| American warship destroys Iranian drone in Strait of Hormuz Posted: 18 Jul 2019 03:41 PM PDT  A U.S. warship on Thursday destroyed an Iranian drone in the Strait of Hormuz after it threatened the ship, President Donald Trump said. The incident marked a new escalation of tensions between the countries less than one month after Iran downed an American drone in the same waterway and Trump came close to retaliating with a military strike. In remarks at the White House, Trump blamed Iran for a "provocative and hostile" action and said the U.S. responded in self-defense.
|
| New York businesswoman and Jamaican immigrant Scherie Murray launches campaign to unseat Ocasio-Cortez Posted: 17 Jul 2019 12:47 PM PDT  "There's a crisis in Queens and it's called AOC," said Scherie Murray, a Republican businesswoman who is challenging Ocasio-Cortez in 2020.
|
| Poll: 38 Percent of Democrats Say American Dream Is Unattainable for Them Posted: 18 Jul 2019 11:57 AM PDT  38 percent of Democrats say they do not believe they will achieve the American dream in their lifetimes, compared to just 11 percent of Republicans, according to a new Gallup poll.Two-thirds of independents said they see the dream as attainable, compared to 31 percent who said they do not. Overall, about 70 percent of Americans feel that American dream could be grasped, the poll reported, while 29 percent disagree.The 38 percent of Democrats who said they did not believe they could achieve the American dream represented a sharp increase from a decade ago, when 29 percent of Democrats said the same. President Trump has described the Republican party as "the party of the American Dream," perhaps contributing to the increasing partisan split on the matter."The American dream is back," the president said after taking office in 2017. "We're going to create an environment for small business like we haven't had in many, many decades."
|
| Jon Stewart Eviscerates Rand Paul for Blocking 9/11 Victim Funding: ‘It’s an Abomination’ Posted: 17 Jul 2019 04:00 PM PDT  One month ago, former Daily Show host Jon Stewart went on Fox News to shame Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell for failing to protect 9/11 first responders. Wednesday afternoon, he was back on that network to give the other Republican senator from Kentucky a piece of his mind. In an interview with Bret Baier, Stewart immediately took aim at Rand Paul who, along with Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT), blocked a Senate bill that would extend the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund, making the case that it should be offset by other spending cuts. Responding directly to Paul, Stewart called his objection "absolutely outrageous," adding, "Pardon me if I'm not impressed in any way by Rand Paul's fiscal responsibility virtue signaling." Jon Stewart Fires Back at Mitch McConnell on 'Colbert': Stop 'Jacking Around' 9/11 First RespondersStewart went on to condemn Paul for supporting President Trump's $1.5 trillion tax cut that "added hundreds of billions of dollars to our deficit" and now trying to "balance the budget on the backs of the 9/11 first responder community." "Bret, this is about what kind of society we have," a clearly furious Stewart continued. "At some point, we have to stand up for the people who have always stood up for us, and at this moment in time maybe cannot stand up for themselves due to their illnesses and their injuries. And what Rand Paul did today on the floor of the Senate was outrageous." "He is a guy who put us in hundreds of billions of dollars in debt," he said of Paul. "And now he's going to tell us that a billion dollars a year over 10 years is just too much for us to handle? You know, there are some things that they have no trouble putting on the credit card, but somehow when it comes to the 9/11 first responder community—the cops, the firefighters, the construction workers, the volunteers, the survivors—all of a sudden we've got to go through this." Appearing next to Stewart was 9/11 first responder and activist John Feal, who thanked the host and Fox News as a whole for being so "generous" with their time on this issue before calling Senators Paul and Lee "bottom-feeders" who "lack humanity" and "lack leadership."Stewart said survivors like Feal and others shouldn't have to "drag themselves back to Washington, put their hats in their hands and beg for something that this country should have done 14 years ago," adding, "It's an abomination." Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
|
| Argentina still waiting for 1994 Jewish center bombing justice Posted: 17 Jul 2019 10:57 PM PDT  Argentina marks the 25th anniversary of the bomb attack on a Jewish center that left 85 people dead with a day of mourning on Thursday, but the relatives of victims are still waiting for justice. "This attack, even if there was a large anti-Jewish, anti-Semitic component -- of course -- was an attack on Argentina and Argentine society," said Weinstein, who worked at the Argentine Israelite Mutual Association (AMIA), where the attack was carried out. A truck loaded with explosives was driven into the AMIA center in a densely populated central area of Buenos Aires, also leaving 300 people wounded.
|
| ‘I saw hate in his eyes’: White security guard pulls gun on black police officer Posted: 17 Jul 2019 01:52 AM PDT  Sheriff's deputy Alan Gaston thought they were on the same side.One man, Mr Gaston, was a high-ranking officer in the Lucas County, Ohio, sheriff's department with 34 years of experience.The other was a security guard contracted to protect an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) office in Toledo.But then the guard pulled his gun. He raised his voice. He put a hand on Mr Gaston's arm and rested his finger on the trigger.In a matter of seconds, what began with a routine errand at the IRS escalated into a frightening standoff between a white security guard and a black police officer, who said he heard hate in the guard's shouts and believed he would be shot."You don't expect to be ambushed by someone who you think is on the same team," Mr Gaston told The Washington Post."I feel there was definitely some racial overtones involved. And I'm not the type of person to throw the race card, I'm just telling you the facts. I looked in his eyes and I saw hate in his eyes."He had stopped by the IRS office during his shift on 31 May to ask a question about a letter the agency sent him.He was in full uniform, his badge and his firearm in clear view.The security guard, identified in court documents as Seth Eklund, asked Mr Gaston to leave his gun in his patrol car.When Mr Gaston replied he couldn't do that, he said Mr Eklund became hostile. Mr Eklund accused Mr Gaston of reaching for his weapon, shouting "get your hands off your gun", even though Mr Gaston said his hands were visible and nowhere near his holster.Mr Gaston, who has years of experience teaching defensive tactics, decided it was time for him to leave.He recalled a wide-eyed elderly couple in the office waiting room watching the exchange, and he said he feared for the bystanders' safety. Mr Gaston turned to go.As he walked out of the cramped office, Mr Eklund drew his gun, trained it on Mr Gaston's back and followed him. At one point, Mr Gaston said, Mr Eklund tried to arrest the uniformed officer."He came around the corner with his weapon out, telling me, 'you had your chance, you're not going anywhere, I'm detaining you'," Gaston said."That's when I was preparing myself to be shot. The hate and anger he had against me, I was getting ready to be shot by this security guard for no reason."Mr Eklund, who could not be reached for comment, pleaded not guilty to one charge of aggravated menacing in a court appearance on Monday.Mr Gaston and his