaha airport reopens after Southwest Airlines plane goes off runway Posted: 18 Jan 2019 05:11 PM PST  The airport tweeted out a statement Friday afternoon about the incident, and followed up with several additional tweets.
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| Russia agrees for Germany, France to monitor Kerch Strait: Lavrov Posted: 18 Jan 2019 11:17 AM PST  Russia on Friday said it had agreed for France and Germany to monitor shipping traffic in the Kerch Strait following a naval confrontation between Moscow and Kiev last year. Russian ships fired on and seized three Ukrainian navy vessels in the narrow strait -- shared between Russia and Ukraine -- as the boats tried to pass from the Black Sea to the Azov Sea on November 25. President Vladimir Putin had "immediately agreed" to Berlin's request to send observers to the area, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said at a press conference with his German counterpart Heiko Maas.
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| Week in review: Jayme Closs found after being kidnapped Posted: 18 Jan 2019 02:54 AM PST  The 21-year-old suspect allegedly targeted Closs.
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| Winter storm disturbs travel as it rolls toward U.S. Midwest, Northeast Posted: 18 Jan 2019 02:21 PM PST  A major winter storm was expected to clobber a large swath of the northern United States with heavy snow, gusty winds and frigid temperatures making travel difficult and dangerous starting on Friday and through the weekend, forecasters said. The storm system will dump 6 to 10 inches (15 to 25 cm) of snow in the Plains and Midwest on Friday night and Saturday and as it moves east at least a foot of snow in parts of the Northeast on Saturday and Sunday, the National Weather Service (NWS) said in several advisories. The system was expected to also bring freezing rain, wind gusts of 35 miles (56 km) per hour and quickly dropping temperatures that will to dip into the teens and even below zero Fahrenheit in several areas, the service said.
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| 'We'll Have No Other Option Than Declaring Bankruptcy.' How the Shutdown Could Impact Government Workers for Months Posted: 18 Jan 2019 11:32 AM PST  'It just feels like such a betrayal,' says one impacted government contractor
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| Congressional Democrats move to stop U.S. Census citizenship question Posted: 16 Jan 2019 05:59 PM PST  Democrats in the U.S. Congress on Wednesday were moving ahead with legislation to prevent the Trump administration from adding a citizenship question to the 2020 Census, following a court decision this week blocking inclusion of such information. Representative Carolyn Maloney, a senior Democrat on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, told reporters that she is re-introducing her bill, which was ignored by Republicans in 2017-2018 when they controlled the House of Representatives.
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| Gillette Is Not Wrong Posted: 17 Jan 2019 03:30 AM PST  Is the new Gillette razor ad a radical feminist attack on masculinity — the commercial embodiment of a woke sensibility? The ad has been panned by some conservative commentators. Is it part of "a war on masculinity in America," as Todd Starnes argued on Fox News?
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| American anchor for Iranian TV is arrested on visit to US Posted: 17 Jan 2019 12:34 AM PST  NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A prominent American anchorwoman on Iranian state television has been arrested by the FBI during a visit to the U.S., the broadcaster reported Wednesday, and her son said she was being held in a prison, apparently as a material witness.
