WorldAssociated PressThe Latest: Trump tweets abrupt shift on Golan Heights
President Donald Trump has abruptly declared the U.S. will recognize Israel's sovereignty over the disputed Golan Heights, a major shift in American policy that gives Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a political boost a month before what is expected to be a close election. The administration has been considering recognizing Israel's sovereignty over the strategic highlands, which Israel captured from Syria in 1967, for some time. Netanyahu had pressed the matter with visiting Secretary of State Mike Pompeo just a day earlier.
- NewsUSA TODAY
JetBlue lawsuit claims pilots drugged three crew members and raped two
Two JetBlue pilots allegedly drugged three crew members, with one pilot raping two of the women during a Puerto Rico layover, a new lawsuit claims. The lawsuit, filed by two of the crew members referred to as Jane Doe, alleges that pilot Eric Johnson, along with fellow pilot Dan Watson, passed three of their JetBlue colleagues an open beer on the beach outside the Intercontinental Hotel in San Juan, Puerto Rico, on May 9, 2018. The plaintiffs contend the beer contained a date rape drug.
- PoliticsThe Guardian
Democratic Socialists of America back Bernie: 'The best chance to beat Trump'
The DSA endorsed Sanders in 2016 and helped the leftwing candidates Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Rashida Tlaib win long-shot elections to Congress in 2018. The full list of 2020 Democratic candidates “He has the best possible chance of the Democratic field to beat Trump,” said Jeremy Gong, a member of the NPC who voted to endorse Sanders. Specifically because he has a working-class political agenda, as opposed to an elite, or moderate, or corporate-friendly agenda that is not exciting to anyone electorally – except a very small number of either Democratic party diehards or upper middle class or wealthy people.
- WorldThe Telegraph
New Zealand broadcasts Muslim call to prayer on day of mourning for mosque shooting victims
At 1.32pm, exactly a week after a gunman began shooting people at two mosques in Christchurch, the nation of New Zealand observed a two-minute silence to remember the 50 victims. Brenton Tarrant, a 28-year-old suspected white supremacist from Australia, had launched the attack to try to repel “invaders” from New Zealand, he wrote in a manifesto. Yet, the nation came together on Friday to observe the Muslim call to prayer, which was sounded around the country — including on national radio and television — before ceremonies were attended by tens of thousands of people who paid tribute to the dead and heard calls for unity.
- LifestyleArchitectural Digest
Tour the 2019 AD Apartment
New York–based designer Sasha Bikoff's “uptown girl in a downtown world” aesthetic comes to life at this year's AD Design Show
- NewsTime
'Unprecedented' Spring Flood Season to Put 200 Million People in the U.S. at Risk, NOAA Warns
Large parts of the U.S. could experience a “potentially unprecedented flood season” through May as forecasts anticipate record levels of precipitation, according to a report released Thursday. More than 200 million people in 25 states are at risk, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) warned. Much of the Midwest, including Nebraska, Minnesota and Iowa, has already be hit with historic flooding this year after the wettest winter in known history.
- U.S.WXIN - Indianapolis
`I am Not a Monster`: Indiana Teacher Accused of Injuring Student Defends Herself
A teacher at Tindley Summit Academy says she spent days in jail despite the fact that she`s innocent, and now prosecutors are declining to press charges.
- BusinessThe National Interest
Bringing the Sting: The U.S. Navy Is Getting New F/A-18E/F Super Hornets
David Axe Security, The Super Hornets would be the first new-build examples of the Block III variant of the F/A-18E/F. The Block III flies farther and carries more weapons than an older F/A-18E/F can do and also is stealthier than earlier Super Hornet models are. The U.S. Navy in mid-March 2019 awarded Chicago plane-maker Boeing a $4-billion contract to build 78 F/A-18E/F Super Hornets for the U.S. Navy. The Super Hornets would be the first new-build examples of the Block III variant of the F/A-18E/F. The Block III flies farther and carries more weapons than an older F/A-18E/F can do and also is stealthier than earlier Super Hornet models are.
WorldAFPEconomic gloom hits world stock markets
Worries about economic growth prospects hit global stock markets on Friday, causing sharp price drops on both sides of the Atlantic. In bloodletting on Wall Street, US stocks suffered their worst day since January. The closely watched "yield curve" flashed a warning sign that a recession could be looming while monthly US, French and German manufacturing indices all fell -- rattling investors who were already uneasy after this week's surprisingly weak outlook from the Federal Reserve.
