WorldReutersIsrael-Hamas cross-border fighting renews after lull
Palestinian militants fired rockets from Gaza into Israel on Tuesday, drawing retaliatory air strikes and breaking a day-long lull in cross-border fighting between Israel and Hamas that could impact an Israeli election two weeks away. The biggest Israeli-Palestinian escalation in months, which began on Monday with the longest-range Palestinian rocket attack to cause casualties in Israel in five years, had eased after Egyptian mediation. But even if the crisis subsides, it could shadow the impending Israeli election on April 9 in which right-wing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has campaigned on a tough security platform.
- BusinessCar and Driver
The Ford Bronco Will Have a Removable Roof and Doors and Will Go on Sale in Late 2020
The new Ford Bronco SUV will come with either two or four removable doors and have a removable hardtop. The Bronco will go on sale in late 2020, according to Automotive News. According to Automotive News, which gleaned info from dealers who attended a Ford event last month where future products were shown, the Bronco will hit dealer lots in late 2020.
- NewsUSA TODAY
Father of Sandy Hook victim latest apparent suicide after deadly school shootings
The father of one of the 20 first-grade students killed in the 2012 Sandy Hook School shooting was found dead of an apparent suicide Monday, the third suicide involving someone linked to a major U.S. school shooting in little more than a week. The body of Jeremy Richman, 49, was found at Edmond Town Hall in Connecticut, where Richman had an office, Newtown police said. Richman is the father of Avielle Richman and founder of the Avielle Foundation, dedicated to preventing violence and building compassion through brain research, community engagement and education.
- PoliticsThe Independent
Mueller report: 84% of Americans want Trump findings made public, new poll says
As many as 84 per cent of Americans want Robert Mueller's report into Russian election interference and the actions of Donald Trump made public, according to a new poll. As Democrats, and some Republicans, urged the depart of justice for the entirety of the special counsel's investigation to be released, a poll found the vast majority of Americans agreed with them. The Quinnipiac poll released on Tuesday, suggested up to 84 per cent of people want the report made available.
BusinessAFPBoeing holds test flights for 737 MAX fix: sources
Boeing has flown test flights of its 737 MAX to evaluate a fix for the system targeted as a potential cause of two deadly plane crashes, two sources familiar with the matter said Tuesday. The aviation giant, which has been under fire and its flagship narrow-body planes grounded since March 13, tested the system upgrade on Monday, two days after pilots from American Airlines did simulation flights in Renton, Washington, the sources said. Boeing needs authorization from the Federal Aviation Administration before the MAX can return to service.
- WorldThe Telegraph
Children of Isil's caliphate left to toil in squalid refugee camps
“I get about 2,000 lira for putting up one tent,” he said, using the popular term here for Syrian pounds. Hamed is one of about 41,000 children in al-Hol, the largest of three sprawling camps in north eastern Syria that houses former members, children, and prisoners of the Islamic State terrorist group. The fate of the children who emerged from Isil's doomed caliphate is a matter of humanitarian urgency and critical to international security.
WorldUSA TODAYCruise ship from Norway reaches port with remaining passengers after mayday, air rescues
The Viking Sky ship airlifted more than half its 900 passengers to safety before authorities opted Sunday to allow the ship to limp into the nearby port of Molde with the aid of a towboat. "All passengers and crew are safe, and passengers will be flying home starting tonight," the cruise line said in a statement on its website Sunday. "Throughout all of this, our first priority was for the safety and well-being of our passengers and our crew.
- NewsBloomberg
Kamala Harris Offers $315 Billion Plan to Give Teachers a Raise
The California senator released her plan Tuesday after previewing it to College Democrats at a Saturday campaign event in Houston. Harris's teacher plan is the latest entry in a range of policy proposals from the large field of Democratic contenders, including plans to expand the safety net, overhaul federal elections and change the structure of government. Senator Elizabeth Warren in particular has propelled the early primary debate with policy papers on an annual tax on wealth over $50 million, investing in affordable housing and breaking up big technology companies.
