Judge Medary appointed to state-wide Judicial Council

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    In Iraq, two decades of back-to-back conflicts have left ancient Christian communities that were once a vibrant and integral part of the landscape scattered and in ruins. Iraq was estimated to have nearly 1.5 million Christians before the 2003 U.S.-led invasion that toppled dictator Saddam Hussein. Now, church officials estimate only a few hundred thousand, or even less, remain within Iraq's borders.

  • China says will deter Taiwan independence but seek peaceful ties

    China will resolutely deter any separatist activity seeking Taiwan's independence but is committed to promoting the peaceful growth of relations across the Taiwan Strait and China's "reunification", Premier Li Keqiang said on Friday. China, which claims democratic Taiwan as its own territory, has increased its military activity near the island in recent months, responding to what it calls "collusion" between Taipei and Washington, Taiwan's main international backer and arms supplier.

  • Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett delivers 1st opinion

    Justice Amy Coney Barrett delivered her first Supreme Court majority opinion Thursday, ruling against an environmental group that had sought access to government records. President Donald Trump's third nominee wrote for a 7-2 court that certain draft documents do not have to be disclosed under the federal Freedom of Information Act. The case was the first one Barrett heard after joining the court in late October, and it took four months for the 11-page opinion to be released.

  • Italy blocks export of AstraZeneca vaccine to Australia as tensions rise over jab access

    Italy became the first country to impose an EU export ban on coronavirus vaccines on Thursday after blocking a shipment of 250,000 AstraZeneca jabs to Australia. Brussels introduced the export transparency regime during its row over supply shortfalls with the British-Swedish pharmaceutical company at the end of January. Under the new rules, manufacturers in the EU must ask national authorities in the country of production and the European Commission for permission to export vaccines outside the EU. EU allies including Britain, have raised concerns about the regime, which was a response to fears that vaccines bought by Brussels were being shipped elsewhere. Italy blocked the export of the vaccines and the commission did not raise any objections, the Financial Times reported. Rome notified Brussels of its decision at the end of last week. Mario Draghi, the Italian prime minister who took office in February, called for stricter export controls at an EU summit last month. He urged EU leaders to speed up vaccinations in the bloc in his first meeting of the bloc’s heads of state and government. AstraZeneca in January cut its supplies to the EU in the first quarter to 40 million doses from 90 million foreseen in the contract, and later said it would cut deliveries by another 50% in the second quarter.

  • Philippines receives its first AztraZeneca vaccines under COVAX

    The Philippines has received its first delivery of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 shots, secured through the vaccine-sharing COVAX facility, its health ministry said on Thursday. The country hopes to get a total of 4.58 million doses of AstraZeneca shots via COVAX by May, and the newly arrived 487,200 doses are the initial shipment. The first batch of AstraZeneca doses will add to the Southeast Asian country's stock of 600,0000 Sinovac vaccines that China donated, and which Manila used to launch its inoculation campaign on Monday.

  • Trump served with lawsuit accusing him of breaking ‘Ku Klux Klan’ laws on day of Capitol riot

    NAACP accuses Trump of disenfranchising Black voters and trying to ‘destroy democracy’

  • EU to extend COVID-19 vaccine export controls as AstraZeneca shipment blocked: sources

    The European Union is planning to extend its export authorisation scheme for COVID-19 vaccines to the end of June, two EU sources told Reuters on Thursday, as a shipment of AstraZeneca shots from the EU to Australia was blocked. Extending controls could reignite tensions with countries who rely on shots made in the EU. Under the scheme, companies must get an authorisation before exporting COVID-19 shots, and may have export requests denied if they do not respect their supply commitments with the EU.

  • Getting a 'COVID arm' rash after the Moderna vaccine might be itchy, but it's no big deal

    Some people have reported a red, raised rash that shows up days to a week after getting the Moderna shot and goes away quickly.

  • It is hard to overstate just how unusual Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's media war with Buckingham Palace is

    A series of extraordinary confrontations have seen the Queen's household accused of a smear capaign and Markle accused of bullying.

  • IG faults Elaine Chao at Transportation over ethics concerns

    The Transportation Department’s watchdog asked the Justice Department to criminally investigate Elaine Chao late last year over concerns that she misused her office when she was transportation secretary under President Donald Trump but was rebuffed, according to a report released Wednesday. The report said the department’s inspector general found that Chao used her staff and office for personal tasks and to promote a shipping business owned by Chao’s father and sisters, in an apparent violation of federal ethics rules. Chao, the wife of Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, stepped down from her job early this year in the last weeks of the Trump administration, citing her disapproval over the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol by Trump’s supporters.

  • Boris Johnson fails to replace adviser on ministerial standards amid growing cronyism allegations

    Boris Johnson has yet to appoint a successor to his adviser on ministerial standards, more than three months after the resignation of Sir Alex Allan.

  • North Korea measures to stem COVID-19 worsen abuses, hunger: U.N. expert

    Drastic measures taken by North Korea to contain coronavirus have exacerbated human rights abuses and economic hardship for its citizens, including reports of starvation, a United Nations investigator says. North Korea, which has yet to report any confirmed COVID-19 cases despite sharing a border with China, has imposed border closings, banned most international travel and severely restricted movement domestically in the past year. "The further isolation of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea with the outside world during the COVID-19 pandemic appears to exacerbate entrenched human rights violations," Tomas Ojea Quintana, U.N. special rapporteur on human rights in the country, said in a report seen by Reuters on Wednesday.

