| NATO ally expels undercover Russian spy Posted: 16 Nov 2019 01:11 PM PST  In a rare move, NATO ally Bulgaria has expelled an undercover spy affiliated with the Russian military intelligence service, according to a Western intelligence source.
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| Can Pete Buttigieg win the presidency? Posted: 16 Nov 2019 07:15 AM PST  A poll released earlier this week showed Pete Buttigieg leading the Democratic presidential primary pack in Iowa for the first time. Can he really win the presidency?
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| China's Inner Mongolia reports fresh bubonic plague case Posted: 17 Nov 2019 12:38 AM PST ![China's Inner Mongolia reports fresh bubonic plague case]( "China's Inner Mongolia reports fresh bubonic plague case") China's Inner Mongolia reported a fresh, confirmed case of bubonic plague on Sunday, despite an earlier declaration by the country's health officials that the risk of an outbreak was minimal. The health commission of the autonomous region said a 55-year-old man was diagnosed with the disease after he ate wild rabbit meat on Nov. 5. Bubonic plague is the most common form of plague globally and can advance and spread to the lungs, which is more severe type called pneumonic plague, according to the World Health Organization.
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| The Latest: Tear gas drives back protesters trying to leave Posted: 16 Nov 2019 09:19 PM PST  Police used tear gas to drive back dozens of protesters who were trying to leave a university campus that they have occupied for days. Protesters streamed out of the campus Monday morning after the president of Hong Kong Polytechnic University announced police had agreed to suspend the use of force. Police fired tear gas volleys at the protesters, many of whom climbed over a fence and headed back inside the campus.
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| Nuclear missile bunker: yours for less than $400k Posted: 16 Nov 2019 10:03 AM PST  Decommissioned nuclear silo accessed 40ft staircase leading underground was once home to US's largest intercontinental ballistic missile ever deployedAll this can be yours for $395,000. Photograph: Casey James with Luxe Realty PhotographyOne local newspaper described the sales listing, with calculated understatement, as a "mid-century fixer-upper": an underground bunker built to withstand a nuclear attack, and to house the fire power to retaliate.The decommissioned nuclear silo in southern Arizona was once home to the Titan II, the largest intercontinental ballistic missile deployed by the US Air Force.The inside of the decommissioned Titan nuclear missile silo in southern Arizona. Photograph: Casey James with Luxe Realty PhotographyThe silo's owner, Rick Ellis, told the Arizona Daily Star newspaper that he was selling the property because he's "bored".Ellis said he originally bought the silo to turn into a commercial data storage center because it is shielded from electromagnetic pulses that can scramble electronics, but his plans were waylaid by the economic recession. So far, he said he has rejected serious offers from a buyer who wanted to turn it into a greenhouse for medical marijuana and another who planned to use it as a porn studio.The threshold to tour the property is much higher than for a typical open house. Interested buyers must prove they have the money to cover the $395,000 cost and sign a liability waiver before descending a 40ft staircase into the bunker to tour the property.An aerial view of the nuclear missile silo. Photograph: Casey James with Luxe Realty Photography"Private yet not too remote," says the listing for the property, which includes more than 12 acres of desert.There are 18 decommissioned nuclear silos which surround Tucson and were operational from June 1963 into the 1980s. They were on alert to launch, or respond, to nuclear attacks with the Titan II missiles, which carried warheads with nine megatons of explosive power – the equivalent to a yield 600 times that of "Little Boy", the bomb dropped over Hiroshima.When the bunkers were decommissioned, the government demolished them, filled them with rubble and sealed the entrances with concrete.Another view of the nuclear missile silo. Photograph: Casey James with Luxe Realty PhotographyEllis took on a major excavation after purchasing the property, which still includes some original equipment such as floor-to-ceiling springs which isolated each level of the basement from seismic shocks and signs revealing the bunker's designated smoking area.Premier Media Group created a 3D tour of the bunker which showcases pools of stagnant water and the 6,000lb blast door which can be closed with one hand.For those who can't provide the paperwork necessary to tour the property, realtors Grant Hampton and Kori Ward recommend a visit to the nearby Titan Missile Museum in Sahuarita, Arizona, which is inside a decommissioned silo.
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| Elephant dies in captivity after killing villagers Posted: 17 Nov 2019 10:33 AM PST  An elephant named after Osama bin Laden, the late al-Qaida leader, has died in captivity after he was captured following a massive hunt in northeastern India, officials said Sunday.
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| Massachusetts man arrested after son, 5, allegedly takes heroin to school and brags it makes him feel like Spider-Man Posted: 17 Nov 2019 03:31 PM PST  A father is facing drug possession charges after his son, 5, allegedly took heroin to school and said tasting it made him feel like Spider-Man.
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| Elizabeth Warren takes risk with ad blasting billionaires Posted: 16 Nov 2019 05:26 PM PST  Elizabeth Warren, one of the leading Democratic presidential candidates, has stepped up her assault on billionaires -- a rallying cry popular with her base, but one that could stymie her efforts to garner wider support among US voters. The one-minute campaign ad shows clips of several leading businessmen criticizing her plans for a wealth tax and predicting economic ruin if she is elected to succeed Donald Trump, a billionaire himself. Then the viewer sees Warren at a campaign rally, challenging America's most wealthy to pay up to help reduce income inequality in America.
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| The War That Made India a 'Great Power' (And Hurt Pakistan to This Day) Posted: 17 Nov 2019 10:00 AM PST  The 1971 India-Pakistan War.