wife have also filed a lawsuit against Mr Eklund and the two security firms that apparently employed him.Representatives of those companies, Paragon Systems and Praetorian Shield, did not respond to requests for comment. The IRS declined to comment.The local news station WTVG published what it claims to be security camera footage of the interaction and The Washington Post obtained screenshots of the video.The images show Mr Gaston backing away and attempting to leave the building in an elevator. But Mr Eklund, gun still drawn, blocks the door with his foot.Mr Gaston says he felt cornered, scared. He took out his phone to take a picture of Mr Eklund, he said, and the security guard finally holstered his weapon.Heather Taylor, president of the Ethical Society of Police in St Louis, said that Mr Eklund behaved recklessly and likely would not have treated a white officer the same way."We know what it's like being an African American police officer in a city," Ms Taylor said. "A lot of us realise that, hey, even though you're in uniform, that doesn't mean you're safe."The tense scene recalled other, infamous incidents with grisly endings. Ms Taylor pointed to the case of Jemel Roberson, a black security guard who was killed by a Midlothian, Illinois, police officer while they both responded to a shooting at the bar where Roberson worked.She also mentioned Detective Jacai Colson in Maryland, who was killed by a fellow officer while working undercover. Mr Colson, according to a lawsuit, had his badge in his hand and was shouting "Police! Police!" before he was killed."You're not given the benefit of the doubt as a minority," Ms Taylor said. "It's something we've been highlighting forever and now here's another example of it."She applauded Mr Gaston's cool demeanour in the face of what she said was potentially lethal bigotry.Mr Gaston said he didn't feel that Mr Eklund respected him as a law enforcement officer, and in more than three decades of police work has never dealt with anything like that.He was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and severe depression, he said. He's been on medical leave and is seeing a counsellor twice a week. The civil suit Mr Gaston and his wife filed seeks compensation.The standoff between Mr Gaston and Mr Eklund ended, he said, when Toledo police officers responded to a 911 call from inside the building that mentioned a man who has "got a gun" and "won't leave". The caller didn't mention that the man was a police officer.When Toledo police arrived, Mr Gaston recounted, they told Mr Eklund: "You know he's a uniformed deputy sheriff, right? We can go anywhere in this building we want."Washington Post
|
| PHOTOS: Rebuilding Notre Dame Posted: 17 Jul 2019 11:14 AM PDT  Three months after a fire ravaged Notre-Dame cathedral in Paris, a rare glimpse inside the burned masterpiece on Wednesday revealed it to be eerily empty and with rubble still littering the nave. Paris prosecutors said in June that a poorly stubbed-out cigarette or an electrical fault could have started the fire and opened an investigation into criminal negligence, without targeting any individual.
|
| Marine Corps Tells Rep. Duncan Hunter He Can’t Use Trademarked Corps Material for His Campaign Posted: 18 Jul 2019 02:32 AM PDT  "It is personally disappointing to Congressman Hunter that he is now being told that he cannot use this motto or image that thousands of Marines like Congressman Hunter, who went to war under this banner, have used for tattoos, coins, and multiple other items of personal sentiment," Harrison told Task & Purpose.Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.) has been told to stop using the Marine Corps' emblem and the 1st Marine Division's motto in his campaign literature, Corps officials confirmed.The Marine Corps Trademark Licensing Office has sent Hunter, a Marine veteran, a cease and desist letter telling him to quit using the Eagle, Globe, and Anchor emblem along with the phrase, "No Better Friend, No Worse Enemy," on a fundraising mailer that accuses his political opponent of having links to terrorism, NBC News first reported on Wednesday."Please be advised that you are more than welcome to simply and accurately state that you are a Marine Corps veteran, or provide other information about your service that is based on fact," according to the letter, which NBC News posted online. "As an alternative, we do offer a 'Marine Veteran' logo (Attachment B) for use by Marines to indicate their pride in service."Marine Corps spokesman Capt. Joseph Butterfield confirmed the Corps had "taken appropriate action" to address the campaign mailers cited in the NBC story.
|
| Rally Red 1972 Dodge Challenger Shows Off Its Muscles Posted: 18 Jul 2019 09:46 AM PDT  A stunning example of a highly desirable American icon. If you have been in the market for an iconic American muscle car, then you're in luck. GR Auto Gallery is pleased to announce this bold and beautiful 1972 Dodge Challenger up for sale. Dressed in a brilliant Rally Red paint job, the exterior shines at every angle and is in pristine condition. It's nicely contrasted by the tidy black interior with wooden accents. Overall, this example is in immaculate condition and was taken care of with love. Everything from the door panels to the dashboard and floor mats are like-new and very clean.The heart and soul of this bad boy is a massive 440 cubic-inch V8 motor paired to a smooth-shifting 727 automatic transmission. This 1972 Dodge Challenger received a full restoration, which includes the powertrain. The odometer reading on the add is 808 miles. Other features include front disc brakes, power steering and heat, all-new front suspension, and a 391 Sure Grip Posi rear end. The sale of this vehicle comes with a full folder of receipts for the restoration and general maintenance paperwork.The Challenger debuted in the fall of 1969 for the 1970 model year. The first-gen was positioned to compete against the Mercury Cougar and Pontiac Firebird in the higher end of the pony car segment. It was also a fairly late response to the Ford Mustang, which was introduced in April of 1964. Nevertheless, the American automaker intended for the Challenger to be the most potent pony car and produced a number of trim and option levels that included virtually every engine in Chrysler's lineup.The 1972 Dodge Challenger received just a few minor changes. For one, the grille sloped down on either side and extended below the bumper, where the headlights were housed in their respective panels. The taillights were also located in two separate housings on each side of the rear valance. The Rally grille and rear tail panel were both blacked out. Shaker hoods were left behind and replaced by either a flat hood or twin dummy scoops. The bumpers were also chromed out instead of being body-colored. Although some options were changed, buyers could still add front and rear spoilers, rear window louvers, and power accessories like seats and door locks. Read More: Peel Out In This Banana Yellow 1970 Dodge Challenger R/T Set Of Rare 1971 Challengers Up For Grabs
|
| Your Kids Won't Have Any Room For Candy After These Halloween Dinner Ideas Posted: 17 Jul 2019 12:46 PM PDT |
| Pakistan arrests US-wanted terror suspect in Mumbai attacks Posted: 17 Jul 2019 08:12 AM PDT  Pakistan on Wednesday arrested a radical cleric and U.S.-wanted terror suspect implicated in the 2008 Mumbai attacks, officials said, just days ahead of Prime Minister Imran Khan's trip to Washington. Hafiz Saeed was taken into custody in Punjab province while traveling from the eastern city of Lahore to the city of Gujranwala, according to counterterrorism official Mohammad Shafiq. Saeed founded the Lashkar-e-Taiba group, which was blamed for the Mumbai attacks that killed 166 people.