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| Netflix tidying guru sparks charity shop boom Posted: 18 Jan 2019 11:38 AM PST  A Netflix tidying guru has sparked a charity shop boom, as branches of Salvation Army, Scope and the British Heart Foundation have said she has led to increase in donations. It comes as decluttering expert Marie Kondo has rapidly risen to fame with her "KonMari" household organisation method, which promises to provide not only a de-cluttered house, but also a clean mind. Through her hit Netflix show she is teaching those with messy tendencies to get their homes in order by throwing out old and unwanted items to create a calmer home environment. Many people following the craze claim her various techniques have helped their mental health, and are adamant that a clean and organised home helps them feel calm. Charity shops across the country said they had seen donations of clothes double over the past few weeks since Ms Kondo's show was released on the streaming service. Marie Kondo, the author of the international best-seller, "The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up," became famous for advising readers to transform their lives by sifting through all their belongings, one by one, embracing those that "spark joy" and bidding a fond but hasty farewell to the rest Credit: Natsuno Ichigo They say they are able to identify items which have come from people who have watched the show as they are folded according to her "signature fold", which sees items placed upright to reduce creasing. For example, according to the method socks should be lain flat as a pair, with one sock on top of the other. The toe is folded inward about an inch from the top, then into to the centre, and then in half so it stands upright. A branch manager for disability charity Scope also said she was able to recognize items donated by KonMari fans due to their immaculate presentation on arrival at the store, adding that the folding hack had led to more donations due to more space being available inside plastic sacks. The Salvation Army said that although shops usually experience an increase in donations after Christmas, shop managers had seen a larger than usual volume of donations. It comes amid a decline in charity shops across the UK with numbers down by more than 100 in first half of 2018, according to Third Sector magazine. Yorkshire and Humber was the only region that saw more charity shops open than close, it said. Charity shops have come under criticism in recent years for pricing items for middle class bargain hunters, rather than the poorest people in society who rely on cheap second hand clothing to dress themselves.
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| The Coolest Real-Life Lego Cars You Can Buy Posted: 17 Jan 2019 11:21 AM PST |
| Syria suicide bomb that killed four US citizens also reignites debate over US pulling troops Posted: 17 Jan 2019 05:57 AM PST  A suicide bomb reignited the debate over President Donald Trump's assertion that the Islamic State has been defeated and his decision to exit Syria.
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| More asteroids strike Earth since age of dinosaurs: study Posted: 17 Jan 2019 11:22 AM PST  Between two and three times as many asteroids have struck the Earth and the Moon since the age of the dinosaurs, when one massive space rock collision wiped them out forever, researchers said Thursday. The mounting pace began around 290 million years ago, and likely coincides with some kind of large cosmic smashup in the main asteroid belt between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter, researchers reported in the US journal Science. The result was space debris, some of which made its way to the Earth and the Moon, leading to a rate of asteroid impacts 2.6 times higher than it was prior to 290 million years ago.
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| Photos: At least 6 fatalities reported as intense storms slam California Posted: 17 Jan 2019 11:04 AM PST  Amid a relentless series of storms, a powerful storm has been wreaking havoc in California from Wednesday into Thursday, further raising concerns of flooding, mudslides and avalanches.
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| Celebrities Are Fighting Over the 'Keto' Diet. Here's What Science Says About How Healthy It Is Posted: 17 Jan 2019 10:04 AM PST  'I don't understand. Like, why would anybody think this is a good idea?' celebrity trainer Jillian Michaels fumed
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| Portugal promises no visas for Britons in any no-deal Brexit Posted: 17 Jan 2019 08:24 AM PST ![Portugal promises no visas for Britons in any no-deal Brexit]( "Portugal promises no visas for Britons in any no-deal Brexit") Britain is due to leave the European Union on March 29 but parliament's rejection this week of Prime Minister Theresa May's withdrawal agreement with Brussels has thrown those plans into chaos and opened up a range of outcomes, from quitting with no agreement on future relations to halting Brexit altogether. "At this moment we do not even know what the United Kingdom wants," Siza Vieira told Reuters in an interview late on Wednesday. "In the absence of an alternative proposal by the United Kingdom, what every (EU) member state is doing is adopting measures that allow them to react to a unilateral circumstance." Even without a Brexit deal, British citizens living in Portugal would retain rights including access to healthcare.
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| Women’s March Leader Refuses to Acknowledge Israel’s Right to Exist Posted: 18 Jan 2019 08:31 AM PST  Embattled Women's March co-chairwoman Tamika Mallory refused to acknowledge the state of Israel's right to exist during a recent interview on PBS's The Firing Line and seemed to suggest that, unlike Palestinians, Israelis were not "native" to the region. Mallory, who has been forced in recent days to confront questions about her association with notorious anti-Semite Louis Farrakhan, acknowledged during the interview that "all people have the right to exist" but would not address the legitimacy of the Israeli state. The Women's March lost the support of the Democratic National Committee and a host of other prominent liberal groups this week after Mallory defend her past praise for Farrakhan during a Monday appearance on The View.
