WorldReutersWoman who joined Islamic State cannot return to U.S., Pompeo says
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Wednesday a woman born in the United States who joined the Islamic State militant group did not qualify for U.S. citizenship and had no legal basis to return to the country. Hoda Muthana, 24, traveled to Syria over four years ago to join Islamic State, also known as ISIS. She married a succession of Islamic State fighters and went on Twitter to encourage attacks on the West.
NewsTimeThe Teen From the Lincoln Memorial Protest Is Suing the Washington Post for $250 Million
The family of a Kentucky teen who was caught up in a viral encounter with a Native American elder during a January rally has filed a defamation lawsuit against The Washington Post. The suit claims the newspaper falsely accused 16-year-old Nicholas Sandmann of racist behavior because of its “biased agenda against President Donald J. Trump. The Post “engaged in a modern-day form of McCarthyism” in its coverage of the incident, according to the lawyers, who are seeking $250 million in damages, the same amount Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos paid to acquire the paper in 2013.
WorldAFPPolish paedophile priests exposed in new report
A foundation supporting victims of paedophile priests in Poland on Thursday released a report documenting nearly 400 cases of sex abuse by clergymen in the staunchly Catholic country. The publication of the 27-page report, which activists presented to Pope Francis on Wednesday, coincided with the pontiff gathering the world's top Catholic bishops at the Vatican at a summit on tackling clerical sex abuse. Images broadcast on Polish television showed Pope Francis kissing the hand of Marek Lisinski, head of the "Be Not Afraid" foundation, as he handed over the report to the pontiff.
WorldReutersGuaido says he's trying to freeze Venezuelan accounts in Switzerland
Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido said he spoke to Switzerland's president on Wednesday to try to freeze banks accounts belonging to the tumultuous South American nation after "irregular movements" were discovered. Guaido invoked a constitutional provision to claim the presidency three weeks ago, arguing that Nicolas Maduro's reelection last year was a sham. Since then, Guaido has been trying to control Venezuelan assets overseas.
WorldAssociated PressMore than 150 IS militants handed over to Iraq from Syria
U.S.-backed Syrian forces fighting the Islamic State group handed over more than 150 Iraqi members of the group to Iraq, an Iraqi security official said Thursday, marking the biggest repatriation from Syria of captured militants so far. The official said the IS militants were handed over to the Iraqi side late Wednesday, and that they were now in a "safe place" under investigation. The transfer comes as the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces is involved in a standoff over the final sliver of land held by IS in eastern Syria, close to the Iraqi border.
- WorldBloomberg
With Top Investor in Jail, Putin Hits at Business Climate
Russian President Vladimir Putin said honest business people shouldn't have to live under “constant fear of criminal prosecution,” days after the arrest of one of the country's top foreign investors. Echoing previous exhortations to officials and law-enforcement to stop harassing business, which have produced few results, Putin said Wednesday in his annual state-of-the-nation address that “detention is often extended without good reason” and almost half of cases “don't even make it to court. But he didn't mention Baring Vostok Capital Partners Founder Michael Calvey, the American private equity investor who's in pre-trial detention as the latest prominent business figure to face prosecution.
- BusinessUSA TODAY
Johnson & Johnson stock price falls after federal subpoena on alleged asbestos in baby powder
The Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission are investigating Johnson & Johnson over concerns the company's baby powder may have contained asbestos. The agencies subpoenaed the health care product maker in the wake of several jury awards to plaintiffs who claimed the company's talc products were tainted with asbestos and caused their cancers. The agencies seek documents about those matters and other suits Johnson & Johnson faces filed by shareholders and pension holders over the situation.
- BusinessThe National Interest
Meet the 'New' F-21 Fighter: An F-16 On Steroids (With F-22 and F-35 DNA)?
In fact, the F-21 is an F-16 that Lockheed has upgraded with new cockpit displays, conformal fuel tanks, a larger airframe spine that can accommodate additional electronics, fittings for towed radar decoys, a new infrared sensor and a refueling probe that's compatible with India's Russian-made aerial tankers.