|
| UPDATE 1-U.S. amphibious group patrols Arabian Sea as Iran tensions simmer Posted: 18 Jul 2019 08:43 AM PDT ![UPDATE 1-U.S. amphibious group patrols Arabian Sea as Iran tensions simmer]( "UPDATE 1-U.S. amphibious group patrols Arabian Sea as Iran tensions simmer") At a thumbs-up sign from a sailor, a U.S. Harrier fighter jet takes off from the amphibious assault ship USS Boxer in the Arabian Sea as an oil tanker passes, a nautical mile away. The patrol is "standard" but the situation - growing tension between the United States and Iran - is not. "We want to make sure that we assure allies in the region and to ensure freedom of navigation and free flow of commerce," says Colonel Fridrik Fridrikson, commanding officer of the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit.
|
| Fox News’ Brian Kilmeade Complains That Calling Trump a Racist ‘Is Personally Offensive’ Posted: 17 Jul 2019 08:28 AM PDT  The morning after the House of Representatives voted to condemn President Donald Trump's racist comments against a group of Democratic congresswomen of color, Fox & Friends' Brian Kilmeade complained that it is "personally offensive" to call the president a racist.Discussing Tuesday's chaos on the House floor when Republicans logged parliamentary objections against House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for reading the title of the resolution—which labels the president a racist—Kilmeade sided clearly with the GOP.Noting that Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO) at one point abandoned the chair as speaker pro tempore during Tuesday's debate, over the lack of civility, Kilmeade then brought up Rep. Doug Collins (R-GA) filing a complaint against Pelosi."Congressman Collins is going by the manual of parliamentary practice that Thomas Jefferson put into play, which is a person is not supposed to use language personally offensive to the president," the Fox & Friends co-host declared.He then offered his own personal thoughts on the matter."I believe calling the president a racist is personally offensive but that's just my judgment and the manual also said that members cannot accuse the president of having made bigoted or racist statements," Kilmeade exclaimed. "So therefore, precedent set, Collins is 100 percent right."Interestingly, while the Fox News personality feels it is derogatory and insulting to call the president racist for telling women of color to "go back" to where "they came" from, Kilmeade didn't seem to have any issues when Glenn Beck said then-President Obama was a racist during a Fox & Friends appearance in 2009—an appearance that featured Kilmeade on the curvy couch.Kilmeade, meanwhile, has had plenty of racially questionable moments in the past. In 2017, he asked black colleague Harris Faulkner whether she was also going to make Kool-Aid during a Fox & Friends cooking segment, resulting in Faulkner confronting him afterwards. He also groused back in 2009 that Americans don't have "pure genes" like people in Sweden because "we keep marrying other species and other ethnics."Read more at The Daily Beast.Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast hereGet our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
|
| Pope Francis appoints new Vatican spokesman Posted: 18 Jul 2019 09:36 AM PDT  Pope Francis on Thursday appointed a new Vatican spokesman, one of the most demanding PR jobs in the world, charged with grappling with a whirlwind papal schedule and the profound repercussions of the Church's child sex abuse scandal. British-born Matteo Bruni, who has worked in the Holy See Press Office since 2009 and coordinated the press on the pontiff's international trips since 2013, takes over from interim spokesman Alessandro Gisotti. Francis has apologised for predatory priests but cover-ups in the Vatican have severely damaged trust in the centuries-old institution, and there is still much to be done to protect minors from clerical paedophiles.
|
| 'Not what your mom sent you:' Teen takes legendary senior photos in a bathrobe Posted: 18 Jul 2019 09:25 AM PDT  Evan Dennison wanted to do something funny for his senior photos. No one believed he would actually do it. Now he is a "legend."
|
| North Carolina father of 7 dies trying to save his drowning children at beach Posted: 17 Jul 2019 12:36 PM PDT  A North Carolina father drowned Sunday while rescuing two of his youngchildren who were swept away by a wave while walking on a submerged jetty atWrightsville Beach
|
| Scaramucci disinvited from Florida GOP fundraiser for bashing Trump's 'racially charged' attacks Posted: 18 Jul 2019 06:16 AM PDT  "He suggested the president's comments were racist and that he was becoming a racist. Our board was infuriated," the Republican Party chairman in Palm Beach County said.
|
| Utah Police Investigating Friendly Fire Incident That Killed Suspect, Injured Officer Posted: 16 Jul 2019 08:56 PM PDT  The Unified Police Department is investigating how a Salt Lake City Police officer was shot by a fellow officer outside an apartment complex Monday afternoon.
|
| Lawyer: El Chapo was whisked away within hours of sentencing Posted: 18 Jul 2019 01:47 PM PDT  Only hours after receiving a life sentence, convicted Mexican drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman was forced to make a sudden departure to the highest-security prison in the U.S. to serve the term, his lawyer said Thursday. A government helicopter whisked the narco, notorious for his daring jailbreaks, out of New York City on Wednesday after the sentencing in federal court in Brooklyn, said defense attorney Jeffrey Lichtman. For most defendants, there's a lag between sentencing and a decision by the Bureau of Prisons on where to house them.
|
| Chappaquiddick 50 years on: The car crash that forever tarnished Ted Kennedy Posted: 17 Jul 2019 03:03 PM PDT  He was the handsome young senator from an American political dynasty, widely tipped to win the White House. Heavily favoured to win the Democratic nomination for the presidency, Ted Kennedy looked set to square-off against Republican incumbent Richard Nixon at the 1972 election.But his hopes of emulating his older brother John F Kennedy were irreparably damaged 50 years ago.A car crash in Chappaquiddick would claim the life of a young female political campaigner and forever tarnish his reputation. Here The Independent examines the incident. What happened?On 18 July, 1969, Kennedy, aged 37 at the time, had been attending a party on Chappaquiddick Island, part of the affluent Massachusetts resort Martha's Vineyard.The Massachusetts senator had left the party with Mary Jo Kopechne, a 28-year-old political campaign specialist. He later testified at inquest that she had asked him to drop her back at a hotel.At around midnight, Kennedy's car swerved off a narrow, unlit bridge with no guardrails and plummeted into the Poucha Pond.He escaped the sinking saloon. Kopechne did not. Kennedy claimed he made several attempts to save her before giving up and returning to the party on foot.Later, he said he returned with two friends for another rescue attempt but that was foiled by the strong tide.Ten hours passed before the senator reported the incident to the police, minutes before Kopechne's body was recovered from the vehicle. John Farrar, the diver who recovered the corpse, said he believed she died from suffocation rather than drowning, trapped potentially for hours in a small air pocket inside the car. What action was taken?Just a week after the crash on 25 July, Kennedy pleaded guilty to a charge of leaving the scene of an accident and received a suspended two-month prison sentence, the statutory minimum for the offence.His attorneys had argued he should be granted a lenient sentence by the judge, due to his age, character and prior reputation. That night the senator made a speech in which he insisted he had not been driving under the influence of alcohol at the time of the crash, as well as denying "widely circulated suspicions of immoral conduct" surrounding his relationship with Kopechne.He described his decision not to immediately report the incident to the police as "indefensible", stating that he was overcome by a "jumble of emotions—grief, fear, doubt, exhaustion, panic, confusion, and shock."An inquest would later conclude there was "probable cause to believe" Kennedy had been operating the vehicle negligently. A tarnished figureKennedy's inaction caused significant damage to his reputation.Prior to the incident, he was popular throughout the country and was seen by many to follow in the footsteps of his brothers, John and Robert, by running for the presidency. Five years before the crash, Kennedy had been re-elected to the senate with 75 per cent of the vote. In an election 15 months after the crash, his margin of victory was reduced to 64 per cent. He did not run in the 1972 or 1976 presidential race, a decision likely taken as a result of Kopechne's death. When Kennedy decided to run in 1980, renewed interest in the Chappaquiddick incident hindered his campaign.His Democratic primary opponent, then-president Jimmy Carter, frequently called into question Kennedy's character by alluding to the events on the resort island. After a failed campaign, Kennedy abandoned his White House dreams. He went on to serve in the Senate for another four decades until his death.In Kennedy's posthumous memoir, True Compass, he called the incident a "horrible tragedy that haunts me every day of life." The Edward M Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate, a body created in honour of his 47 years of service in the Senate, has no plans to commemorate the incident and the death of Kopechne.