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| Burkina Faso: Body of Canadian found days after abduction Posted: 17 Jan 2019 07:29 AM PST ![Burkina Faso: Body of Canadian found days after abduction]( "Burkina Faso: Body of Canadian found days after abduction") OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso (AP) — A Canadian national has been found dead a day after reports of his kidnapping by suspected jihadists in Burkina Faso's volatile north near the Niger border, the West African nation's security ministry said Thursday.
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| Prince Philip crash: As Duke takes delivery of another Land Rover, will he be back on the road soon? Posted: 18 Jan 2019 05:50 AM PST  A replacement Land Rover, previously driven by the Duke of Edinburgh, has been delivered to the Sandringham estate in Norfolk, hours after his car was involved in a horror crash. A black Land Rover Freelander was driven into Sandringham inside a delivery truck on Friday morning. The Land Rover is the same model as the one Prince Philip, 97, was driving in yesterday's crash, which also involved a Kia. It is believed to be the same car he has been seen driving near to Balmoral in September 2018, with a shared number plate. Armed police were on hand as the replacement vehicle was delivered to Sandringham, where Prince Phillip is now recovering. The delivery driver backed the Land Rover out of the van, then drove it through the gates of the Sandringham estate. The Duke was not injured in yesterday's crash, and was checked over by a doctor as a precaution. The two people in the other car involved in the crash were taken to hospital and treated for "minor injuries" and then discharged. Police supervise the unloading of the car Credit: Geoff Robinson The Land Rover driven by the Duke in the accident was towed away after the crash which saw the car overturn and the windscreen smash. Photographs appeared to show the air bags deployed, with heavy scratches down the sides of the vehicle. The accident will be "investigated and any appropriate action taken", Norfolk Constabulary has said. Norfolk Police said they were following standard procedure where a road traffic collision resulted in injuries. Eyewitness Roy Warne has described how Philip asked if "everybody else was all right" in the aftermath of an accident which saw his car "tumbling" over the road. "The driver of the Kia, a 28-year-old woman, suffered cuts to her knee while the passenger, a 45-year-old woman, sustained a broken wrist," said police in a statement. The aftermath of the crash "Both casualties were treated at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in King's Lynn and were discharged last night. "Police can also confirm a nine-month-old baby boy was in the Kia at the time of the incident and was uninjured. "The male driver of the Land Rover was uninjured. "Both drivers were breath tested and provided negative readings." The police are expected to take statements from the Duke, the female driver of the Kia involved in the crash and any other relevant witnesses during their investigation. Buckingham Palace declined to comment on any changes to the Duke's health, after some witnesses said the Queen's consort had been left "very, very shocked" after the accident. Yesterday, a spokesman said he suffered "no injuries". Duke of Edinburgh car crash near Sandringham Estate Asked if he held a driving licence, a spokeswoman said: "The duke has got a driving licence and follows all the usual DVLA procedures."
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| Sniffer dogs, bomb experts comb through Kenya attack site Posted: 17 Jan 2019 07:03 AM PST  Kenyan police aided by bomb experts and sniffer dogs on Thursday resumed their search of the Nairobi hotel complex struck by Islamists as police arrested nine more suspects over the attack which left 21 dead and 28 injured. A police source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said they were confident there were no more people trapped inside the hotel or surrounding office buildings after the 20-hour assault unleashed on Tuesday, during which some 700 civilians were rescued. Five gunmen with the Al-Qaeda-linked Somali militant group Al-Shabaab attacked the DusitD2 hotel and office complex on Tuesday afternoon.