NewsReutersOklahoma top court clears way for Purdue, J&J, Teva to face opioid trial
The Oklahoma Supreme Court's decision was a win for the state's attorney general, whose case is set to be the first to face trial of roughly 2,000 lawsuits nationally seeking to hold opioid manufacturers responsible for contributing to the epidemic. Oklahoma Attorney General Mike Hunter's 2017 lawsuit accuses Purdue, Johnson & Johnson & Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd of engaging in deceptive marketing that downplayed the risks of addiction associated with opioid pain drugs while overstating their benefits.
WorldAssociated PressThe Latest: Israel hits Gaza Strip targets after rocket fire
Israeli forces were continuing early Tuesday to strike targets across the Gaza Strip, including the offices of Hamas' supreme leader, in response to a surprise rocket attack from the Palestinian territory. Israel's military has bolstered its troops and rocket-defense systems in anticipation of heavy fighting with the Islamic militant group. Public bomb shelters opened and sports events and transportation were canceled in southern Israel.
WorldAssociated PressErdogan proposal to make Hagia Sophia a mosque irks Greece
The Greek government voiced opposition Monday to the suggestion from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan that Istanbul's Hagia Sophia — a Byzantine-era cathedral that now serves as a museum — could be reconverted into a mosque. In a television interview Sunday ahead of Turkey's March 31 local elections, Erdogan indicated that it was possible to "change its name from museum to Hagia Sophia Mosque." There have been increasing calls for the government to convert the symbolic structure back into a mosque, especially in the wake of reports that the gunman who killed Muslim worshippers in New Zealand left a manifesto saying the Hagia Sophia should be "free of minarets."
- NewsThe Independent
US weather: States reel from historic floods as fresh snow threatens parts of the midwest
Record floods that submerged parts of three Midwestern states have started retreating, but more inclement weather continues to threaten Montana and the Dakotas for weeks to come. High flood waters have already returned in the western Dakotas, northwest Nebraska and central and eastern Montana, along smaller rivers that feed into the Missouri. Once the weather warms up, river ice breaks up into giant chunks, which float down the river stream and can cause a jam, which in turn induces flooding, David Roth, a meteorologist with the NWS's Weather Prediction Center in College Park, Maryland, told Reuters on Monday.
- BusinessPopular Mechanics
FAA 'Tentatively' Approves Software Fix to Get the 737 Max 8 Flying Again
The worldwide grounding of Boeing's 737 Max 8 and 9 airliners has upended the aviation business, with American Airlines canceling up to 90 flights a day because of a dwindling fleet. The Federal Aviation Administration is reportedly on the cusp of approving a safety update that could make the seemingly disaster-prone aircraft viable again, The Wall Street Journal reported Sunday. The embattled manufacturer promised a software update in the immediate aftermath of the Ethiopian Airlines crash earlier this month, meant to rectify an issue with the aircraft's Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS), which tilts the plane's nose downward to avert stalling.
WorldAFPUS will not 'stand idly' on Russian role in Venezuela: Pompeo
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warned Russia Monday the United States will not "stand idly by" as Moscow inserts military personnel into Venezuela to support the regime of President Nicolas Maduro. In a phone call with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Pompeo denounced the growing Russian military reinforcements as prolonging the political crisis in the South American country. Pompeo told Lavrov "the United States and regional countries will not stand idly by as Russia exacerbates tensions in Venezuela," the State Department said in a statement.
- NewsUSA TODAY
Exclusive: Crew member recounts what happened on that stranded, storm-tossed Viking Sky cruise ship
Forced to evacuate hundreds of terrified passengers by helicopter in pitch dark. According to one of the crew members of the Viking Sky cruise ship, one of the newest ships of the vaunted luxury line, Viking Ocean Cruises, the last 48 hours on board will not soon be forgotten by any of the 1,373 passengers and crew. "Everything was broken: plates, glasses, furniture," the crew member said, describing scenes in the ship's restaurants and lounges.