|
| Pakistan lost $50 million from airspace restrictions: minister Posted: 18 Jul 2019 12:52 PM PDT ![Pakistan lost $50 million from airspace restrictions: minister]( "Pakistan lost $50 million from airspace restrictions: minister") Pakistan's aviation minister on Thursday said that his country suffered loses of over eight billion rupees ($50 million) from airspace restrictions imposed since February which affected hundreds of commercial and cargo flights. Pakistan closed its airspace after an attack by a Pakistan-based militant group in Indian-controlled Kashmir led to clashes between the nuclear-armed powers, adding flight time for passengers and fuel costs for airlines. "Over eight billion rupees worth of losses have been suffered by the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority," Ghulam Sarwar Khan, Pakistan's aviation minister told a press conference in Karachi.
|
| Big Guns: Army Prototypes Range-Doubling New Artillery Weapon to Outgun Russia Posted: 17 Jul 2019 12:02 AM PDT  The Army is building prototypes of a new artillery cannon that can more than double the range of existing weapons and vastly alter the strategic and tactical landscape shaping land war into the future.The Army program, called Extended Range Cannon Artillery, has been developing for several years; it is now entering a new phase through an Army deal with BAE Systems to build "Increment 1" prototypes."This prototype phase will address capability gaps in the Army's indirect fire systems and improve the rate and range of fire with the development of power distribution software and hardware integration solutions," a BAE Systems statement said.During testing thus far, the Army has successfully fired a 155mm artillery round 62 kilometers - marking a technical breakthrough in the realm of land-based weapons and progressing toward its stated goal of being able to outrange and outgun Russian and Chinese weapons.Currently, most land-fired artillery shot from an M777 Towed Howitzer or Self-Propelled Howitzer are able to pinpoint targets out to 30km - so hitting 62km dramatically changes Army offensive attack capability. As part of an effort to ensure the heavy M777 is sufficiently mobile, the Army completed a "mobility" demonstration of ERCA prototypes last year.
|
| 'Nobody cares about us': Hunger and despair for India flood victims Posted: 18 Jul 2019 03:42 AM PDT  Chest-deep in brown, flowing monsoon water and holding bags of clothes and utensils above their heads, residents in the Indian state of Bihar are hungry and despairing. "When many of us poor people drown, then the politicians suddenly take notice... But otherwise, nobody cares about us," shopkeeper Raj Majhi told AFP. Majhi's home -- like many others -- is submerged, with only rooftops remaining above floodwaters.
|
| What caused mysterious gray spots to appear on Neil Armstrong's Apollo 11 moon landing glove? Posted: 18 Jul 2019 05:40 AM PDT  Years ago, people wondered about the gray spots on Neil Armstrong's right hand glove from Apollo 11. Conservators have solved that mystery.
|
| Argentina acts against Hezbollah, blamed for terror attacks Posted: 18 Jul 2019 11:01 AM PDT  Argentina's government on Thursday branded Hezbollah a terrorist organization and froze its assets, 25 years to the day after a bombing blamed on the Lebanese-based group destroyed a Jewish community center in Argentina's capital, killing 85 people. The nation's Financial Information Unit took the action a day after President Mauricio Macri's government created a list of terrorist organizations to help coordinate actions with other nations and as the nation held memorial services for victims of the attack, for which no one has been convicted. The unit noted that Hezbollah has been accused of responsibility for a 1992 attack on the Israeli Embassy in Argentina that killed 29 people, as well as the 1994 attack on the Argentine-Israelite Mutual Association in Buenos Aires.
|
| View Photos of the Lexus GXOR Concept Posted: 18 Jul 2019 09:59 AM PDT |
| Mnuchin Warns Europe Not to Breach U.S. Sanctions on Iran Posted: 18 Jul 2019 06:17 AM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin made clear that participating in the U.S. financial system means abiding by its sanctions amid a European effort to sidestep American economic pressure on Iran to continue trade.Germany, France and the U.K. created a financing vehicle known as Instex in January to allow companies to do some trade with Iran without the use of U.S. dollars or American banks -- thus allowing them to get around wide-ranging American sanctions that were imposed after the Trump administration abandoned the 2015 Iran nuclear deal last year."We've been very clear that we expect U.S. sanctions to be adhered to," Mnuchin said in response to questions from reporters on Thursday in France where he met with Group of Seven counterparts. "Whether it's Iran or anyone else, if people want to participate in the dollar system people will be obligated to follow the U.S. sanctions."He said that Instex should be "careful on diligence."Treasury's top sanctions official, Sigal Mandelker, sent a letter in May warning European allies not to violate sanctions through Instex. Mnuchin confirmed that a letter was sent.European countries broadly opposed Trump's decision to withdraw from the nuclear accord but have struggled to deliver the economic benefits Iran expected from the deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, since the U.S. quit. In the meantime, U.S. sanctions have delivered a blow to Iran's economy, fueling inflation, reducing oil revenue and pressuring President Hassan Rouhani's government. Instex was supposed to help address that, but so far it has largely failed to get up and running.Frustrated at the U.S. withdrawal and stalled European efforts, Iran has already breached some of the limits on its nuclear program imposed under the deal, and has warned European governments that it will give up on the accord entirely unless they can find some way to work around the U.S. sanctions.To contact the reporter on this story: Saleha Mohsin in Washington at smohsin2@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Alex Wayne at awayne3@bloomberg.net, Elizabeth Wasserman, Bill FariesFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
|
| Drug makers flooded US with billions of opioid pills as epidemic surged, data shows Posted: 17 Jul 2019 12:27 PM PDT  Statistics are a blow to country's biggest pharmaceuticals that paid millions of dollars in out of court settlementsPurdue sold $3bn of its high-strength branded drug, OxyContin, which in 2010, was about one-third of the opioid market by value at its peak. Photograph: Toby Talbot/APDrug makers and distributors flooded the US with more than 75bn opioid pills in the crucial years when the country's epidemic of painkiller addiction and deaths surged to record levels, according to previously secret data released by an American court.The publication of the Drug Enforcement Administration statistics is a blow to some of the country's biggest pharmaceutical firms that have paid hundreds of millions of dollars in out of court settlements in part to keep sealed evidence that they profiteered from escalating demand for opioids even as public health officials were declaring an epidemic.The database covers 2006 to 2012 when opioid prescriptions reached a peak of 282m a year, enough to supply every American adult with a month's worth of pills. By then, annual sales of narcotic painkillers had surged past $8bn.US district judge Dan Polster, in federal court in Cleveland, Ohio, is hearing about 2,000 civil cases brought by cities and counties coast-to-coast against opioid makers and distributors, wrapped into a giant case known as a multi-district litigation.He ordered the release of the data following a year-long legal battle by newspaper companies the Charleston Gazette-Mail in West Virginia, the state worst hit by the