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| Obama cautions Democratic hopefuls on tacking too far left Posted: 16 Nov 2019 06:20 AM PST  Former President Barack Obama on Friday warned the Democratic field of White House hopefuls not to veer too far to the left, a move he said would alienate many who would otherwise be open to voting for the party's nominee next year. The centrist wing of the party has warned for months that a far-left nominee could alienate moderate Republicans and independent voters needed to oust President Donald Trump.
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| Today's Democrats aren't for Michael Bloomberg. He should run as an independent, instead. Posted: 17 Nov 2019 03:00 AM PST  Business mogul Michael Bloomberg doesn't fit today's Democratic Party. But his candidacy as an independent could serve an important purpose.
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| Hong Kong police threaten to fire live ammunition at democracy protesters Posted: 17 Nov 2019 03:48 PM PST  Hong Kong police stormed into Hong Kong Polytechnic University on Monday after an all-night standoff with protesters, with police threatening to use live ammunition against protesters in the face of barrages of Molotov cocktails from demonstrators who have occupied a university campus. While three protesters have been shot during the 24 weeks of protests so far, this is the first time in the crisis the police have issued the stark warning. "If they (protesters) continue such dangerous actions, we would have no choice but to use minimum force, including live rounds," said police spokesman Louis Lau during a Facebook live broadcast. The president of the Poly U Professor Ten Jin Huang released a statement saying: "I have been communicating closely with the police since last evening. We have now received the assurance of police of a temporary suspension of the use of force, under the condition that if the protesters do not initiate the use of force, police will not initiate the use of force. "In addition, we have received permission from the police for you to leave the campus peacefully and I will personally accompany you to the police station to ensure that your case will be fairly processed, " he continued. An anti-government protester is silhoutted at the entrance to Hong Kong Polytechnic University Credit: Tyrone Siu/Reuters "For students from Poly U, our office of counselling and wellness will provide you with counselling and all the necessary support to help you during this difficult time. I hope that you will accept the proposed temporary suspension of force and leave the campus in a peaceful manner." The warning came after a Hong Kong police officer was shot in the leg with an arrow fired by protesters during a day-long tear-gas and petrol-bomb fuelled standoff between anti-government protesters and police. Police on Monday morning had surrounded the Hong Kong Polytechnic University to prevent protesters from escaping as they move in. Photographs of the injured officer were posted on the Hong Kong Police's Facebook page, showing the arrow sticking out of the officer's lower leg. An officer was hit in the calf by an arrow fired by protesters outside the Polytechnic University of Hong Kong Credit: EPA-EFE/REX/Hong Kong Police Force Police confirmed that the man hit was a media liaison officer, who often join police lines acting as a buffer for the press in the protests. On Sunday afternoon, police deployed water cannons and armoured vehicles, which broke through blockades strewn with bricks and nails and dispersed protesters with bursts of blue dye laced with pepper spray. Protesters retreated back towards the campus, blocking projectiles and tear gas with umbrellas and makeshift shields. There are estimated to be 200 protesters barricaded inside the university. Meanwhile, on the roof of the university, protesters fired arrows and catapults with flaming projectiles towards police lines. Warning shots were reportedly fired by police and tear gas was still being launched towards the university at 4am local time after an ultimatum for students to surrender expired, as tensions showed no sign of easing. Anti-government protesters were hosed down inside the campus by volunteer medics Credit: ANTHONY WALLACE/AFP via Getty Images The university is near the Hung Hom cross-harbour tunnel, a 10-lane thoroughfare between the Kowloon Peninsula and Hong Kong Island. The crossing has been a key target for protesters, who have vandalised the toll booths at the crossing, shutting down the crucial transport tunnel for more than five days. Protesters on Sunday night also set fire to a footbridge overlooking the cross-harbour tunnel, causing a large explosion. The university is stockpiled with Molotov cocktails and petrol bombs, many which were strewn on the footbridges in anticipation for a police assault. University campuses have been the latest battlegrounds of fierce clashes between protesters and police, with multiple campuses across Hong Kong vandalised and barricaded by protesters dressed in black, who say they are defending the universities from the police. The Polytechnic University is the last remaining campus in Hong Kong still held by protesters, while the others that were once occupied have been largely abandoned. An armoured police truck burns after being hit with Molotov cocktails, Credit: REUTERS/Adnan Abidi Speaking on Sunday afternoon, Sir Malcolm Rifkind, the former Foreign Secretary, urged restraint from Carrie Lam, Hong Kong's Chief Executive, and protesters. "Hong Kong's Chief Executive has the responsibility to do everything possible to prevent a massacre. She must order the police to exercise restraint and not to use live ammunition or other forms of lethal force," he said. "A bloodbath on a Hong Kong campus would be devastating for Hong Kong as a whole. I also urge those students who have engaged in violence to stop. I condemn violence on all sides and I call on both sides to show restraint and pull back from the brink." Read More | Hong Kong crisis The Hong Kong Education Bureau announced that primary and secondary schools will stay closed on Monday across the city, citing safety concerns. The protests initially began with the demand to withdraw a now-shelved extradition bill, which pro-democracy figures feared was a sign of increasing control being exerted on Hong Kong from Beijing and the Chinese central government. The unrest and protests has since evolved into calls for greater democratic reforms and an independent investigation into police violence.
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| First African-American FBI agent finally gets recognition Posted: 16 Nov 2019 12:28 AM PST  There are no known photographs of James Wormley Jones, but there is a record of his hiring
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| 'Kill, rob, burn and bury the bodies': Man convicted in 3 grisly farm deaths Posted: 16 Nov 2019 01:22 PM PST !['Kill, rob, burn and bury the bodies': Man convicted in 3 grisly farm deaths]( "'Kill, rob, burn and bury the bodies': Man convicted in 3 grisly farm deaths") Sean Kratz and his cousin were "on a mission to kill, rob, burn and bury the bodies," Assistant District Attorney Kate Kohler told jurors.
