- WorldReuters
Israel, Hamas trade blows as Gaza tensions simmer
Gaza militants fired rockets into southern Israel and Israeli aircraft carried out strikes in the Hamas-ruled territory overnight Tuesday, though the level of violence appeared to abate after Palestinians said a ceasefire had been reached. After a day of intense cross-border fighting, Palestinian officials said Egypt had mediated a truce late on Monday. The respite didn't last long, however.
- PoliticsBloomberg
How Republicans Are Reacting to Barr's Mueller Report Summary
President Trump led a victory parade of Republican lawmakers and White House insiders after a summary of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation released on Sunday showed no evidence of collusion with Russia. An hour after the four-page letter from Attorney General William Barr was released, Trump claimed “total exoneration” on Twitter. Boarding Air Force One to return to Washington, the president called Mueller's probe an “illegal takedown that failed.
- 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.
NewsAFP Relax NewsArcheologists believe Norway find is rare Viking ship burial
Archeologists believe they have found a rare Viking ship burial site in a region of Norway known for its Viking-era treasures, Norwegian officials said Monday. Using ground-penetrating radar (GPR), experts found a ship-shaped anomaly near other Viking burial mounds in the Borre Park in Vestfold county, southeast of Oslo. This could point to the existence of a mound that was later removed," Terje Gansum, leader of the department for cultural heritage management in Vestfold county, said in a statement.
EntertainmentUSA TODAY'Fuller House' cast after Lori Loughlin college scandal: 'A loving family sticks together'
The "Fuller House" castmates say they're a family who "sticks together" just weeks after news broke of co-star Lori Loughlin's alleged involvement in a college bribery scandal. Loughlin, who plays Aunt Becky on the Netflix series, was arrested for allegedly paying $500,000 to guarantee her two daughters, Olivia Jade and Isabella Rose, admission to the University of Southern California as members of the crew team, though neither was an athlete. Though the cast did not mention Loughlin by name, they appeared to comment on the matter during their acceptance speech Saturday at the 2019 Kids' Choice Awards.
BusinessAFPEthiopian Airlines 'believes in' Boeing despite crash: CEO
Ethiopian Airlines "believes in" Boeing despite the crash of its 737 MAX 8 plane that killed all 157 people on board and led to the model's grounding, the carrier's CEO said on Monday. "Let me be clear: Ethiopian Airlines believes in Boeing. "We will work with investigators in Ethiopia, in the US and elsewhere to figure out what went wrong," he added.
WorldAssociated PressThai parties jostle for power after 1st election since coup
The two top parties began angling for the upper hand in forming a new government in Thailand on Monday after partial results showed no group won a majority of seats in the country's first national election since a 2014 military coup. The allegations highlight continuing deep divisions in Thailand, which has been wracked by political instability for nearly two decades. The junta-appointed Election Commission announced the results of 350 constituency races but said full vote counts, which are needed to allocate 150 other seats in the House of Representatives, won't be available until Friday after apparent counting problems.
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.
BusinessUSA TODAYAmerican Airlines to cancel 90 flights every day through most of April
American Airlines will cancel 90 flights a day through most of April as a result of the Federal Aviation Administration's decision this month to ground all Boeing 737 Max aircraft. This follows the Boeing 737 Max 8 Ethiopian Airlines crash that killed all 157 people aboard. "In an effort to provide more certainty and avoid last minute flight disruptions, American has extended cancellations through April 24," the airline said in a statement.
- U.S.WABC – NY
Suspect charged with assault after elderly woman kicked in face on New York City subway
A suspect has been charged with assault after an elderly woman was brutally attacked on a Bronx subway train.
- WorldNational Review
Trump Officially Recognizes Golan Heights as Israeli Territory
President Trump on Monday signed an order recognizing Israel's sovereignty over the Golan Heights, abruptly shifting long-standing U.S. policy on the matter. We're celebrating the Golan Heights. It's something that I've been hearing about for many years,” Trump said during remarks to reporters at the White House alongside Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
- WorldBloomberg
May Faces Endgame as U.K. Leader Is Losing Control of Brexit
Theresa May will face up to her own desperately weak political position on Monday as members of Parliament move to take over Brexit policy and her own ministers plot to oust her. The U.K. prime minister is under pressure from colleagues inside her Cabinet to name a date when she will step down, with some arguing this would help her win support for her Brexit deal, people familiar with the matter said. May is hoping for one more chance to put the divorce agreement she's negotiated with the European Union to a vote in the House of Commons this week.
LifestyleAFP Relax NewsAll black everything: Ford offers Black Appearance Package for 2019 Ford Rangers
Ford has announced the new Black Appearance Package available for the 2019 Ford Ranger lineup. Since the 2019 Ford Ranger pickup went on sale in January of this year, over half of the models have been outfitted in either the Sport Appearance Package or the Chrome Appearance Package. As of Monday, another option is now available: the Black Appearance Package.