WorldReutersVenezuela detains top aide to Guaido in move U.S. calls 'big mistake'
U.S. President Donald Trump's national security adviser, John Bolton, called for the immediate release of Marrero and warned that "Maduro has made another big mistake," adding that the arrest "will not go unanswered." Guaido invoked the constitution in January to assume the interim presidency after declaring Maduro's 2018 re-election a fraud. Maduro, who has overseen a dramatic collapse of the OPEC nation's economy, has called Guaido a puppet of the United States and said he should "face justice," but has not explicitly called for his arrest. Top U.S. officials have repeatedly warned Maduro not to touch Guaido and his inner circle, but it is unclear what more they can do.
- BusinessConsumer Reports
IRS Loosens Tax Penalty for Millions
In more typical tax years, most taxpayers must pay at least 90 percent of their federal taxes for a given year, or 100 percent of what they owed the year before, in order to avoid an underpayment penalty. The change comes in response to public outcry. As the tax season progressed this year, reports of taxpayer outrage at lower refunds and higher-than-expected tax bills suggested far more people than expected were caught unawares.
WorldAssociated PressTwin bombing at Afghan ceremony kills 4, including official
A twin bombing at a public ceremony in southern Afghanistan on Saturday killed at least four people, including a provincial official, and wounded more than 30, officials said. Omar Zwak, spokesman for the governor of Helmand province, said the bombings targeted a celebration of Farmer's Day in a sports stadium in the provincial capital, Lashkar Gah. Mohammad Khan Nasrat, the economic director of Helmand, was among those killed in the attack, the government said in a statement.
WorldAssociated PressThe Latest: New Zealanders to observe Muslim call to prayer
People across New Zealand will listen to the Muslim call to prayer on Friday as the nation marks one week since a gunman attacked two mosques and killed 50 people. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and thousands of other people plan to congregate in Hagley Park opposite the Al Noor mosque in Christchurch to observe the call to prayer at 1:30 p.m. Many radio and television stations plan to broadcast the event live. At least 42 people died at the Al Noor mosque and at least seven at the nearby Linwood mosque in last Friday's attack.
WorldBloombergBrexit End Likely to Be Based on a Customs Union, JPMorgan Says
The realities of the Brexit situation indicate that the U.K. is going to end up with “something that's founded on a customs union” with the European Union, according to Karen Ward, chief market strategist for Europe, Middle East and Africa at JPMorgan Asset Management. There are two realities to Brexit,” Ward said in an interview with Bloomberg Television on Thursday. One is: there is a border between northern and southern Ireland.
- NewsUSA TODAY
Firearm deaths of US school-age children at 'epidemic' levels, study says
Calling it an "epidemic," scientists in a new study Thursday announced an alarming increase in the number of firearm deaths of school-age children in the United States: 38,942 in those 5 to 18 years old from 1999 to 2017. "It is sobering that in 2017, there were 144 police officers who died in the line of duty and about 1,000 active-duty military throughout the world who died, whereas 2,462 school-age children were killed by firearms," said Charles H. Hennekens, M.D., the study lead author from Florida Atlantic University's Schmidt College of Medicine. The study lands on the same day New Zealand announced it was banning all assault rifles, high-capacity magazines and military-style semi-automatic rifles in response to the nation's deadliest massacre last week.
- WorldThe Telegraph
The fight is not over, but Daesh no longer has land to call their own
On Saturday we marked a turning point in our fight against the Daesh fanatics with the liberation of the last vestiges of land held under their brutal rule. At one point these barbaric extremists controlled territory roughly the size of the United Kingdom and had advanced to within a few miles of the gates of Baghdad. But in the last few days they have been rooted out of their last enclave along the Euphrates and their so-called caliphate destroyed.
BusinessReutersU.S. lawmaker seeks Boeing whistleblowers, some MAX 737 orders in jeopardy
American Airlines pilots were preparing to test Boeing's planned software upgrade for an anti-stall system on MAX simulators this weekend, saying they want their own safety guarantees on the software fix. The 737 MAX was Boeing's fastest selling jet before an Ethiopian Airlines crash near Addis Ababa on March 10, which followed a Lion Air crash in Indonesia on Oct. 29. Ethiopian and French investigators have pointed to "clear similarities" between the two crashes, which killed 346 people, putting pressure on Boeing and U.S. regulators to come up with an adequate fix.