opioid epidemic, and the Washington Post.Deliveries of the two most common opioids, hydrocodone and oxycodone, escalated by more than 50% in the years covered by the database, to 12.6bn pills in 2012 alone, an analysis of the DEA numbers by the Washington Post found.By then the federal agency the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) had declared a public health crisis because of the surging death toll from overdoses. Some of the largest increases in sales were to parts of the country already devastated by opioids.Nearly nine out of 10 of the pills were manufactured by subsidiaries of three pharmaceutical multinationals – Mallinckrodt, Endo and Actavis, since renamed Allergan.These companies may not be household names but the pills they sold ardently, often allegedly inappropriately for treatment of chronic pain and while downplaying the risks of addiction, infiltrated communities all across the US in the last two decades.Mallinckrodt sold nearly 29bn opioids in the six years to 2012, taking 38% of the US market. Actavis was not far behind while Endo sold 11bn opioid tablets. Among Endo's drugs was a high-strength opioid, Opana, that it was forced to pull from the market because it was killing so many people.Meanwhile Purdue Pharma is alleged to have played a leading role in driving the mass prescribing that unleashed the epidemic by changing the practice and culture of pain treatment. It was the fourth-largest manufacturer but with a much smaller proportion of the market at about 3%.However, the volume of sales does not necessarily reflect the impact of individual drugs on the epidemic. Many of the more common painkillers were lower-strength opioids which helped create dependency and addiction but did not pose the same risk of overdose as stronger but less widely prescribed narcotics.Purdue sold $3bn of its high-strength branded drug, OxyContin, in 2010, about one-third of the opioid market by value at its peak.The pill consists of oxycodone, a powerful opioid derived from the opium poppy and which is stronger than morphine. The drug has been widely blamed for a surge in overdose deaths through the 2000s.All of the companies are targets of multiple lawsuits accusing them of driving up opioid sales with false claims about the safety and effectiveness of their drugs as are the members of the Sackler family who own Purdue Pharma.The newly released DEA data will bolster the plaintiffs' claim that responsibility for the epidemic runs wide across the drug industry with manufacturers intent on grabbing as large a part of the opioid market as possible with little regard for the unfolding human tragedy.The opioid makers have denied wrongdoing and, among other things, sought to place blame for the epidemic on doctors overprescribing drugs. But Purdue has previously been hit with a $600m fine for a criminal conviction over its marketing of opioids, and in March the company agreed to pay $270m to settle a civil suit by the state of Oklahoma. Two years ago, Mallinckrodt paid a $35m settlement with the justice department over its opioid deliveries.County-by-county data shows that sales of opioids were often focused on areas most blighted by the epidemic, including some of the poorest parts of Appalachia. At one point, the highest per capita deliveries were to rural Mingo county, West Virginia, where "pill mills" and pharmacies were raking in money by churning out prescriptions without question to anyone who paid cash. The practice drew caravans of drug users from hundreds of miles away.Large numbers of the opioids delivered to Mingo county were by the country's biggest drug distributor, McKesson Corporation. The Washington Post said the DEA data showed that McKesson and five other companies, including the pharmaceutical chains Walgreens, CVS and Walmart, were responsible for the bulk of painkiller deliveries across the US.McKesson, which is listed seventh in the Fortune 500 paid a record $150m fine two years ago to settle federal accusations that it was making suspiciously large deliveries of opioids to places where there could not be a legitimate demand for so many pills.It was also among companies that paid millions of dollars to settle lawsuits by West Virginia's attorney general that they flooded his state with opioids.A former head of the DEA division responsible for monitoring prescription drug distribution, Joe Rannazzisi, has previously told the Guardian that he attempted to launch criminal prosecutions against McKesson and other distributors but he ran into the power of the industry's political lobbying and was blocked by justice department officials.
|
| Satellite images ‘show US military buildup in Saudi Arabia’ amid Iran tensions Posted: 18 Jul 2019 11:04 AM PDT  The United States is preparing to send hundreds of troops to Saudi Arabia where satellite images appear to show a build up of American forces on the ground. Up to 500 soldiers are to be sent to the Prince Sultan Airbase in the desert to the east of the capital Riyadh, two officials told CNN, speaking on condition of anonymity. Preparations are also reportedly underway for a large missile installation from which Patriot surface-to-air missiles can be launched to protect the base from incoming threats. The moves would likely strengthen the US' controversial relationship with Saudi Arabia, while also responding to rising tensions with Iran which escalated dramatically in recent months. After the US unilaterally withdrew from a landmark 2015 nuclear deal last year and reimposed tight sanctions, Iran announced in July that it had surpassed limits on enriched uranium imposed in the agreement. The country insists it is not trying to build nuclear weapons.A standoff has also ensued in the Gulf, with sabotage attacks on foreign tankers, blamed on Iran by the US. In the latest incident Tehran said it had seized a foreign-owned vessel suspected of being used for oil smuggling out of the country/ The Trump administration has long sought to base troops in the remote region, but the decision to send them to Saudi Arabia comes amid outrage over the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. A United Nations report concluded his death at the Saudi embassy in Istanbul was "an extrajudicial execution" sanctioned Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.The Trump administration has also been criticised for its response to the murder.Despite these issues, the US has said it is committed to helping protect Saudi Arabia from Iranian aggression, and last month said 1,000 troops were being sent to the middle east, but did not say which countries they were going to.Photographs taken by high-resolution commercial satellites, captured by satellite imagery company Planet Labs, show a deployment of US troops and support personnel who arrived at the air base in mid-June, according to Jeffrey Lewis, director of the East Asia Nonproliferation Project at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey, who has studied the new images.Pictures of the site taken in late June and early July show preparations being made for the arrival of troops, Mr Lewis told CNN."A small encampment and construction equipment appeared at the end of a runway by June 27, suggesting that improvements are already underway. The encampment to the east of the runway is typical of Air Force engineering squadrons deployed overseas," he said. The US is reportedly hoping to be able to fly stealth, fifth-generation F-22 jets and other fighter planes from the base.Commander Rebecca Rebarich, a Pentagon spokeswoman, told the New York Times there was "no official announcement" of the deployment to the Middle East but said the American military "continually works to manage our force posture in the region."Amid rising tensions between Iran and the US last month, Mr Trump said he was not seeking war with the country but warned, if pushed, the country would face "obliteration like you've never seen before".