- U.S.WLS – Chicago
Jussie Smollett update: Charges against 'Empire' actor dropped
Disorderly conduct charges against actor Jussie Smollett have been dropped, his attorneys and prosecutors said Tuesday.
- PoliticsBloomberg
Democrats Move On to Plan B With Mueller Finding No Collusion
Yet, even before the special counsel's 22-month probe ended, Democrats were already working under a Plan B to undermine Trump going into the 2020 presidential race, through investigations led by House committees now under their control. "We're going to move forward with our investigations of obstruction of justice, abuses of power, corruption, to defend the rule of law, which is our job," House Judiciary Chairman Jerrold Nadler said Sunday at a news conference in New York. It's a broader mandate than the special prosecutor had.
WorldReutersNorth Korean officials return to inter-Korean liaison office: South Korea
North Korea sent back its officials to an inter-Korean liaison office in the North's border city of Kaesong on Monday, reversing a decision two days ago to withdraw the officials, South Korea's Unification Ministry said. A group of four to five officials showed up at the office earlier in the morning saying they came to work "as usual," the ministry said in a statement. Though the presence of the North's head of the office was not confirmed, the two sides held a consultation and will "continue to operate the office as usual," the ministry said.
- LifestyleUSA TODAY Opinion
Barr's early letters: Today's Toon
Attorney General William Barr has a history of delivering very brief summary letters. Take a look at today's cartoon from Mike Thompson. Don't stop there.
WorldAssociated PressIS attack on US-backed fighters kills 7 in northern Syria
The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for an attack on a checkpoint of U.S.-backed forces in the northern Syrian town on Manbij that killed seven fighters on Tuesday. The attack indicates that IS can still launch deadly insurgent strikes and is far from being completely defeated, despite losing all the territory it once controlled in Iraq and Syria. Islamic State militants were blamed for several attacks in recent months in and around Manbij, which was declared liberated in 2016.
- WorldThe Telegraph
German billionaire family to donate €10m after Nazi past revealed
One of Germany's richest families has spoken of its “shame” and pledged to donate €10 million (£8.5 million) after historic ties to the Nazi regime were uncovered. The Reimann family owns major interests in brands including Krispy Kreme donuts, the Pret a Manger sandwich chain and Clearasil skincare products, and is estimated to be worth as much as €33 billion (£28 billion). It emerged at the weekend that the family business had close ties to the Nazi regime and used slave labour during the Second World War.
BusinessUSA TODAYMAX effort: Boeing tests changes to grounded planes to get them back in the air
The software believed to be linked to the catastrophic crashes of two new Boeing 737 MAX 8 planes in less than five months is getting a makeover. Pilots from five airlines, including the three U.S. carriers that flew the MAX jets before they were grounded worldwide, tested upgrades to the flight-control system over the weekend at Boeing's facility outside Seattle, the aircraft manufacturer confirmed. Boeing will also host more than 200 airline pilots, technicians and regulators in an informational session Wednesday that's among the initial steps in its attempt to get the MAX planes back in the air.
- PoliticsThe National Interest
In 2017, Did a Russian Anti-Aircraft Missile Hit a New Israeli F-35 Stealth Fighter?
Did a Russian anti-aircraft missile hit one of Israel's new F-35 stealth fighters back in late 2017? Pro-Russian media are claiming that an Israeli F-35I was hit and damaged by a Russian-made S-200 surface-to-air missile during an Israeli air strike in Syria earlier this month. Israel says one of its F-35s was damaged—after colliding with a bird.
BusinessAFPFounder of India's beleaguered Jet Airways quits
India's troubled Jet Airways said Monday that founder Naresh Goyal has stepped down as chairman and left the company board as part of a rescue plan. Jet, which has debts of more than $1 billion, said in a statement that its creditors would inject up to $218 million of "immediate funding support" into the airline. The Mumbai-based carrier, which until recently was India's second biggest airline, has been forced to ground three-quarters of its 119-aircraft fleet.
