WorldReutersKenyan authorities investigate local role in Nairobi attack
Officials have released few details about the five-man assault team that carried out Tuesday's siege at the dusitD2 hotel complex, an attack that killed 21 people and was claimed by al Shabaab, a Somalia-based al Qaeda affiliate. How did he get to where he is?" said a private security official in Kenya, who asked not to be identified for operational reasons. "If al Shabaab can replicate this model, then there is a fundamental problem." All five assailants were killed in Tuesday's attack, the country's president said in a televised address the next morning.
NewsUSA TODAYAirlines already canceling flights into Monday from Winter Storm Harper
Flight headaches were on the rise Saturday as a potent winter storm moved from the Midwest into the Northeast. Airline cancellations mounted, with some flights on Monday already off the books. For Saturday, more than 2,125 flights had been canceled nationwide and another 2,570 delayed as of 8:25 p.m. ET, according to flight-tracking service FlightAware.
- PoliticsYahoo News
Donald Trump's week of living dangerously
A Quinnipiac University poll taken right at the time Trump visited the Texas border found that 59 percent of Americans considered a wall a bad use of taxpayer money, while just 40 percent agreed with the president. While there was no shortage of polls concluding that more Americans blamed Trump than Congressional Democrats for the shutdown, the data that might have concerned him more showed that he was losing support from his vaunted political base. An NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll, for instance, showed Trump's support among suburban white men had dropped 18 points, his approval rating among white evangelicals was down 13 points, and there was an overall dip among all Republicans of 10 points.
WorldAssociated PressMerkel's Bavarian allies elect new head, ushering in new era
Chancellor Angela Merkel's Bavarian allies elected a new leader Saturday, a change that offers Germany's center-right a chance to move past their persistent bickering over recent years. The 52-year-old Markus Soeder was elected unopposed in Munich with more than 87 percent of the votes to lead the Christian Social Union. The CSU is the Bavaria-only sister party to Merkel's Christian Democratic Union, an independent-minded and sometimes-awkward ally despite the fact that they have a joint group in Germany's national parliament.
- NewsUSA TODAY
Aeromexico ad campaign trolls anti-Mexican sentiment in US with DNA discounts
The two-minute commercial, which features visuals of beautiful Mexican locations, could be seen as a trolling trifecta, tweaking anti-Mexican sentiment in the U.S. and, without mentioning him, President Donald Trump and his anti-illegal immigration comments aimed at countries south of the U.S. border. The slogan for the "DNA Discounts" campaign, "There are no borders within us," can be read as a swipe at Trump, whose disagreement with Congressional Democrats over money for a wall has led to a protracted partial-government shutdown. The commercial for the Mexican airline opens by saying, "Mexico's first destination is America," showing a fleet of jetliners flying north, before adding, "But America's first destination is not Mexico," as one lone plane flies in the opposite direction.
- BusinessBloomberg
Singapore Plans to Buy F-35 Fighter Jets to Replace F-16 Fleet
Singapore has identified Lockheed Martin Corp. s F-35 Joint Strike Fighter as the most suitable replacement for its fleet of F-16 fighter jets and plans to buy a small number for evaluation, the Ministry of Defense said in a statement on Friday. The Air Force's F-16s that were in service since 1998 will retire soon after 2030, Defense Minister Ng Eng Hen said in a Facebook post the same day.
- NewsThe Telegraph
First picture: Prince Philip car crash victim 'not getting enough support from Palace'
A mother of two whose wrist was broken when the car she was in collided with Prince Philip's Land Rover has told friends she is “unhappy” with the way Buckingham Palace has handled the accident. The Telegraph can reveal that Emma Fairweather, 45, was the passenger in the Kia car last Thursday when it struck the Duke of Edinburgh's Land Rover near the Queen's Sandringham estate in Norfolk. Ms Fairweather has since complained of feeling “overwhelmed” by the experience of being involved, firstly, in a crash and, secondly, in one involving the husband of the monarch.
- CelebrityAOL.com
Man makes terrifying jump from 11th story cruise ship balcony
Royal Caribbean has banned a group of thrill seekers after one of the men jumped off the cruise ship's high deck. The video, which has been gaining immense traction on social media, shows Nick Naydev of Vancouver, Washington, thoughtlessly plunging into the waters more than 100 feet below. Though the boat was docked, the stunt, equal to jumping from an 11-story building, was incredibly dangerous.