CelebrityAssociated PressObama joined by Curry to tell minority boys 'you matter'
Former President Barack Obama and Golden State Warriors superstar Stephen Curry told a roomful of minority boys on Tuesday that they matter and urged them to make the world a better place. Obama was in Oakland, California, to mark the fifth anniversary of My Brother's Keeper, an initiative he launched after the 2012 shooting death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin. The initiative was a call to communities to close opportunity gaps for minority boys, especially African-American, Latino and Native American boys, Obama said to roughly 100 boys attending the alliance's first national gathering.
PoliticsYahoo NewsTrump apparently not familiar with his administration's push for global decriminalization of homosexuality
President Trump reacted with surprise when asked Wednesday about reports that his administration was making a global push to decriminalize homosexuality. In an Oval Office exchange with reporters, Trump was asked about the plan, which was first reported by NBC News on Tuesday. “Mr. President, on your push to decriminalize homosexuality, are you going to do that?
NewsAFPCanada looks to reunite Syrian family after fire claims seven kids
Canada is looking to quickly bring over siblings of a Syrian refugee distraught over the loss of her seven children in a Halifax house fire, the prime minister said Thursday. "The immigration minister is seized with this particular case," Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said when asked if Ottawa would fast-track the immigration or asylum process to bring the woman's brothers to Canada in order to provide her with family support. The family was among tens of thousands of Syrian refugees welcomed by Canada over the past four years.
WorldReutersAbuse victims demand to see pope, call for bishops to be fired
Victims of sexual abuse by Catholic clergy demanded on Wednesday to meet Pope Francis to press their call for the Church to apply a zero tolerance policy including the dismissal of bishops who covered up such offences. The 12 victims met with five Vatican officials a day before the start of an unprecedented conference on clerical abuse that aims to guide senior bishops on how best to tackle a problem that has decimated the Church's credibility. All the survivors of abuse who took part in the meeting, which lasted more than two hours, said they were disappointed the pope did not attend, even though he was not scheduled to be there.
- WorldReuters
Britain, EU closer to possible agreement on Brexit: EU diplomats
The European Union and Britain are moving towards a separate legal statement in which the bloc would again stress the temporary nature of the so-called Brexit backstop for the Irish border, diplomats in Brussels said. They spoke of a "parallel declaration" or "interpretative instrument" on the backstop, a day after British Prime Minister Theresa May and the head of the European Union's executive, Jean-Claude Juncker, met in Brussels to seek a way out of the Brexit deadlock. The backstop is an insurance policy designed to avoid border controls between EU member Ireland and British-ruled Northern Ireland after Brexit.
- LifestyleArchitectural Digest
20 Affordable Indoor Planters We Love
Instant upgrades for your home's green scheme
- U.S.KDVR - Denver
Colorado Man Fatally Beat Fiancee with Bat on Thanksgiving, Officer Testifies
Kelsey Berreth was beat to death with a baseball bat at the hands of her fiance after he failed to persuade a woman he was having an affair with to commit the killing, investigators said Tuesday.
- WorldBloomberg
May Suffers First Brexit Defections as Three Tories Quit
Follow @Brexit, sign up to our Brexit Bulletin, and tell us your Brexit story. Prime Minister Theresa May was hit by three high-profile defections from her Conservative Party on Wednesday as Brexit cracks open the mold of mainstream British politics. Anna Soubry, Sarah Wollaston, and Heidi Allen will now sit alongside the eight former Labour politicians who quit their party to form the new “Independent Group” in Parliament earlier this week.
- BusinessUSA TODAY
Southwest apologizes to travelers for spike in cancellations and delays, blames union
Southwest Airlines, alarmed by a spike in flight cancellations and delays in the past several days due to reported maintenance issues, has taken the unusual step of publicly apologizing to customers and blaming the mess on its mechanics' union. In a statement late Tuesday, Southwest Chief Operating Officer Mike Van de Ven said the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association, which has been in contract talks with Southwest since 2012, has a history of work disruptions and that Southwest will be investigating the "current disruption and exploring all possible remedies.'' He noted that Southwest also has two outstanding lawsuits against the AMFA. "We apologize to our customers who have been inconvenienced by this disruption,'' Van de Ven said.