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| US businesswoman says 'heartbroken' by Britain's Johnson Posted: 17 Nov 2019 06:21 AM PST  A US businesswoman at the centre of controversy over whether Boris Johnson showed her inappropriate favouritism amid an alleged affair said Sunday she had been left "heartbroken" and "humiliated" by the British prime minister. Jennifer Arcuri, who is accused of getting privileged access to foreign trade jaunts and grants when Johnson was previously London mayor, told Britain's ITV he was treating her like "some fleeting one-night stand". The technology entrepreneur said the British premier, now campaigning for re-election, had rebuffed her requests "for advice" after the scandal erupted in September and "hung up" on her.
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| Why Russian Fighter Jets Are Threatening NATO In The Baltics Posted: 16 Nov 2019 12:05 PM PST  A Russian Su-27 recent intercepted an American F-15C.
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| Crowd honors tree as Havana celebrates 500th anniversary Posted: 16 Nov 2019 02:10 PM PST  Hundreds of people in Cuba's capital stood in line to kiss, touch or walk around a towering silk floss tree Saturday in a nod to tradition as they celebrate Havana's 500th anniversary this weekend. The event comes as Cuba deals with an ailing economy and increasingly tense relations with the U.S., concerns that were briefly cast aside as residents prepared for a gala event Saturday night featuring fireworks, music and international dignitaries. "Havana grows, lives, sings, dances and dreams," said Félix Julio Alfonso, a professor who spoke before granting the public access to the revered silk floss tree.
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| Barr Attacks Trump Opponents, Democrats in Fiery Speech Posted: 15 Nov 2019 07:08 PM PST ![Barr Attacks Trump Opponents, Democrats in Fiery Speech]( "Barr Attacks Trump Opponents, Democrats in Fiery Speech") (Bloomberg) -- Attorney General William Barr fired a broadside against critics of Donald Trump -- and congressional Democrats in particular -- while defending the president's actions.In a fiery speech Friday before the conservative Federalist Society on Friday, Barr said Trump's opponents are using every tool they can to intentionally sabotage his administration."Immediately after President Trump won election, opponents inaugurated what they called the Resistance," Barr said. "They essentially see themselves as engaged in a war, to cripple by any means necessary, a duly elected government."The attorney general defended Trump on multiple fronts, and castigated Democrats in Congress over their investigations, multiple subpoenas, as well as court rulings against the administration."The sheer volume of what we see today – the pursuit of scores of parallel investigations through an avalanche of subpoenas – is plainly designed to incapacitate the executive branch and, indeed, is touted as such," Barr said. "While the president has certainly thrown out the traditional Beltway playbook and punctilio, he was upfront about what he was going to do and the people decided they wanted him to serve as president."While Barr's speech came as House Democrats were holding their first public hearings in an impeachment inquiry against Trump for what they argue are abuses of power and obstruction of Congress, Barr didn't mention impeachment in his speech.The thrust of his address, which was punctuated by frequent applause, was to promote the idea of a robust executive branch and a strong president, and he argued that constitutional separation of powers has been eroded -- especially in recent years. And the attacks on Trump, he suggested, could weaken the government itself."One of the ironies of today is that those who oppose this president constantly accuse this administration of shredding constitutional norms and waging a war on the rule of law," he said. "Of course there is no substance to these claims.""In waging a scorched earth, no-holds-barred war of resistance against this administration, it is the left that has engaged in the systematic shredding of norms and undermining the rule of law," Barr said.To contact the reporter on this story: Chris Strohm in Washington at cstrohm1@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Bill Faries at wfaries@bloomberg.net, John Harney, Shamim AdamFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| U.N. warns Bolivia crisis could 'spin out of control' as death toll mounts Posted: 16 Nov 2019 07:12 AM PST  The United Nations warned on Saturday violence in Bolivia could "spin out of control" following recent skirmishes between security forces and coca farmers loyal to ousted President Evo Morales that have left nine dead. Morales resigned under pressure from Bolivia's police and military last Sunday after evidence of vote rigging tainted his Oct. 20 election victory. The leftist and charismatic former coca farmer has since called his ouster a right-wing "coup" and decried growing allegations of repression by security forces under interim President and former conservative lawmaker Jeanine Anez.
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| Three family murder-suicides within ten days shock Turkey as the country faces record unemployment Posted: 17 Nov 2019 09:31 AM PST  The deaths of three separate families within ten days have shocked Turkey as the country struggles with mass unemployment and a financial crisis. On Friday, authorities confirmed that a family of three had been found dead in their home in the central Istanbul district of Bakırköy, poisoned by cyanide. Police had entered the house after neighbours complained of a chemical smell. Bülent Kerimoğlu, the local mayor, said that the father, a jeweller, had financial troubles, and had poisoned himself, his wife, and his six-year-old child. It follows two similar stories involving cyanide. Earlier in the month, police discovered the bodies of a family of four, including a nine year-old daughter and a five year-old son, in their home in the southern city of Antalya. According to reports in local media the father, Selim Şimşek, left a note explaining he had been unemployed for nine months, adding: "I apologise to everyone, but there is nothing I can to any more. We are ending our lives." On Nov 5, four siblings aged between 38 and 50 killed themselves in their shared flat in Fatih, a conservative district in Istanbul, after leaving a note taped on their door reading: "Beware of cyanide. Call the police, do not enter." Turkish lira crisis sends shock waves on markets as defiant Erdogan prepares for more 'economic attacks' They were reportedly unable to pay their debts. Turkish media has discussed the incidents at length even though conversations about suicide are usually taboo in the predominantly Muslim county. The opposition Republican People's Party has said the suicides are the human cost of the country's slow recovery from its economic crisis last year, during which the lira plunged 30 per cent in value. Fuat Oktay, Turkey's vice president, said there was not enough evidence to link the suicides to unemployment, and pro-government media warned about the risk of news reports fuelling copycat incidents. Unemployment is still near record levels, and according to official statistics published last week, the rate rose to 14 per cent for August, or 4.5 million Turks, with youth unemployment at 27 per cent. Şeyfettin Gürsel, the head of Bahçeşehir University's Centre for Economic and Social Research Centre, describes the current rate of unemployment as "a real threat to the stability of Turkish society." This is the first time Turkey has faced such a sustained period of high unemployment.