- WorldThe Independent
US Navy chief hints aircraft carrier could be sent through Taiwan Strait, despite threat of new Chinese missiles
The US Navy could still send an aircraft carrier through the Taiwan Strait in spite of Chinese military technology advances which pose a greater threat to American warships than ever before, the US chief of naval operations has said. Such an operation would inevitably increase the risk of military conflict between the world's largest superpowers, which are currently locked in an escalating trade war and ongoing disputes over territorial claims in the South China Sea. Washington sent ships through the strategic waterway, which separates Taiwan from the Chinese mainland, three times last year, but has not dispatched a carrier in more than 10 years.
WorldReutersAustralian rallies demand safe streets for women after Israeli student murder
Several thousand people marched through major Australia cities on Sunday calling for safety for women after an Israeli exchange student was murdered in Melbourne. The marches, part of the Women's March rallies held around the world in support of women's rights, gathered some 3,000 people in Sydney, who in their chants demanded safe streets for women in Australian cities. Aiia Maasarwe, 21, was killed when walking home after a night out with friends in Melbourne, Australia's second-largest city, earlier this week.
WorldAFPIsrael demolishes home of accused Palestinian killer
Israeli forces demolished the West Bank home on Friday of a Palestinian accused of the fatal September stabbing of an Israeli-American. Residents of the town of Yata, near the flashpoint city of Hebron, said that troops arrived at the home of Khalil Jabareen and were met by stone-throwing Palestinians. The Israeli army said the structure destroyed was an apartment where Jabareen lived.
- NewsYahoo News
Non-zero tolerance: DHS is still separating families at the border
In the five months since President Trump issued an executive order indefinitely suspending his administration's zero-tolerance family separation policy, immigration officials have continued to separate immigrant children and parents — at steadily increasing rates. According to a report released Thursday by the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), between July 1 and Nov. 7 last year, at least 118 immigrant children were separated from parents or adult guardians by officials at the border and referred to the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR), the department in HHS that is responsible for the care of unaccompanied immigrant children in U.S. custody. The key takeaway of the report, which prompted immediate calls for accountability from immigration advocates and some Democratic lawmakers, was that the total number of immigrant families separated by border officials under the Trump administration is unknown and likely significantly larger than what had previously been announced.
- U.S.KABC – Los Angeles
Calabasas campground murder: Family of Tristan Beaudette file $90M claim over his death
The family of the man shot and killed while camping with his daughters at Malibu Creek State Park has filed a $90 million claim over his death.
NewsAssociated PressWeekend winter storm sweeping from Midwest to New England
A winter storm started sweeping across the Midwest on Friday, leading to slick roads and runways, as it inched its way toward New England, where it was forecast to dump up to 2 feet (0.61 meters) of snow. The National Weather Service issued winter storm warnings from the Dakotas, across the Great Lakes states and into New England. The weather service at one point warned that conditions in New England over the weekend "could approach blizzard criteria." Ice was also a possibility in some areas in the storm's path.
- NewsUSA TODAY
Students appear to perform Nazi salute in 'sickening' photo, superintendent says
INDIANAPOLIS – High school officials in Indiana are investigating after a picture posted on social media appeared to show students using a Nazi salute. The photo, which was taken at Zionsville Community High School and posted to Instagram, was confirmed in an email sent to parents, staff and faculty Thursday night. In the email, Zionsville Superintendent Scott Robison said a concerned student sent the photo to a teacher, who sent it to Robison.
- BusinessCar and Driver
Tesla Is Cutting 3150 Jobs to Increase Model 3 Production
In an email sent to Tesla employees that was later published on its website, CEO Elon Musk announced that approximately 7% of Tesla's full-time employees will be let go. The cuts will hopefully help Tesla's quest to increase Model 3 production and finally introduce the $35,000 Standard Range variant that has been talked about since the Model 3's inception. In the email, Musk states "we unfortunately have no choice but to reduce full-time employee headcount," adding that "there isn't any other way" to achieve Tesla's goals.
- EntertainmentTime
Sophie Turner Says Sansa Stark's Hair Is Full of Game of Thrones Secrets
Sophie Turner's lips may be sealed when it comes to the plot of season 8 of Game of Thrones, but it turns out her hair could be the real spoiler culprit. In an interview with InStyle that was published on Wednesday, Turner explained how Sansa Stark's hair has mirrored her character development throughout Game of Thrones. “The first few episodes she was a Northerner in Winterfell and took after her mother with a simple braid down the back,” she said.
