WorldAssociated PressNorth Korea abruptly withdraws staff from liaison office
North Korea abruptly withdrew its staff from a liaison office with South Korea on Friday, a development that is likely to put a damper on ties between the countries and further complicate global diplomacy on North Korea's nuclear program. The North Korean action came a week after its vice foreign minister threatened to pull out of nuclear negotiations with the United States, citing a lack of U.S. steps to match disarmament measures it took last year. North Korea informed South Korean officials of its decision during a meeting Friday at the liaison office in the North Korean border town of Kaesong, Seoul's Unification Ministry said.
WorldAFPNew Zealand prays, falls silent, a week after mosque massacres
The Muslim call to prayer rang out across New Zealand on Friday followed by two minutes of nationwide silence to mark a week since a white supremacist gunned down 50 people at two mosques in the city of Christchurch. As the call was broadcast around the country, thousands -- including Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and wounded survivors -- stood in a park opposite the mosque where the killing began, as the nation of 4.5 million came to a standstill. New Zealand is still in shock following the killings by alleged shooter Brenton Tarrant, a 28-year-old Australian national who had hoped to foment an ethnic war with his attacks.
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.
WorldReutersDruze on Golan Heights reject Trump backing for Israeli sovereignty
Druze Arabs and Israeli settlers on opposite sides of the dispute over U.S. President Donald Trump's support for Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights agree on one thing - it won't change matters on the ground. The fertile hillsides of the Israeli-occupied Golan are scattered with villages inhabited by 22,000 Druze, an Arab minority who practice an offshoot of Islam. Many still have relatives on the Syrian side of the fortified boundary.
- NewsThe Independent
JetBlue pilots who drugged and raped flight attendants continued working for airline without repercussion, lawsuit says
Three female flight attendants claim they were drugged and two of them raped by two JetBlue pilots during a layover in Puerto Rico, a new lawsuit filed this week in New York federal court has claimed. At least one of the female flight attendants said she was forced to work with one of the accused pilots after the alleged rape. After making their way to a beach in Puerto Rico near the hotel they were staying during their layover in May of last year, the women were offered sips from one of the flight attendant's alcoholic beverages.
- 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.
- NewsAssociated Press
Correction: Southern Flood Threat story
A corrected version of the story is below: Unprecedented spring flooding possible, US forecasters say The National Weather Service says the flooding of Nebraska and Iowa is just a preview of potentially historic widespread major flooding to hit much of America this spring By SETH BORENSTEIN and JEFF MARTIN Associated Press The stage is set for unprecedented major flooding this spring for most of the nation, U.S. weather officials said Thursday. More than 200 million Americans are at risk for some kind of flooding, with 13 million of them at risk of major inundation, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said in its spring weather outlook.
BusinessAFPFix to 737 MAX anti-stall software is ready: industry sources
A fix to the anti-stall system suspected in October's Lion Air Boeing 737 MAX 8 that killed 189 people in Indonesia is ready, industry sources said Saturday. The sources said Boeing was due to present the patch to officials and pilots of US airlines American, Southwest and United in Renton, Washington state, where the craft is assembled. "Boeing has already finalized the necessary corrective measures for the MAX," a source told AFP on condition of anonymity.
- 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.
- WorldAssociated Press
115 reported dead after attack on central Malian village
Militia fighters descended on a village in central Mali before dawn Saturday, killing at least 115 people in the latest deadly attack blamed on an ethnic militia, local authorities said. The massacre in the village of Ogossogou left the village chief and his grandchildren dead in the ethnic Peulh community, according to a local official who had received detailed accounts from the remote area. The victims "included pregnant women, young children and the elderly," according to Abdoul Aziz Diallo, president of a Peulh group known as Tabital Pulaaku.
- WorldTime
Women All Over New Zealand Wore Headscarves in Solidarity With the Christchurch Victims
Women across New Zealand are wearing headscarves in a show of support for the Muslim community, one week after 50 people were shot dead in two mosques in the city of Christchurch. Women and children have posted pictures of themselves wearing headscarves on social media Friday, with words denouncing last week's violence and expressing solidarity with victims of the shooting. I stand with our Muslim community today and against hate and violence of any kind,” one Twitter user wrote.
PoliticsYahoo NewsTrump halts new North Korea sanctions despite lack of progress in talks
President Trump announced Friday that he was reversing a decision by the Treasury Department to impose new sanctions on North Korea, despite lack of progress in talks on getting the rogue regime to give up its nuclear weapons. It wasn't immediately clear what Trump was referring to. On Thursday, the Treasury Department announced that the administration was taking action to punish two Chinese shipping companies accused of helping Pyongyang evade international trade sanctions on Kim Jong Un's government.