|
| Russia summons U.S. diplomat in Moscow in protest over visa row Posted: 18 Jul 2019 08:44 AM PDT ![Russia summons U.S. diplomat in Moscow in protest over visa row]( "Russia summons U.S. diplomat in Moscow in protest over visa row") Russia summoned a representative of the U.S. embassy in Moscow on Thursday to issue a protest after U.S. officials alleged Russia had refused visas to teachers at an international school in Moscow, the Russian foreign ministry said. The ministry said in a statement it had not denied the visas, but that teachers at the school were entering Russia under diplomatic visas, despite not being diplomats. It said Russia was ready to issue visas promptly to U.S. diplomatic personnel as soon as Washington started issuing visas promptly to Russian diplomats in the United States.
|
| France turns down citizenship for immigrant nurse because she 'works too much' Posted: 18 Jul 2019 06:27 AM PDT  France has rejected an immigrant nurse's application for citizenship on the grounds that she was working too many hours a week in breach of the statutory 35-hour week and strict limits on overtime. The nurse, whose name and nationality have not been made public, holds three jobs and averages 59 hours a week, which the authorities said placed her "in violation of regulations on working time in France". The 35-hour rule introduced under a Socialist government in 2000 gave France one of the world's shortest working weeks, but it has since been loosened and employees may be permitted to work up to 48 hours a week including overtime. The Préfecture in Val-de Marne, near Paris, said in a letter to the nurse that it was "postponing" her naturalisation application for two years. The letter was posted on social media by one of her friends, Nicolas Delage. "I find this scandalous," Mr Delage told the online newspaper 20 Minutes. "One reason for granting [French] nationality is work. She is not stealing anyone's work." Sanjay Navy, a lawyer, said immigrants were often denied naturalisation for working too many hours. "I've seen similar cases before this. This is not an isolated decision." Mr Navy said he had seen a number of naturalisation applications by security guards turned down because they had multiple employers and worked too many hours. According to the most recent official figures, some 63,000 immigrants were granted French citizenship in 2017. The French are bitterly divided over the 35-hour week, which became a campaign issue in the 2017 presidential election. The unsuccessful conservative candidate, François Fillon, promised to abolish it, arguing that it caused economic stagnation. Emmanuel Macron, the victorious centrist, has stopped short of scrapping it but has introduced greater flexibility for companies to negotiate longer hours with staff. An economy ministry report in April which revealed that more than 300,000 civil servants work less than 35 hours a week caused outrage among private-sector employees, many of whom say they regularly work longer hours to achieve their targets. A baker in northern France was fined €3,000 (£2,700) last year for breaching legal limits on work hours by opening his bakery seven days a week. Want the best of The Telegraph direct to your email and WhatsApp? Sign up to our free twice-daily Front Page newsletter and new audio briefings.
|
| Delaware woman who says she was brutally beaten in the Dominican Republic sues resort for $3 million Posted: 18 Jul 2019 04:07 AM PDT  The Delaware woman who claims she was beaten unconscious in the Dominican Republic has sued the resort for $3 million.
|
| Arrested reporter slams conditions at US detention centers Posted: 17 Jul 2019 02:26 PM PDT  A Spanish-language reporter who was recently released from immigration custody said Wednesday he was held for 15 months in detention centers that were plagued by insects and he had to bathe with cold water from water hoses. During a news conference, Manuel Duran discussed what he called inhumane conditions at immigration detention facilities in Louisiana and Alabama. Duran was released from an Alabama facility on bail last week as immigration courts consider his request for asylum.
|
| Tiger, rhinos flee to higher ground in India's flood-hit Assam Posted: 17 Jul 2019 05:08 PM PDT  A tiger escaped from a wildlife park in India's flood-ravaged Assam and stretched out on a shophouse bed Thursday, startling residents and shining a spotlight on the plight of animals caught up in the deluge. The adult tiger -- weighing more than 200 pounds (90 kilogrammes) -- was like many other beasts in the World Heritage-listed Kaziranga National Park, trying to reach dry land as the reserve became submerged by heavy rains. More than 50 wild animals have died so far, including some in traffic accidents, as they tried to cross a busy highway outside the park and reach the nearby Karbi hills, local media reported.
|
| Welcome to TIME Immersive's Apollo 11 'Landing on the Moon' Experience Posted: 18 Jul 2019 03:00 AM PDT  Now, you can take part in the historic Apollo 11 mission thanks to TIME's AR experience, the world's most accurate 3D re-creation.
|
| Police responding to foul odor find woman dead in New York City apartment Posted: 18 Jul 2019 02:18 PM PDT  Police are investigating the death of a 33-year-old woman found dead with obvious signs of trauma to her body.
|
| View Photos of the 2020 Nissan GT-R NISMO Posted: 18 Jul 2019 05:00 AM PDT |
| India aims to expel all illegal migrants, interior minister says Posted: 17 Jul 2019 06:17 AM PDT ![India aims to expel all illegal migrants, interior minister says]( "India aims to expel all illegal migrants, interior minister says") India will identify and deport illegal immigrants from across the country, the interior minister said on Wednesday, stepping up a campaign that critics say could stoke religious tension and further alienate minority Muslims. An exercise to identify alien immigrants from Muslim-majority Bangladesh has been going on in the northeastern state of Assam for years, but Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist-led government has taken it up in earnest. The campaign was a key issue in this year's general election, won by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu-nationalist party.