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| Students appear to perform Nazi salute in 'sickening' photo, superintendent says Posted: 18 Jan 2019 01:53 PM PST ![Students appear to perform Nazi salute in 'sickening' photo, superintendent says]( "Students appear to perform Nazi salute in 'sickening' photo, superintendent says") High school officials in Indiana are investigating after a picture posted on social media appeared to show students using a Nazi salute.
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| Pelosi Accuses Trump of Endangering Security by Leaking Afghanistan Travel Plans Posted: 18 Jan 2019 08:14 AM PST  "the delegation has decided to postpone the trip so as not to further endanger our troops"
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| Facebook blocks accounts linked to Russian state-owned Sputnik Posted: 17 Jan 2019 10:18 AM PST  In a separate statement, Sputnik attacked the social network for a decision it said was political and amounted to censorship of seven Facebook pages belonging to its news hubs in neighboring countries. Facebook's head of cybersecurity policy, Nathaniel Gleicher, said in a blog post https://bit.ly/2W1h9LR it had unearthed two separate operations which originated in Russia, with one active in multiple countries across eastern Europe and the other specific to Ukraine. The social media company said it had taken down about 364 Facebook pages and accounts operating in Baltic Sea states, Central Asia, the Caucasus, and parts of Europe, and that the pages were linked to employees of Sputnik.
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| Freeland praises Huawei CEO trust in Canada legal system Posted: 17 Jan 2019 05:00 PM PST  Canada's top diplomat on Thursday praised Huawei CEO Ren Zhengfei for trusting the Canadian legal system as his daughter fights extradition to the United States. Meng Wanzhou, also a Huawei executive, was arrested in Vancouver last month on a US warrant over Iran sanctions-linked fraud charges -- a move Chinese ambassador to Canada Lu Shayne branded "backstabbing" earlier in the day. "I think those were very gracious comments he made," Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland said.
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| Chevy Pulls Commercial Claiming Superior Reliability Posted: 18 Jan 2019 06:22 AM PST  A consumer group challenges the automaker's small-print disclaimer-who's right?
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| BMW unveils 2020 7 Series sedan with controversial redesign Posted: 17 Jan 2019 04:31 AM PST  While the interior design and mechanics haven't significantly changed in the latest version of the BMW 7 Series, the exterior received a serious facelift that is leaving some fans confused and a few disappointed. BMW officially unveiled the latest 7 Series luxury sedan Wednesday with a redesign that the company says gives it a "confident presence" while some onlookers are giving it a mediocre review. The focal point of the new design is the inflated, trademark 7 Series kidney grille placed on a two-inch taller front end which has grown about 40 percent since the last generation, an expansion that already hasn't been welcomed very warmly.
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| 7 of the Best Restaurant Stocks to Buy in 2019 Posted: 17 Jan 2019 08:12 AM PST ![7 of the Best Restaurant Stocks to Buy in 2019]( "7 of the Best Restaurant Stocks to Buy in 2019") Barclays is bullish on these restaurant stocks. In fact, Barclays is predicting a favorable consumer backdrop for restaurant stocks this year. The firm favors staple quick-service restaurants over discretionary casual diners in what will likely be a year of declining same-store sales growth and rising labor costs.
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| Palestinian forces soldier on amid Israeli raids, US neglect Posted: 17 Jan 2019 11:13 PM PST  RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) — On a cold winter's night earlier this month, a convoy of 10 Israeli armored jeeps drove into the heart of the West Bank city of Ramallah and parked in front of the Palestinian police headquarters.
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| Arctic blasts threaten weekend blizzards, heavy snow and paralyzing ice storms Posted: 18 Jan 2019 10:35 AM PST  Heavy snows, strong winds expected from the Corn Belt to New England, with up to 40 inches of snow in some parts.