- BusinessReuters
Lakers G Ball fires family friend after $1.5M goes missing
Los Angeles Lakers guard Lonzo Ball said he no longer is working with a family friend after $1.5 million from Ball's personal and business bank accounts apparently remains missing. The second-year player told ESPN that the man, Alan Foster, "used his access to my business and personal finances to enrich himself. Foster owns 16.3 percent of the family's Big Baller Brand and also has managed the family companies.
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.
- U.S.AccuWeather
Flooding shifts south
The cities of Atchison, Kansas and Winthrop, Missouri brace for incoming flooding along the Missouri River by evacuating as levies begin to over-spill into area farmland. Jonathan Petramala and Blake Naftel spoke with residents preparing ahead of potential historic flooding.
- 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
NewsReutersMissouri River flooding forces evacuation of 7,500 from waterfront city
Record floodwaters that submerged vast stretches of Nebraska and Iowa farmland along America's longest river reached a new crest on Friday at the waterfront city of St. Joseph, Missouri, forcing chaotic evacuations of thousands from low-lying areas. With emergency sirens blaring as the Missouri River rose to the top of the three-story-high levee wall in St. Joseph, about 55 miles (88 km) north of Kansas City, Missouri, sheriff's deputies rushed door-to-door urging residents to flee to higher ground. The abrupt evacuation, coming as the river rose about 9 feet above flood stage, appeared to take authorities and residents by surprise.
WorldAFPEichmann's captor, Israeli ex-spy Rafi Eitan dead at 92: media
Former Mossad spy Rafi Eitan, who commanded the audacious 1960 capture of top Nazi Adolf Eichmann, died on Saturday aged 92, Israeli public radio announced. Eitan, the handler for Jonathan Pollard, a US Navy analyst who passed Israel thousands of top secret documents, was himself wanted by American authorities for a time. He died in the afternoon at Tel Aviv's Ichilov hospital, the radio said, without giving further details.
NewsAssociated PressEx-cop says he thought he saw a gun when he shot black teen
A white former police officer said Thursday he thought a weapon was pointed at him when he shot and killed an unarmed black teenager outside Pittsburgh last summer. Former East Pittsburgh Police Officer Michael Rosfeld took the stand at his homicide trial and insisted he was in fear for his life when he gunned down 17-year-old Antwon Rose II. Rosfeld, 30, got choked up and dabbed away tears as he recounted finding the mortally wounded Rose on the ground.
- 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.
- PoliticsThe Independent
William Barr: Who is the attorney general Mueller just gave his report to?
Special Counsel Robert Mueller's report on Russian interference in the 2016 election — and his findings on whether Donald Trump's presidential campaign committed wrongdoings to secure the Oval Office — is now officially in the hands of Attorney General William Barr. Mr Barr, who was confirmed earlier this year after being appointed to lead the Justice Department under Mr Trump, stopped short of vowing to release the full findings of the special counsel during his Congressional hearings. On Friday, Mr Barr released a statement to the House and Senate Judiciary Committees confirming he received the report.
- BusinessReuters
WRAPUP 3-Indonesian airline cancels Boeing order, citing passenger fear
JAKARTA/OSLO, March 22 (Reuters) - Indonesian airline Garuda plans to cancel a $6 billion order for Boeing 737 MAX jets, it said on Friday, saying some passengers would be frightened to board the plane after two fatal crashes, although analysts said the deal had long been in doubt. The news came as another 737 MAX customer, Norwegian Air , played down the significance of a move by Boeing to make a previously optional cockpit warning light compulsory. Norwegian said that, according to Boeing, the warning light would not have been able to prevent erroneous signals that Lion Air pilots received before their new 737 MAX plane crashed off Indonesia in October, killing 189 people.
- U.S.Car and Driver
View Photos of the 2019 Chevrolet Colorado ZR2 Bison
Built with help from AEV, this Colorado with a shot of bovine growth hormone loves to do all the stuff great off-roaders do. From Car and Driver
BusinessUSA TODAYTax refunds are $3 smaller on average versus last year after seventh week of filing season
The average tax refund is $3 lower than a year ago after the seventh week of filing season, the Internal Revenue Service reported Thursday. The average tax refund issued so far is $2,957 for the week ending March 15, down 0.1 percent from $2,960 at the same time last year. Tax experts say refunds could be smaller for people who didn't adjust their paycheck withholdings after the new tax law changes last year.
- LifestyleNational Review
More Misconceptions about College
Now that we've all had a good airing of grievances about elite colleges and their attendant injustices, let's get some perspective. While the numbers of high-school graduates heading off to college have increased in recent years, the percentages graduating with a four-year degree have not increased much. Many students, especially those who are the first in their families to attend college, drop out before receiving a degree.