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| Officer in Louisiana won't face charges in 94 mph fatal crash Posted: 17 Nov 2019 08:53 AM PST  A Louisiana police officer who crashed a speeding car while off duty in 2017 will face no criminal charges in the death of a child.
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| Minneapolis Police Admit to Discovering 1,500 Untested Rape Kits, Spanning Over 30 Years, Found in Storage Posted: 17 Nov 2019 09:09 AM PST  "We had failure in terms of the auditing process of those kits"
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| Racist, anti-Semitic incidents prompt Syracuse to halt fraternity activities; Alpha Chi Rho suspended Posted: 17 Nov 2019 12:50 PM PST  Syracuse suspended a fraternity and halted social activities at all of them for the semester after a series of racist and anti-Semitic incidents.
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| Forgotten Genocide: How a Quarter of Europe’s Roma Were Murdered by the Nazis, then Erased From History Posted: 17 Nov 2019 02:18 AM PST  LONDON—It's impossible to fathom the scale of the depravity. An eyewitness account by a Holocaust survivor—unearthed for a new exhibition in London—describes the conditions in the "gypsy" section of Auschwitz as even more inhumane than the rest of the appalling facility."The conditions were worse than in the other camps," wrote eyewitness Hermann Langbein in 1945. "The route between the huts was ankle deep in mud and dirt. The gypsies were still wearing the clothes that they had been given upon arrival… footwear was missing… The latrines were built in such a way that they were practically unusable for the gypsy children. The infirmary was a pathetic sight."The Holocaust Didn't End with the Liberation of Auschwitz and the Nazi Death CampsThe report by Langbein, also a survivor of the Spanish Civil War, is just one of the sickening contemporary accounts highlighted in the exhibition Forgotten Victims: The Nazi Genocide of the Roma and Sinti at London's Wiener Holocaust Library (to March 11, 2020).Over 90 percent of the Roma held at Auschwitz did not survive the war.In total, it is estimated that up to half a million Roma and Sinti, the name taken by the nomadic people based in Germany, died during the Holocaust. Accurate estimates are impossible but that may have been a quarter of Europe's Roma and Sinti population.The plight of these people, commonly known as gypsies at the time, was overshadowed by the scale of the genocide perpetrated against Europe's Jewish community, but the Romani suffering was not simply eclipsed; it was systematically erased in the post-war period. Romani survivors did not qualify for restitution; the mass murder of the Roma was largely ignored at the Nuremberg trials; Germany did not formally recognize that there had been a Romani genocide until 1982.Like homeless and gay victims of the Holocaust, the Roma and Sinti people were primarily categorized by the Nazi killing machine as criminals or "asocials." For the tiny minority who survived, this meant they struggled to apply for compensation for their treatment in the same way as Jewish survivors.Despite the German authorities' failure to recognize this as another strand of genocide, there was plenty of evidence that the Nazis were applying similar twisted pseudo-science to portray the Roma and Jews as lesser people.The exhibition highlights the work of a man named Dr Robert Ritter, who was responsible for running the Racial Hygiene and Demographic Biology Research Unit from 1936. In 1941, he was promoted and also became head of the Criminal Biology Unit. Much of his work focused on trying to prove that the Romani people were racially inferior using a vast array of nonsensical and unscientific methods.He supported the sterilization of Roma women and expressed his concern about preventing intermarriage with other Germans. He was also personally responsible for identifying Roma and Sinti communities in Germany and Austria which were then raided by Nazis units who transported thousands to the camps.Ritter was never brought to trial. His racist project had obviously been influential among senior Nazi officials, however. In 1938, the head of the SS Heinrich Himmler wrote: "Experience gained in combating the gypsy nuisance, and knowledge derived from race-biological research, have shown that the proper method of attacking the Gypsy problem seems to be to treat it as a matter of race."It's utterly extraordinary that it took the German government until the 1980s to officially take Himmler's word for it: the mass execution of the Roma and Sinti people was a racially motivated genocide.It wasn't just within Germany; the Roma and Sinti people were largely left out of the picture when the world united to condemn the horrors of the Holocaust."There was no reckoning, no recognition," said Barbara Warnock, curator at the Wiener Holocaust Library. "At the Nuremberg war crimes trials, crimes against Roma weren't part of the indictments. There are some documents that were entered at Nuremberg that are to do with persecution against Jews that happen to mention persecution against Roma too but it wasn't something that was being particularly focused on or investigated even though people were aware of it. There's never been that big moment of acknowledgement."Warnock told The Daily Beast that there has been a historic and continued marginalization of Roma communities in Europe. "The failure to acknowledge the extent of persecution and suffering probably hasn't been helpful," she said.Documents that tell the typically depressing story of Hans Brann, a Roma survivor of Auschwitz, have been located by the Wiener Holocaust Library. He was one of just a couple of thousand Roma who entered Auschwitz and left alive.According to a police letter, the response to his restitution claim was to order a police inspector to investigate his claim, and prove that he was a criminal, not a racial victim. Not all of the documentation survives, but he must have been turned down because six years later Brann made the same claim of restitution. He had waited more than a decade for any recognition of the torment he had suffered.For the Roma people in Europe, the wait goes on. Recent years have seen crackdowns on communities in Italy, France and Hungary."Reflect upon the situation in Europe today," said Warnock. "A massive amount of prejudice and discrimination continues." 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.