|
| White-collar prosecutions and corporate fines drop under Trump Posted: 18 Jul 2019 04:56 AM PDT  A drop in white-collar crime prosecutions and corporate fines during the Trump administration has prompted a warning from a leading law firm.New York-based Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz issued a memo to its clients noting the "significant" decrease in both the number of cases and the scale of penalties over the last two years.The lawyers advised businesses not to relax their approach to laws and regulations, adding: "Our experience suggests that succumbing to such temptation would be a mistake."It comes after data from the US Department of Justice revealed white-collar prosecutions – including offences of fraud, antitrust violations and identity theft – hit a 20-year low earlier this year.Prosecutions peaked in 2011, during Barack Obama's first term in office, and have steadily declined since, according to Syracuse University's TRAC reports."White-collar prosecutions since President Trump assumed office generally have been lower than in previous administrations," researchers said. Corporate fines from criminal prosecutions also plunged by more than 90 per cent, according to a study comparing the last year of the Obama administration and the first year under President Trump.The "lighter touch" approach towards the banking industry is further demonstrated by a large drop in the number of cases pursued by the Securities and Exchange Commission, according to analysis by The New York Times."In such an environment, companies might be tempted to think that having an effective compliance programme is less urgent and less important than the past," Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz told its clients on Wednesday."In fact, now is arguably the best time for corporations to continue investing in their compliance programmes to ensure they have in place an effective and comprehensive set of compliance policies, procedures and internal controls."> Extraordinary memo from Wachtell tonight conceding that white collar enforcement in Trump era is way down pic.twitter.com/2ljocRQOlr> > — Sujeet Indap (@sindap) > > July 18, 2019The Department of Justice has previously tried to deny suggestions that white-collar prosecutions are decreasing, claiming a three per cent rise during the year to September 2018, with more than 6,500 suspects charged nationwide."President Donald Trump is a law-and-order president—and this is a law-and-order administration," said attorney general Jeff Sessions, less than three weeks before he resigned at Mr Trump's request.
|
| The Latest: Arkansas state police ID sheriff's deputy killed Posted: 18 Jul 2019 01:30 PM PDT ![The Latest: Arkansas state police ID sheriff's deputy killed]( "The Latest: Arkansas state police ID sheriff's deputy killed") Arkansas State Police have identified a sheriff's deputy killed in a shooting in northern Arkansas as Sergeant Mike Stephen. State Police spokesman Bill Sadler said Stephen responded to a domestic welfare check at a house in Leslie, about 77 miles (124 kilometers) from Little Rock, around 8:40 Thursday morning. Stephen was killed at the scene.
|
| Here are the candidates who will be on stage for the second 2020 Democratic debate Posted: 17 Jul 2019 02:39 PM PDT  The second Democratic primary debate will be held on July 30-31 in Detroit, Michigan.
|
| The U.S. Marine Corps Has Lost More Than 25,000 Marines to Misconduct Posted: 18 Jul 2019 12:42 AM PDT  The Marine Corps has lost more than 25,000 Marines to misconduct over the past decade, according to Commandant Gen. David Berger.In his 2019 Commandant's Planning Guidance, Berger said that the Corps "continued loss of 8,000 Marines per year to non-EAS attrition is unacceptable," using an acronym to describe the end of active service in an enlistment.A total of 25,336 Marines were booted from the Corps between 2009 and 2019; 11,765 were for drug and alcohol offenses, while 13,571 were over unspecified misconduct."This must change," Berger wrote, noting that the cost to replace that many Marines was in excess of $1 billion.Interestingly, that number should be even higher, as its section on drug use reveals. Since Oct. 2017, 2,410 Marines tested positive for illegal drug use, but only 1,175, or 48.8%, had been separated. "I am deeply troubled by the continued retention of Marines failing to adhere to our standards related to drug use.""We are an elite institution of warriors, and will remain so on my watch," Berger wrote. "It is our shared responsibility to ensure the continued health of our collective soul and identity."Toward the end of the 26-page document, which largely focused on changes Berger intended to implement as the top Marine officer, the new commandant talked about misconduct in the force and what he called "destructive" behavior.Of sexual assault, for example, Berger said that despite the Corps' efforts, "the continued rise in reporting leads me to conclude that we still do not fully understand the scope and scale of this issue, or that we can say with any confident that the measures we have taken to date are preventing sexual assaults."
|
| America will roast for 4 days Posted: 18 Jul 2019 10:29 AM PDT  Tens of millions of Americans will feel triple-digit heat between Thursday and Sunday. The National Weather Service (NWS) noted that 20 to 30 high temperature records could fall between the Rockies and the East Coast. There will be little relief even at night: The weather agency expects 123 records for the warmest daily low temperature to be either broken or tied this week. The Midwest will see many of the highest extremes on Thursday and Friday, while the East Coast will feel its most intense heat on Saturday.The NWS labeled this excessive heat as "scorching." On Saturday in Washington D.C., the confluence of humidity and air temperatures are forecast to produce a heat index (or feeling) of around 110 F. Meteorologist Michael Ventrice called these forecasted conditions "dangerously hot." Indeed, heat waves kill more Americans than any other weather event.Although climate change doesn't produce weather -- like sprawling fronts of unusually warm air, hurricanes, or wildfire conditions -- it does make these events worse. Any heat wave today, for example, is sitting atop boosted global temperatures. These elevated temperatures are responsible for June 2019 being the warmest June in 139 years of record-keeping, and 18 of the 19 warmest years on record occurring since 2001.This added heat means more record hot weather becoming not just possible, but occurring more frequently. "A barely noticeable shift in the mean temperature from global warming can end up turning a 'once-per-decade' heatwave into a 'once-per-year heatwave' pretty easily," Patrick Brown, an assistant professor in the Department of Meteorology and Climate Science at San Jose State University, said over email. Shifting averages mean more heat.Image: Climate central / climatecentral.org> The likelihood of extreme heat, like what we are seeing in the US Midwest this week, increases nonlinearly with the warming of average temperatures (caused by increases in anthropogenic greenhouse gas concentrations). pic.twitter.com/Q20frMvgVa> > -- Patrick T. Brown (@PatrickTBrown31) July 17, 2019"Heat waves are occurring more often than they used to in major cities across the United States, from an average of two heat waves per year during the 1960s to nearly six per year during the 2010s," noted the U.S. Global Change Research Program.SEE ALSO: Climate change will ruin train tracks and make travel hellBoosted temperatures translate to more heat records. In the last decade, for instance, twice as many daily high heat records have been set as daily low records in the U.S. > NYC has chance for hottest feels like temperature in the country on Saturday but DC and Philly will make a run at it also. pic.twitter.com/w6Hl31WhxK> > -- Bill Karins (@BillKarins) July 18, 2019The powerful driver of the increased frequency of extreme heat is clear. In the late 1850s, physicists like John Tyndall discovered that certain gases, like carbon dioxide, trap radiative heat on Earth -- meaning solar radiation reflected off the planet's surface and heat emitted from Earth itself. Today, atmospheric concentrations of the heat-trapping gas carbon dioxide are at their highest levels in at least 800,000 years, though likely millions of years. What's more, atmospheric CO2 levels are now increasing at rates that are unprecedented in both the historic and geologic record. "What's important to recognize is the changes humanity is driving at present are commensurate with the most significant events in the history of life on this planet," Matthew Long, an oceanographer at the National Center for Atmospheric Research, told Mashable in March. WATCH: Ever wonder how the universe might end?