- NewsAssociated Press
Driver hurt by air bag shrapnel as investigation drags on
Nearly four years ago, the U.S. government's highway safety agency began investigating air bag inflators made by ARC Automotive of Tennessee when two people were hit by flying shrapnel after crashes. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimated that 8 million Fiat Chrysler, Hyundai, Kia and General Motors vehicles in the U.S. use the company's inflators. The investigation became more urgent in 2016 after a Canadian woman driving a Hyundai was killed by shrapnel from an ARC inflator.
- PoliticsYahoo News
Sanders campaign says it raised nearly $6 million on 1st day
Sen. Bernie Sanders's campaign for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination raised nearly $6 million in its first 24 hours, per information provided by the campaign. The independent senator from Vermont launched his campaign early Tuesday morning with an email blast, earning $5.9 million in donations from just under 225,000 people with an average donation of $27, according to a Sanders campaign release. As a comparison, Sen. Kamala Harris of California raised $1.5 million from 38,000 donors in the first 24 hours of her campaign following a January launch, her team said.
WorldAFPJapan wants frictionless UK-EU trade after Brexit: ambassador
Japan wants Britain to have frictionless trade with the European Union after Brexit, its ambassador said Thursday, insisting a damaging no-deal scenario should be avoided. Japanese companies are looking to expand their investment in Britain but are holding back due to uncertainty over Brexit, Koji Tsuruoka said during a talk in London. However, he insisted Japanese carmaker Honda's decision this week to close its plant in Britain had nothing to do with Brexit.
- NewsNational Review
Jussie Smollett Now Considered a Suspect for Allegedly Filing a False Hate-Crime Report
Embattled Empire actor Jussie Smollett is now considered a “suspect” for filing a false police report, evidence of which has been presented before a grand jury, a Chicago Police Department spokesman announced on Wednesday. Case Update: Jussie Smollett is now officially classified as a suspect in a criminal investigation by #ChicagoPolice for filing a false police report (Class 4 felony). Smollett initially told police that he was attacked outside of a Subway restaurant at around 2 a.m. on January 29 by two masked men who allegedly beat him, poured an unknown chemical on him, and placed a noose around his neck.
WorldReutersPutin, faced with ratings slump, offers Russians financial sweeteners
President Vladimir Putin offered a raft of financial sweeteners on Wednesday to hard-pressed Russians after opinion polls showed trust in him has fallen to a 13-year low and almost half the population believe the country is on the wrong track. In his annual speech to the Russian political elite, Putin set out how he planned to raise people's living standards and boost healthcare and education, promising he would find extra money to back the pledges. Among his promises: More money for pensioners, mortgage and tax relief for families, and financial incentives for women to have more children.
- BusinessU.S.News & World Report
Working While Receiving Social Security Disability
To become eligible for Social Security disability benefits, you must be unable to engage in substantial gainful activity. "It is possible to qualify for Social Security disability benefits and still work in a limited capacity," says Nick Ortiz, a board-certified Social Security disability attorney and owner of Ortiz Law Firm in Pensacola, Florida. Read on for a look at what's involved with Social Security disability benefits, as well as the rules related to working while receiving benefits.
- WorldBloomberg
France Says Internet Platforms Could Be Fined for Racist Content
Internet platforms such as Facebook and Twitter could be fined for not taking down racist or violent content fast enough under a law that France might propose later this year, Digital Minister Mounir Mahjoubi said on Thursday. President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday night told the annual meeting of France's largest Jewish organization that a law could be presented in May in response to a recent spate of anti-Semitic incidents. There will be an obligation for results: if the content is not taken down then there will be a fine, and a large fine,” Mahjoubi said on France Info radio.
- CelebrityThe Independent
Obama talks self-confidence with Steph Curry: 'If you're confident with your sexuality, you don't need 8 women twerking around you'
In a wide-ranging interview about what it means to be a man, Barack Obama said that you don't need women "twerking around you" if you are "very confident about your sexuality". During a town hall in Oakland, California as part of the former president's My Brother's Keeper programme, Mr Obama engaged in a candid conversation with Golden State Warriors basketball star Steph Curry. The two touched on a range of topics including the importance of male role models, music, and how police and minority communities interact.
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