WorldAFPUS, Russia lock horns over Venezuela, raising the stakes
The US and Russia clashed publicly over Venezuela on Monday, raising geopolitical stakes over the oil-producing nation after Moscow sent dozens of soldiers to Caracas amid what it alleged was a budding "coup." US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warned his counterpart Sergei Lavrov over the phone that "the United States and regional countries will not stand idly by as Russia exacerbates tensions in Venezuela." The tense conversation came after Russia sent two planes reportedly carrying around 100 soldiers and 35 tons of military equipment to Venezuela's main airport outside Caracas on Saturday.
NewsAssociated PressThe Latest: All Viking Sky passengers, crew safe; ship docks
The Latest on the Viking Sky cruise ship that was stranded off the coast of Norway (all times local): 8:40 p.m. The Viking Ocean Cruises company says all the passengers and crew of its Viking Sky cruise ship are safe, the ship has docked in the western Norwegian port of Molde and passengers are flying home as soon as possible. The cruise ship line said the next scheduled trip for the boat, a visit to Scandinavia and Germany that was to leave on Wednesday, has been cancelled.
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.
- HealthUSA TODAY
Flu season nears the finish line, but it is not going away quietly
This year's flu season is not going away quietly. The Centers of Disease Control and Prevention says the percentage of medical visits for flu-like symptoms for the week ending March 16 was at 4.4 percent, above the baseline 2.2 percent. Although the season – which stretches from October to May – has not been as severe overall as in past years, flu activity remains at an elevated level.
- WorldBloomberg
China's Former Top Internet Regulator Jailed for 14 Years
Lu Wei was found guilty of taking bribes on Tuesday by the Ningbo People's Intermediate Court in the eastern province of Zhejiang, according to the official Xinhua News Agency. He was found to have accepted some 32 million yuan ($4.6 million) from companies and individuals seeking help with regulatory issues and promoting their businesses online, the report said. Lu was convicted after a one-day trial in October.
- PoliticsTime
How Mueller Gave Trump a Political Win
For 22 months, Donald Trump called him a rogue prosecutor, surrounded by a team of angry partisans with conflicts of interest, leading an investigation into a hoax. The special counsel's conclusion — as relayed to Congress and the public by Attorney General William Barr — that the investigation did not establish that Trump's campaign conspired with Russian efforts to meddle in the 2016 election lifted a dark cloud that's sat over his presidency since its earliest days. March 24 will join a handful of triumphal moments for Trump: the confirmations of Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, the passage of a $1.5 trillion Republican tax cut bill, withdrawing from the Paris climate agreement and the Iran nuclear accords and moving the U.S. embassy in Israel to Jerusalem.
- WorldThe 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.
- LifestyleThe Telegraph
Easter 2019: Forbidden eggs, Eostre and how the date is decided
Of course, the Christian festival is far more than its associated confectionery. Easter celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ who, according to the New Testament, died on the cross on Good Friday and came back to life three days later. His resurrection is celebrated on Easter Sunday, which also marks the end of Lent's 40-day period of fasting. From the origins of the Easter bunny to the celebrations' ever-changing dates, here is your essential guide to the holiday.
- WorldReuters
Not enough support yet for third Brexit vote, says UK PM May
Prime Minister Theresa May said there was not yet enough support for her to put her Brexit deal to a vote in parliament for a third time, but she would continue with talks with lawmakers to try to get their backing. quot;I continue to believe that the right path forward is for the United Kingdom to leave the EU as soon as possible with a deal, now on May 22," she told parliament on Monday. quot;But it is with great regret that I have had to conclude that as things stand there is still not sufficient support in the House (of Commons) to bring back the deal for a third meaningful vote.
WorldAFPRussia accuses US of plotting 'coup' in Venezuela
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov Monday accused the United States of plotting a "coup" against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, in a dispute over Russian military assistance for the crisis-hit country. Lavrov said in a statement he had complained of "attempts by Washington to organise a coup d'etat in Venezuela" during a telephone conversation with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. The statement said such moves "constitute violations of the UN charter and undisguised interference in the internal affairs of a sovereign state".
- WorldAssociated Press
Norway opens probe into why cruise ship ventured into storm
Norwegian officials have opened an investigation into why a cruise ship carrying more than 1,370 people set sail along the country's often wild western coast despite storm warnings, forcing a major evacuation by helicopter. One person is in critical but stable condition in an intensive care ward, hospital officials said, adding that eight others were still hospitalized after the weekend ordeal. The Viking Sky had left the northern city of Tromsoe and was headed for Stavanger in southern Norway when it had engine problems and issued a mayday call on Saturday afternoon.