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| Chinese troops join Hong Kong cleanup as protesters retreat Posted: 15 Nov 2019 08:04 PM PST  Chinese troops came out of the barracks in Hong Kong on Saturday — not to quell protests but to help clean up. It was a rare public appearance by the People's Liberation Army on the streets of the semi-autonomous territory, where the local government's inability to end more than five months of often violent protest has fueled speculation that Beijing could deploy its troops. The Hong Kong government said that it had not requested the military's assistance in the cleanup, describing it as a voluntary community activity.
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| UPDATE 1-Belarus threatens to pull out of Russia integration deal over subsidy row Posted: 17 Nov 2019 02:45 AM PST ![UPDATE 1-Belarus threatens to pull out of Russia integration deal over subsidy row]( "UPDATE 1-Belarus threatens to pull out of Russia integration deal over subsidy row") Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko on Sunday threatened to pull out of signing an integration deal with Russia next month if Moscow failed to resolve their dispute over energy subsidies. Russia has propped up its traditional ally with loans and subsidies to keep Belarus in its political orbit but now plans to phase these out to lessen the burden on its economy. Belarus previously said that it stands to lose hundreds of millions of dollars a year from changes to Russian tax policy and has tried to negotiate compensation.
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| Diplomat had to 'hold phone away from ear' as Donald Trump loudly asked about Joe Biden investigation Posted: 16 Nov 2019 10:45 AM PST  A US diplomat has told Congress he overheard Donald Trump on a phone call asking about getting the president of Ukraine to investigate Joe Biden. Mr Trump was speaking so loudly that the person he was talking to had to hold the phone away from their ear, allowing those nearby to hear what was being said. The call was described by David Holmes, the political counselor at the US embassy in Kyiv, in evidence given behind closed doors to the impeachment inquiry. Mr Holmes said he was having lunch with Gordon Sondland, the US ambassador to the European Union, and two others, on the terrace of a restaurant in Kyiv on July 26. It was the day after Mr Trump had talked by phone to Volodymyr Zelenskiy, the Ukrainian president, pressing him to investigate Mr Biden. A whistleblower's complaint about that call led to the impeachment inquiry. During the lunch Mr Sondland used his mobile phone to place the call to Mr Trump. Mr Holmes said: "Sondland told Trump that Zelenskiy 'loves your ass'. "I then heard President Trump ask, 'So, he's gonna do the investigation?' Ambassador Sondland replied that 'He's gonna do it,' adding that President Zelenskiy will do 'anything you ask him to.'" Describing how he could hear the telephone conversation, Mr Holmes said: "While Ambassador Sondland's phone was not on speakerphone, I could hear the president's voice through the earpiece of the phone. "The president's voice was very loud and recognisable, and Ambassador Sondland held the phone away from his ear for a period of time, presumably because of the loud volume." Mr Holmes said that, after the call, Mr Sondland said the president was in a "bad mood." He asked Mr Sondland "if it was true that the president did not 'give a s--- about Ukraine." According to Mr Holmes, Mr Sondland replied that the president cared only about "big stuff that benefits the president, like the Biden investigation." Gerry Connolly, a Democrat congressman who heard the evidence, said: "Mr. Holmes heard this conversation and recognised the president's voice loud and clear because he was so loud on the phone." The existence of the July 26 call only became known publicly on Wednesday when William Taylor, the top US diplomat in Ukraine, gave evidence to the impeachment inquiry. He said a member of his staff had brought it to his attention less than a week earlier.
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| There have been more mass shootings than days in 2019 Posted: 17 Nov 2019 12:03 AM PST  There have been more than 365 mass shootings so far in 2019
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| Leading Muslim groups to challenge India holy site court ruling Posted: 17 Nov 2019 09:25 AM PST  Two leading Muslim groups said Sunday they will file petitions in India's top court challenging its decision to award Hindus control of a bitterly disputed holy site that has sparked deadly inter-religious violence. The Supreme Court ruled on November 9 that the holy site in Ayodhya, where Hindu mobs destroyed a 460-year-old mosque in 1992, must be managed by a trust to oversee the construction of a Hindu temple. A separate piece of land in Ayodhya would be given over to a Muslim group to build a "prominent" new mosque.
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| 'He doesn't seem like the kind of kid to do this': Classmates, neighbors surprised by suspected Santa Clarita shooter's identity Posted: 16 Nov 2019 06:33 AM PST  The 16-year-old who fatally shot two students and wounded three others at Saugus High School in California was an unlikely shooter, classmates said.
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| The Leonids meteor shower will send bright green shooting stars across the sky this weekend, early next week. Here's how to see them. Posted: 15 Nov 2019 10:21 PM PST  Sometimes the Leonids treat skywatchers to meteor storms, with thousands of shooting stars each hour. They glow green as their metals ignite.