NewsUSA TODAYTSA officers open up about what the government shutdown is doing to their families
Standing in the security line at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport in Arizona, passengers likely haven't felt the impact of the partial shutdown of the federal government. Employees of the Transportation Security Administration are working without pay, but wait times have consistently been 5-10 minutes at most checkpoints. Like TSA officers elsewhere in the country, these officers missed their first paycheck on Jan. 11.
WorldReutersTrump missile defense review calls North Korea 'extraordinary threat'
President Donald Trump unveiled a revamped U.S. missile defense strategy on Thursday that called North Korea an ongoing and "extraordinary threat," seven months after he declared the threat posed by Pyongyang had been eliminated. The plan, which also detailed concerns about the burgeoning capabilities of Iran, Russia and China, called for developing space-based sensors to detect incoming enemy missiles and exploring space-based weapons to shoot down missiles among other steps to shield the United States. The open acknowledgment in the Missile Defense Review of U.S. plans to counter Russian and Chinese technological advances likely will alarm those nations.
NewsAFPChicago ex-cop sentenced to nearly seven years over teen shooting
A white former Chicago police officer was sentenced to nearly seven years in prison on Friday for fatally shooting a black teenager in 2014, an incident that triggered months of protests in the city. Jason Van Dyke fired 16 bullets into 17-year-old Laquan McDonald during the confrontation, which occurred while he still a member of the force. The slaying was captured on police video that showed the knife-wielding teen appearing to walk away from officers when he was shot.
- PoliticsUSA TODAY Opinion
BuzzFeed Michael Cohen report: Will it hold up? Will it change the game for Trump and GOP?
BuzzFeed's dramatic report Thursday night, based on two unidentified federal law enforcement sources involved in the investigation, suggested prosecutors might have what they need to prove President Donald Trump directed Cohen to lie to Congress in 2017 about Trump Tower Moscow negotiations during the 2016 campaign. Special counsel Robert Mueller's office took the unusual step Friday, after this column was first published, of calling the BuzzFeed report "not accurate" in its "description of specific statements to the Special Counsel's Office, and characterization of documents and testimony obtained by this office, regarding Michael Cohen's Congressional testimony."
- BusinessU.S.News & World Report
How to Get a Mortgage With Bad Credit
A bad credit score could add an extra wrinkle or two to the mortgage approval process. "While getting a mortgage with bad credit is not always easy or optimal, it's still possible under certain conditions," says Daniela Andreevska, content marketing director at Mashvisor, a real estate data analytics company. A better question might be whether you should get a mortgage with bad credit.
NewsAssociated PressResearchers come face to face with huge great white shark
Two shark researchers who came face to face with what could be one of the largest great whites ever recorded are using their encounter as an opportunity to push for legislation that would protect sharks in Hawaii. Ocean Ramsey, a shark researcher and conservationist, told The Associated Press that she encountered the 20-foot (6-meter) shark Tuesday near a dead sperm whale off Oahu. The event was documented and shared on social media by her fiancé and business partner Juan Oliphant.
- NewsThe Independent
Women's March NYC 2019: Everything you need to know about the events in New York
Thousands of demonstrators will take up the streets of the Big Apple this weekend for the third annual Women's March in New York City. The mass protest began in January 2017 on the inauguration of President Donald Trump to protest his election win, notably racist and sexist policies, and his history of alleged sexual misconduct. One of the marches, organised by the Women's March Alliance—the same organisation that spearheaded the 2017 and 2018 marches in New York—will start from the Upper West Side and into Midtown.
- BusinessCar and Driver
The New 2020 GMC Sierra HD Will Be a Reskinned Silverado HD
There's a new GMC Sierra heavy-duty pickup truck soon to crest the horizon. The Denali model pictured above has the requisite chrome-laden front grille, along with headlights with an LED accent strip similar to the light-duty Sierra's. GMC is likely to offer similar trim levels for the Sierra 2500 and 3500 models as the Sierra 1500, such as the off-road-oriented AT4 and the less well-equipped SLE and SLT models. As for the Sierra HD's dirty bits, don't expect much variation from the new Silverado HD's powertrain offerings, which include a gasoline V-8 and a turbo-diesel V-8.