  • Jeanine Pirro Accuses Immigrants of Bringing ‘All Kinds of Diseases’ Into U.S.

    Fox NewsDuring a shouting match with Geraldo Rivera on Fox News on Thursday night, Judge Jeanine Pirro went on a tirade that was shocking in its blatant racism—even for her. “We’ve got people being released at the border right now who’ve got COVID,” Pirro screamed at Rivera, who was attempting to push back on her argument. “Wait a minute, I listened to you, you listen to me! They’ve got COVID! They’ve got all kinds of diseases! They are being released into the United States!”“Now, you’re not going to tell me that a governor is going to shut me down and not allow me to do my job and let in illegals because we’ve got a heart? Mexico ought to have a heart!”Maybe only drink half of the box of wine next time pic.twitter.com/n9IC7UCw7D— Acyn (@Acyn) March 5, 2021 The host’s comments were reminiscent of ones made by Fox News’ Tucker Carlson that set off a major firestorm and advertiser boycott in late 2018. “It’s indefensible, so nobody even tries to defend it,” Carlson said at the time of policies that would allow immigrants into the country. “Instead, our leaders demand that you shut up and accept this. We have a moral obligation to admit the world’s poor, they tell us, even if it makes our own country poor and dirtier and more divided.”A few months after that, Pirro was suspended by Fox News for questioning the patriotism of Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN). “Is her adherence to this Islamic doctrine indicative of her adherence to Shariah law, which in itself is antithetical to the United States Constitution?” Pirro asked on her Saturday night show. After an outcry from advertisers, Fox temporarily took her off the schedule. Drunk Fox News Host Jeanine Pirro Chugs Bleach on SNL 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.

  • Scottish leader fights back in row with ex-mentor that threatens independence drive

    Scottish leader Nicola Sturgeon on Wednesday defended her handling of sexual harassment complaints against her predecessor Alex Salmond in high-stakes testimony on an issue that threatens to scupper her dream of leading Scotland to independence. Describing the feud with Salmond as "one of the most invidious political and personal situations" she had ever faced, Sturgeon denied Salmond's accusations that she had plotted against him and misled the Scottish parliament. The feud between the pair, once close friends and powerful allies in the cause of Scottish independence, has reached fever pitch in recent weeks, threatening the electoral prospects of the Scottish National Party (SNP) at a crucial time.

  • McDonald's workers in Denmark are paid $22 per hour so $15 is a 'compromise', AOC says

    McDonald's is one of many major retailers that has stopped publicly fighting against a federal $15 minimum.

  • Photos show North Korea may be trying to extract plutonium

    North Korea may be trying to extract plutonium to make more nuclear weapons at its main atomic complex, recent satellite photos indicated, weeks after leader Kim Jong Un vowed to expand his nuclear arsenal. The 38 North website, which specializes in North Korea studies, cited the imagery as indicating that a coal-fired steam plant at the North’s Yongbyon nuclear complex is in operation after about a two-year hiatus. This suggests “preparations for spent fuel reprocessing could be underway to extract plutonium needed for North Korea’s nuclear weapon,” the website said Wednesday.

  • Alicia Vikander ate 1,900 calories a day on the keto diet to lose weight for 'Tomb Raider'

    Alicia Vikander followed the keto diet because she was traveling so was unable to track her meals, and ate 1,900 calories a day to lose fat.

  • U.S. blacklists key Myanmar military businesses

    The United States unveiled new measures on Thursday to punish Myanmar's army for its coup.The action includes blocking top military conglomerates and the ministries of defense and home affairs from certain types of trade.Sources told Reuters the U.S. has also indefinitely frozen $1 billion in funds, which Myanmar's military rulers attempted to withdraw from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.Washington is also introducing export restrictions, requiring U.S. suppliers to seek hard-to-obtain licenses to ship Myanmar's military certain items.The new measures come as the military intensifies its crackdown on peaceful protesters, who have taken to the streets almost every day since Aung San Suu Kyi's elected government was overthrown on February 1.More than 1,700 people have been arrested, including 29 journalists, and at least 54 people have been killed, according to the United Nations.President Joe Biden slapped sanctions on Myanmar last month, including the defense minister and three companies in the jade and gems sector.In a statement on Thursday, the U.S. Commerce Department said that it will not continue allowing Myanmar's military to benefit from access to many items.Advocacy group Justice For Myanmar said on Tuesday that the Ministry of Home Affairs, which commands the police, had purchased American technology that was being used for social media surveillance.The two conglomerates being targeted, Myanmar Economic Corporation and Myanmar Economic Holdings Limited, are also used by the military to control vast swathes of the country's economy, with holdings ranging from beer and cigarettes to tires, mining and real estate.But the new measures are expected to have limited impact, as the U.S. ships little to Myanmar annually, and the targeted entities are not major importers.

  • Trump advisors are telling him to drop Pence for a Black or female VP in a potential 2024 run, report says

    Two advisors specifically singled out South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem as a potential running mate in 2024.

  • Rudy Giuliani, who helped lead Trump's bogus election-fraud conspiracy theory, is being mocked after warning of the dangers of misinformation

    After spending months pushing Trump's election fraud conspiracy theory, Giuliani unexpectedly warned of the dangers of misinformation.