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| Disabled Woman’s Boyfriend Told Police He Lured Her to Nevada Desert and Suffocated Her Posted: 15 Nov 2019 07:58 PM PST  Bethel Park PoliceA Maryland man who may have been leading a double life has confessed to kidnapping his disabled girlfriend, luring her into the Nevada desert, tying her to a signpost and suffocating her with duct tape, police said Friday.He allegedly then pretended to be the victim on Facebook, sending her family messages to cover up her disappearance until friends reported her missing earlier this week.Jaime Rae Feden, 33, suffered from a rare congenital condition called VATER syndrome and stood just over 4 feet tall. Authorities said the Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, woman was sweet-natured and trusting.Too trusting."She was a very loving type of a person and I think she was taken advantage of by someone who was a predator," Bethel Park Police Chief Timothy O'Connor told reporters.For several years, Feden had a tumultuous relationship with John Chapman, 39, who allegedly asked her to come with him to Las Vegas in September to look at property.Once there, he convinced her to go with him to the desert for a photo shoot. According to a criminal complaint obtained by WPXI, he used zip ties to bind her to a signpost, and covered her mouth and nose with duct tape, leaving her unable to breathe.He claims he then untied her, stripped off her clothes and left her in the desert, police said.A body was found there in October and while the remains have not yet been identified, police said they bear the characteristics of Feden's medical condition.Meanwhile, Feden's friends and family were becoming increasingly concerned about her. Although an uncle was getting messages from her through Facebook, whoever was sending them was answering questions incorrectly; police say Chapman was behind them.On Thursday, police put out a missing-persons bulletin for Feden. When Chapman showed up at her home, police began questioning him—and he allegedly confessed.According to WTAE, police found Feden's cellphone, along with the duct tape and zip ties, inside the house.Chapman's stepmother told WPXI that the family was stunned by the allegations, in part because he appeared to be happily married to a woman in Maryland.She said relatives knew that he traveled to Las Vegas this fall, but he said it was for a business trip. They also knew of Feden, but said they thought she was just a close friend."What a horribly sad tragedy," the stepmom, Pamela Chapman, told the TV station. "It doesn't seem like it's real."As a handcuffed Chapman was marched past reporters on Friday, he declined to answer shouted questions. It was unclear if he has retained an attorney.O'Connor said Chapman has not been charged with homicide—and that if he is, those charges would come from Nevada, where the slaying allegedly took place. So far, he is facing several other charges, including kidnapping. 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.
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| Why Did a Russian Soldier Shoot Eight of His Comrades in Siberia? Posted: 16 Nov 2019 09:30 PM PST  Could it have been a hazing issue? Something more?
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| Lebanon’s outgoing PM blasts president’s party over delays Posted: 17 Nov 2019 05:53 AM PST  Lebanon's political crisis worsened Sunday with the outgoing prime minister harshly criticizing the party of the country's president, blaming it for weeks of delay in forming a new Cabinet amid ongoing anti-government protests. A statement released by Saad Hariri's office called the policies of President Michel Aoun's party "irresponsible regarding that national crisis that they country is passing through." Aoun has yet to call for consultations with parliamentary blocs' leaders to name a new premier, nearly three weeks after Hariri resigned amid nationwide protests. Some major factions in Lebanon's sectarian political system want to keep Hariri in the new government.
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| Epstein jail guards were offered plea deal: Sources Posted: 16 Nov 2019 07:43 AM PST  Federal prosecutors offered a plea deal to two correctional officers responsible for guarding Jeffrey Epstein on the night that he died, but the officers have declined the offer, sources told the Associated Press.
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| UPDATE 2-HP says open to exploring bid for Xerox Posted: 17 Nov 2019 12:00 PM PST ![UPDATE 2-HP says open to exploring bid for Xerox]( "UPDATE 2-HP says open to exploring bid for Xerox") HP Inc said on Sunday it was open to exploring a bid for U.S. printer maker Xerox Corp after rebuffing a $33.5 billion cash-and-stock acquisition offer from the latter as "significantly" undervaluing the personal computer maker. Xerox made the offer for HP, a company more than three times its size, on Nov. 5, after it resolved a dispute with its joint venture partner Fujifilm Holdings Corp that represented billions of dollars in potential liabilities. Responding to Xerox's offer on Sunday, HP said in a statement that it would saddle the combined company with "outsized debt" and was not in the best interest of its shareholders.