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| Rudy Giuliani: 'I never said there was no collusion' with Russia Posted: 16 Jan 2019 09:40 PM PST  Rudy Giuliani, the personal lawyer of Donald Trump, insisted he "never said there was no collusion" between the president's 2016 election campaign and Russia – only that Mr Trump himself was not involved. Speaking to CNN's Chris Cuomo, the former New York mayor said he did not know if others involved in the campaign had worked with Russia. "I never said there was no collusion between the campaign, or between people in the campaign," Mr Giuliani said. "I said the President of the United States," he added. "There is not a single bit of evidence the President of the United States committed the only crime you can commit here, conspiring with the Russians to hack the DNC." U.S. President Donald Trump said earlier this week he was "insulted" by the suggestion he might have been working for Russia Credit: AP Earlier this week, Mr Trump had insisted he "never worked for Russia" following two bombshell reports. "It's a disgrace that you even ask that question," he told reporters on the White House's South Lawn. "It's all a big fat hoax." In the first report, The New York Times said the FBI opened an investigation into whether Mr Trump was acting on Russia's behalf soon after he became president. Meanwhile, The Washington Post detailed what it said were the unusual lengths taken by Mr Trump to hide the contents of his conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Both men's comments come as Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation looms large in the background, punctuated by guilty pleas, convictions and indictments of former Trump associates. These include his former national security advisor Michael Flynn, former Trump campaign chief Paul Manafort and Trump's former personal lawyer Michael Cohen. Manafort has admitted to sharing polling data with a Russian during the 2016 presidential race, according to a court filing inadvertently made public by his lawyers. CNN reported that the intended recipients were two pro-Russia Ukrainian oligarchs. But on Wednesday, Mr Giuliani suggested that was "not collusion". "Polling data is given to everybody," he told CNN.
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| Japan Tobacco ratchets up smokeless war with new products Posted: 16 Jan 2019 09:11 PM PST  Despite commanding 60 percent of the local cigarette market, Japan Tobacco has been caught on the wrong side of the rising popularity of heat-not-burn (HNB) alternatives and has lagged in the category in its own backyard versus the Marlboro maker. Philip Morris in 2014 started selling its IQOS HNB device in Japan, which has emerged as a fertile test ground for vaping products since e-cigarettes using nicotine-laced liquid are not allowed under the country's pharmaceutical regulation. Japan Tobacco managed to roll out its vaping product, Ploom TECH, only by 2017 after repeated production delays.
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| Tunnel through an Australian mountain? No problem, says Elon Musk Posted: 16 Jan 2019 06:19 PM PST  Australia could become a test ground for another of Elon Musk's massive infrastructure projects after the maverick billionaire tweeted a "bargain" price to build a tunnel through a mountain to solve Sydney's traffic woes. Musk in 2017 made a Twitter pitch -- and followed through with the offer -- to build what was the world's biggest battery in an Australian state to solve its severe energy crisis. The entrepreneur behind electric carmaker Tesla has most recently turned his sights on tackling city traffic via low-cost tunnels created by his Boring Company, and in December unveiled a sample project near Los Angeles.
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| Violent Sex Offender Arrested Again After Woman Says He Forced Her into Prostitution Posted: 17 Jan 2019 01:17 PM PST  A violent sex offender in Memphis was taken into custody again after a woman claimed she was the victim of sex trafficking.
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| How to Find a Real Estate Agent Posted: 18 Jan 2019 09:41 AM PST ![How to Find a Real Estate Agent]( "How to Find a Real Estate Agent") The necessary steps in the real estate process change over the years, so you might as well have someone on your side who's well-versed in the nuances and can help ensure you get the best possible deal.
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| Chinese ambassador warns Canada to stop rallying allies Posted: 17 Jan 2019 03:20 PM PST  TORONTO (AP) — China's ambassador to Canada warned the Canadian government Thursday to stop recruiting international support in its feud with China and threatened retaliation if Canada bans Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei for security reasons.
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| Tour Dominic West and Catherine Fitzgerald's Historic Home Posted: 17 Jan 2019 06:00 AM PST |