|
| India's 'dosa king' dies one week into life term Posted: 18 Jul 2019 01:51 AM PDT  An Indian restaurant tycoon known as the "Dosa King" died in hospital Thursday, a week after beginning a life sentence for the murder of a love rival. P. Rajagopal, 71, was convicted for the murder of his love interest's husband in 2004, but only went to jail this month when the Supreme Court rejected his final appeal. Rajagopal, who turned his Saravana Bhawan restaurant into a global chain, died at Chennai's Vijaya hospital where he was taken on Tuesday with heart problems.
|
| Flynn had $4.6M unpaid legal tab, records show Posted: 18 Jul 2019 08:04 AM PDT  Law firm Covington & Burling took on Trump's ex-national security adviser Michael Flynn in early 2017, when his lobbying and consulting work came under scrutiny.
|
| This Dyson cordless vacuum deal for $150 is better than anything from Prime Day Posted: 18 Jul 2019 09:07 AM PDT  There's nothing quite like a Dyson cordless vacuum. There's also nothing quite as expensive as a Dyson cordless vacuum. That's why it's so important to find a good deal if you really want a Dyson, and it doesn't get much better than this one. Amazon is offering a killer one day sale that slashes the price of renewed Dyson V6 Motorhead Cord Free Vacuums to just $149.99. This deal definitely could sell out, so grab one while you can!Here are the bullet points from the product page: * 75% more brush bar power than the V6 Cord-free vacuum * Cord-free. Hassle-free. Quickly and easily clean when you need to * Up to 20 minutes of continuous suction. Trigger releases instantly. Also features max power mode - which provides up to 6 minutes of higher suction for more difficult tasks * The Direct-drive cleaner head drives bristles deeper into the carpet to remove even more dirt. 15 cyclones, arranged across two tiers, work in parallel to increase airflow and capture fine dust * Quickly convert to a handheld for quick clean ups, spot cleaning and cleaning difficult places. Includes convenient docking station that stores and charges the machine, and holds additional attachments. So it's always ready to go * This Certified Refurbished product is manufacturer refurbished, shows limited or no wear, includes all original accessories, and a 6 month Dyson limited warranty against original defects in materials & workmanship; warranty covers private household use in accordance with the owner's manual
|
| Ex-chairman of Vietnam's BIDV bank dies in detention Posted: 18 Jul 2019 12:22 AM PDT ![Ex-chairman of Vietnam's BIDV bank dies in detention]( "Ex-chairman of Vietnam's BIDV bank dies in detention") A former head of Vietnam's second largest listed bank, the Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV), died in detention on Thursday, state media and three sources with direct knowledge of the situation said. Tran Bac Ha was arrested in November last year in a widening crackdown on corruption in the Southeast Asian country, which has seen its Communist-ruled government launch investigations into hundreds of public officials and several executives at state-owned enterprises jailed. Ha had not stood trial and was being held at a military detention center near Hanoi, the Vietnamese capital, the Tuoi Tre newspaper reported.
|
| Turkey considering ‘alternatives’ to US fighter jet amid Russian offer Posted: 18 Jul 2019 06:25 AM PDT  A defiant Turkey said it was considering "alternatives" to US fighter jets, including Russian models or making its own, a day after Washington suspended it from a programme to build and deploy advanced warplanes.The US punished Turkey for its purchase of a Russian air defence system by pushing it out of a long-term programme to upgrade Nato forces with F-35 advanced fighter jets. The Kremlin quickly attempted to exploit the disagreement, which has already drawn Ankara closer to Moscow, offering to sell Turkey Russian fighter planes.Ismail Demir, head of Turkey's defence industries, responded that "all kinds of options are on the table," according to the official Anadolu news agency."Turkey will continue to evaluate alternatives," he said.The months-long dispute had pushed already strained relations between Turkey and the US to a new low. Analysts say Washington sought to avoid having to make a decision on the matter. But after the delivery of parts for the Russian S-400 missile system began late last week, the White House was forced to act. It announced late on Wednesday that it was ending Turkey's involvement in the programme to build F-35s, citing security concerns. "Turkey's decision to buy the Russian S-400 air defence systems renders its continued involvement with the F-35 impossible," said a White House statement. "The F-35 cannot coexist with a Russian intelligence collection platform that will be used to learn about its advanced capabilities." The US is expected to punish Turkey with sanctions for doing business with a Russian arms industry blacklisted since the invasion and annexation of parts of Ukraine. Ankara and Washington are at odds over a number of issues, including US support for the separatist-minded Kurds in Syria. "This is another step in the unfolding disaster that is Turkish-US relations," said Nicholas Danforth, a Turkey specialist at the German Marshall Fund think tank. Turkey's foreign ministry has described the removal as "unfair", but many of the country's officials were holding out hope the damage could be mitigated. Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Donald Trump share a warm rapport, and many were holding out hope that the White House would defer or suspend any moves that would severely damage Turkey's fragile economy. "If you believe what Erdogan said, Trump [told him] there won't be sanctions," said Mr Danforth. "If you don't believe that, they're coming soon."But uncertainty remains, and many analysts were warning that powerful lobbies in Washington, already hostile to Turkey, would push for harsher penalties. "This is indeed uncharted terrain," said Selim Sazak, a Turkey specialist at Brown University. "It is a game of chicken that went terribly wrong. Neither Ankara nor Washington thought that the other could go as far as it did."Still, few other Nato members appeared as eager as the US to punish Nato. The organisation's secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, speaking at the Aspen Security Forum, called Turkey an important Nato member. "As long as that issue's not solved, we need to minimise the negative consequences," he was quoted as saying.Turkey sought to purchase the S-400s after several western countries pulled their Patriot air defence batteries from the country's southeast in 2015 over a political dispute. Mr Erdogan has insisted the US would not give it favourable terms for the purchase of its own Patriots, and so turned to Moscow, which it was negotiating with over Syria in the absence of robust US involvement. Other Nato countries have purchased Russian weapons in the past, but Pentagon officials have argued that over time, the advanced S-400 could be used to track and monitor the F-35 and undermine its stealth capabilities to the advantage of the Russians."Ankara backed itself into a wall over Syria, where its subsequent actions forced it into engaging with Russia, and mobilised its own public in a way that made backing out impossibly costly," said Mr Sazak. "Ankara also overestimated the extent to which it could play Trump."
|
| Feds: Man charged with killing 3 had been deported twice Posted: 18 Jul 2019 03:37 PM PDT  A Guatemalan man who apparently entered the U.S. illegally after being deported twice has been charged with killing an Iowa woman and her two children. Marvin Oswaldo Escobar-Orellana, 31, made an initial court appearance Thursday in Des Moines, where the judge set his bond at $3 million cash and scheduled his next hearing for July 29. Escobar-Orellana was arrested Tuesday night in the fatal shootings of 29-year-old Rossibeth Flores-Rodriguez and her two children, 11-year-old Grecia Daniela Alvarado-Flores and 5-year-old Ever Jose Mejia-Flores.
|