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| ‘I’m a weird one’: Tulsi Gabbard draws unusual mix of fans on the road Posted: 15 Nov 2019 11:00 PM PST  The Hawaii congresswoman is coming off the back of a mild political storm after being linked to Russia as a plant – but who's coming out to support her?Tulsi Gabbard greets supporters in Concord, New Hampshire, on 5 November. Photograph: Mike Segar/ReutersTulsi Gabbard arrived late for her own campaign event at the Salt Hill Pub in Lebanon, New Hampshire. It meant she had to weave her way through the crowd of 200 people – her biggest audience yet in the state.It gave Gabbard an opportunity to see the eclectic mix of supporters her curious 2020 presidential campaign has managed to assemble: a mostly male grab-bag of veterans, anti-war activists, ex-Bernie Sanders supporters, ex-Jill Stein votersand at least one Donald Trump fan.There was a bearded man wearing a multicolored wool hat, who was carrying a big stick that he kept banging on the floor. An ex-navy seaman was there, bantering with Gabbard about her service in the army.A longtime Sanders-supporting carpenter pushed his way to the front as Gabbard passed, and declared that on shaking the candidate's hand he had sensed "a real force of being". At the back of the crowd an old man waved a sign that said: "Free Julian Assange. Stop the torture."It was an interesting time to attend a Gabbard event. The 39-year-old congresswoman, currently in her third term in the House, is coming off the back of a mild political storm after she was linked with being a Russian plant in the Democratic race, and many of her supporters were convinced of a Democratic-party-cum-mainstream-media conspiracy to depress her chances."Aloha!" Gabbard began – she is from Hawaii, something she mentions a lot – while her staff handed out campaign leaflets which had a picture of Gabbard and the words "A soldier's heart". (Gabbard is a major in the national guard and has served tours of Kuwait and Iraq. She mentions that a lot, too.)Wearing her customary white blazer and standing on a wooden bench, Gabbard spoke slowly and deliberately. Gabbard believes that the US has spent too much money meddling in other country's affairs, and is a fervent anti-interventionist. Her belief in scaling back the military shapes her politics and is the basis of her campaign pitch.Her pitch was well-received.Tulsi Gabbard supporters hold campaign signs in Columbia, South Carolina, on 27 October. Photograph: Logan Cyrus/Bloomberg via Getty Images"I like the fact that she is active in the military, but also not a warmonger," said Emily Cummings, who lives in Vermont, across the New Hampshire border.Cummings, 31, is a big Sanders supporter, but if Gabbard is still in the race by the time the primary comes round – Vermont votes in March, three weeks after New Hampshire's 11 February primary vote for the Democratic party's White House nominee, she might plump for the congresswoman."The fact that she wants to reallocate money from the military back to our country, which is really, really important to me – we spend a ridiculous amount of money on weapons – that is one of the biggest reasons I support her, is taking money away from that machine," Cummings said.Gabbard says that the money saved by changing the US military's role could be used to fund better healthcare (Gabbard believes in universal healthcare, but stops short of banning private healthcare, like some of her rivals), and tackling the climate crisis (Gabbard was an early supporter of the Green New Deal championed by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and other progressives, but has since backed away from it).That appealed to Kevin Dunwoody – the man who had felt a distinct surge of energy when he clasped Gabbard's hand."We need a change in a big way. But I don't know whether she can get the stars aligned enough to make it happen," Dunwoody said. He supported Sanders in the Democratic primary, but voted for the Green party candidate, Jill Stein, in 2016."I couldn't bring myself to vote for Hillary [Clinton]," Dunwoody said. This time he will vote for Gabbard."She's one of the few that makes sense. But there's no media coverage. She got some press coverage when Hillary said she was a spy, but the game is so fixed."It was a common complaint on Saturday that the media has not given enough attention to Gabbard's campaign. But given her current position in the race – she's polling ninth nationally, with 1% support – a share of the vote that has barely moved in six months – it is difficult to argue she deserves to be treated like a frontrunner.Tulsi Gabbard waves to supporters in North Charleston, South Carolina, on 5 October. Photograph: Brian Blanco/Getty ImagesIn any case, Gabbard has experienced a surge in press coverage recently. As Dunwoody said, the boost came from a strange source: a number of media organizations reported that Clinton had accused Gabbard of being groomed by Russia ahead of 2020.Clinton did not actually say that – in an interview on the Campaign HQ podcast Clinton said Gabbard was being groomed by Republicans for a potential third-party run – and Gabbard's campaign presumably knows this, but she has continued to fundraise on the back of the nonexistent accusation.Gabbard has repeatedly denied she will run as an independent, but rumors persist. What is clear, however, is that of the Democratic candidates, Gabbard certainly has an unusual coalition. FiveThirtyEight found that her base is "overwhelmingly male", mostly white and unusually conservative. Gabbard, seemingly, has set out to cultivate this, making regular appearances on Fox News and even giving an exclusive interview to the rightwing online news organization Breitbart.The Guardian didn't meet any "alt-right" Gabbard fans, but there were certainly some conservative-leaning supporters among the crowd."I'm a weird one because I'm not rabid anti-Trump," said Tom Gill, a 57-year-old consultant from Albany, New Hampshire. Gill didn't vote for Trump in 2016, but is considering doing so in 2020."He's done some good stuff and he's getting slammed in the media for the most part. And Tulsi's getting slammed in the media also."Gill listed prison reform, "calming relations with Korea" and pulling out of Syria as some of Trump's achievements."Actually he's very much like Tulsi," Gill said of Trump. "Stop the wars, stop wasting lives, stop wasting money. It's the root of many of the problems."A motorcyclist passes a banner supporting Tulsi Gabbard outside a home in Des Moines, Iowa, on 25 October. Photograph: Daniel Acker/The Washington Post via Getty ImagesThere is no suggestion Gabbard's campaign is working with Russia. But there is something a little strange going on with Russia's treatment of her candidacy.In October an analysis by the Alliance for Securing Democracy found that Gabbard was receiving unusual exposure from the Kremlin-backed RT news organization, while, according to the New York Times, Twitter hashtags favoring Gabbard have been amplified by fake accounts.Gabbard is presumably aware of this – which made her response particularly intriguing when one attendee, a young boy called Cory, asked her what she would do to "make sure Russia does not interfere in our elections"."The greatest threat to our democracy right now is the fact that we have 14 states in our country that have no paper ballots, they have no record of the votes that are cast, due to electronic systems," Gabbard said."It wouldn't take much for a bad actor, whether it be another country or some individual rogue person, to go and hack into these systems, manipulate the number of votes that are cast for one candidate or another and completely change the outcome of the election."Russia interfered in the 2016 Clinton-Trump election in numerous ways, Robert Mueller's investigation found. Russia spent millions of dollars creating fake social media accounts on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, using the accounts to post anti-Clinton and pro-Trump content. Russia used similar tactics to try to suppress voting among minority groups.What Russia did not do is hack into polling booths or electoral rolls. Still, if people found Gabbard's answer curious, no one said anything. After the event, her supporters, like 39-year-old Prince Agarwal – a former Sanders supporter – only wanted to focus on the positives."Bernie supporters, we like courage. And honestly, Tulsi has showed a lot of courage," Agarwal said. He said the criticism of Gabbard and the accusation of Russia links only proved that her campaign was gaining strength. It's not a claim backed up by polling, but it's one many at Gabbard's rally believed."They're trying to trash her," Agarwal said."The better we do, the more afraid they become."