NewsAFPSchool shooting survivor stricken by 'survivor's guilt' takes own life
A teenager who survived the Parkland school shooting in Florida has killed herself while struggling with survivors' guilt, local media reported Friday. Sydney Aiello, 19, was a student at Marjory Stoneman Douglas last February 14 when a former student opened fire with a semiautomatic weapon, killing 14 students and three staff members. Among the dead were two of Aiello's best friends, Meadow Pollack and Joaquin Oliver.
NewsUSA TODAY'Humiliated and ashamed': Paul Manafort, former Trump campaign chairman, sentenced to nearly 4 years in prison
The prison sentence marks the end of a stunning downfall for the longtime political operative who helped elect four Republican presidents, including Trump. Manafort, who used his illicit fortune to pay for expensive homes and suits, arrived to hear his sentence in a green jail jumpsuit emblazoned on the back with the words "Alexandria inmate." He entered a packed federal courtroom outside Washington in a wheelchair, appearing thin, his hair grayer and holding a cane. Manafort said he was "humiliated and ashamed" by his new circumstances.
- BusinessU.S.News & World Report
Strengthen Your Retirement Security in 7 Steps
Retirement security is the ability to live a comfortable retirement without the burden of financial stress. Early planning is the best way to ensure a financially secure retirement, but not everyone has the luxury of time to prepare. The financial decisions you make in the years approaching retirement will have a significant impact on your retirement security.
- WorldNational Review
May Now Open to No-Deal Brexit If Parliament Rejects Her Deal
British prime minister Theresa May, after repeatedly warning the public of the dangers associated with a so-called no-deal Brexit — in which the country leaves the European Union absent a formal agreement with the EU — is now reportedly open to that option if Parliament continues to reject the deal she has negotiated with Brussels. After announcing Wednesday that she had formally requested that the EU extend the Brexit deadline from March 29 to June 30, May came to accept the possibility that the U.K. will crash out of the body if Parliament refuses to approve the terms of her deal, The Financial Times reported. The EU convened in Brussels on Thursday to discuss May's deadline-extension request, which she was forced to resort to after parliament twice rejected the deal she negotiated with EU leaders.
- Nigel Farage on London Brexit march: Former UKIP leader hits out at People's Vote protest and claims 'we are the majority' at pro-Brexit rallyEvening Standard
- When we're hunting rats in a no-deal Brexit wasteland, you'll be glad you got some exercise on the 'Put it to the People' marchThe Independent
NewsAssociated PressThe Latest: Flood levels reached record in 3 towns
This year's round of Midwestern flooding is the worst ever at three locations in Nebraska. National Weather Service hydrologist Kevin Low said during a conference call Friday that the Missouri River reached record levels at Plattsmouth, Nebraska City and Brownville. It crested just short of a record at several other places, including St. Joseph, Missouri, where the river reached 32.02 feet (9.76 meters) on Friday, inches short of the record of 32.07 feet (9.77 meters) set during the historic 1993 flood.
NewsAssociated PressThe Latest: DA disagrees with verdict, respects process
The district attorney in Pittsburgh says he disagrees with a jury's decision to acquit a former police officer in the fatal shooting of an unarmed black teenager as he ran from a car involved just minutes earlier in a drive-by shooting. A jury deliberated fewer than four hours Friday before clearing ex-East Pittsburgh Officer Michael Rosfeld of homicide in the shooting of Antwon Rose II last year. Rosfeld's lawyer called him "a good man." During the trial he said the officer feared for his life and had to make a split-second decision.
PoliticsReutersWhy an unbuilt Moscow Trump tower caught Mueller's attention
Further information has come from Michael Cohen, Trump's former personal lawyer who was instrumental in the negotiations, in congressional testimony and in his guilty plea to a charge of lying to Congress about the project. Mueller's team said in a December 2018 court filing that "the Moscow Project was a lucrative business opportunity that sought, and likely required, the assistance of the Russian government. If the project was completed, the Company (the Trump Organization) could have received hundreds of millions of dollars from Russian sources in licensing fees and other revenues." The project is significant because it shows Trump was chasing a lucrative business deal in Russia at the same time that President Vladimir Putin's government, according to U.S. intelligence agencies, was conducting a hacking and propaganda campaign to boost his candidacy.