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| Two planes in 'minor' collision at Frankfurt airport Posted: 16 Nov 2019 04:42 PM PST  An Air Namibia plane collided with a Korean Air jet after landing at Frankfurt airport on Saturday evening, officials said, adding that no one was injured. Both aircraft were damaged in what Air Namibia on Sunday called "a minor accident". A spokeswoman for Frankfurt airport said the incident happened at around 6:00 pm (1700 GMT) on Saturday.
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| Private zoo owner in Crimea pleads for public to take 30 of his bears so he won't have to euthanise them Posted: 17 Nov 2019 06:21 AM PST  The owner of a struggling safari park in Crimea is giving more than thirty bears to save them from euthanasia. Oleg Zubkov, the owner of the Taigan Lion Park near Simferopol, said he is seeking new homes for the animals because he can no longer afford to feed them. It comes after inspectors ordered the safari park, which is famous for its large collection of lions, found violations of veterinary regulations and ordered it closed for three months. Speaking on his Youtube channel, "the Lion Man," Mr Zubkov said he could not afford to feed and look after the animals without the revenue from ticket sales and was left with no choice but to find them new homes or put them down. "Twelve lions and tigers will be moved to other zoos shortly, and a final decision will be made about… shooting 30 bears from the park," he says in the video. "I've forced into these extreme measures because there are no other options left," he said. Oleg Zubkov with BBC television presenter Simon Reeve Credit: Jonathan Young Mr Zubkov said he had already fed several dozen of his Vietnamese pigs to the lions and tigers in a bid to cut costs, and that he had informed regional veterinary authorities about his decision to cull his bears. Valery Ivanov, the head of the state veterinary committee in Crimea, told Interfax no documents related to the killing of animals had been received. The Taigan Safari Park, which is home to 2,500 animals, was opened in 2012. Mr Zubkov also runs a second zoo, called Skazka, in Yalta. Both have been the subject of numerous complaints about the conditions in which the animals are kept, according to local officials. Last year Taigan was at the centre of a small scandal after one of the lions bit a 46 year old female tourist posing for photographs with the animal. Mr Zubkov's career has not passed without controversy Credit: Media Drum World / Alamy Stock Photo Mr Zubkov insists that his bears live in better conditions than in many other zoos in Russia, and that the biting incident was the only one of its kind. He has complained that authorities have been trying to shut him down ever since Russia annexed the Black Sea peninsular after Vladimir Putin annexed it from Ukraine in 2014. Mr Zubkov was an enthusiastic supporter the annexation at the time, and even featured in Russian television reports promising that his "fighting lions" would maintain order during the controversial referendum on "reunification" with Russia. In the months afterwards he made an unsuccessful bid to enter local politics and even tried to call Vladimir Putin during his annual phone-in show to invite him to the safari park. But by 2015 he had begun to complain that he and his zoo had become the target of a campaign of harassment by local officials apparently determined to put him out of business.
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| Hong Kong police storm university held by protesters Posted: 17 Nov 2019 04:11 PM PST  Police breached a Hong Kong university campus held by protesters early Monday after an all-night siege that included firing repeated barrages of tear gas and water cannons. Anti-government protesters have barricaded themselves inside Hong Kong Polytechnic University for days. Fiery explosions could be seen as protesters responded with gasoline bombs.
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| Report: Prosecutor used daughter as bait to catch molester Posted: 17 Nov 2019 11:39 AM PST  A Northern California prosecutor used his 13-year-old daughter to lure a man back to the spot where she said he had molested her, so the man's incriminating actions could be recorded on video, according to a newspaper report Sunday. The suspect has been arrested but the Santa Clara County prosecutor is under scrutiny for possibly endangering his child, the Mercury News reported, citing police reports and sources familiar with the case. Ali Mohammad Lajmiri, 76, of San Jose is charged with lewd and lascivious acts with a child under 14 and false imprisonment.
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| Russia says it will return captured naval ships to Ukraine on Monday Posted: 17 Nov 2019 01:10 AM PST  Russia will return three captured naval ships to Ukraine on Monday and is moving them to a handover location agreed with Kiev, Crimea's border guard service was cited as saying by Russian news agencies on Sunday. A Reuters reporter in Crimea, which Russian annexed from Ukraine in 2014, earlier on Sunday saw coastguard boats pulling the three vessels through the Kerch Strait toward the Black Sea where they could potentially be handed over to Ukraine. Ukraine has been pushing for their return as a good will gesture from Moscow ahead of a possible four-way peace summit on eastern Ukraine next month.
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| Trump tells Kim Jong Un that Joe Biden is 'somewhat better' than a 'rabid dog' Posted: 17 Nov 2019 09:01 AM PST  "Mr. Chairman, Joe Biden may be Sleepy and Very Slow, but he is not a 'rabid dog,'" the president tweeted in a tepid defense Biden.
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