WorldReutersPakistan urges U.N. to intervene over Kashmir tension with India
Pakistan's foreign minister appealed to the U.N. Secretary General on Tuesday to help ease tension with India that has escalated sharply following a suicide bomb attack in the Indian part of disputed Kashmir, that India blamed on Pakistan. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, facing an election by May, has warned Pakistan to expect a "strong response" to the bombing claimed by a Pakistan-linked militant group, raising fears of conflict between the nuclear-armed neighbors. "It is with a sense of urgency that I draw your attention to the deteriorating security situation in our region resulting from the threat of use of force against Pakistan by India," Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi wrote to U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres.
- PoliticsNational Review
Farrakhan Praises Omar's Anti-Semitic Remarks: 'Shake Up That Corrupt House'
Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan on Sunday praised Representative Ilhan Omar's (D., Minn.) recent endorsement of an anti-Semitic trope and urged the freshman lawmaker not to bow to pressure from critics. “Ms. Omar from Somalia – she started talking about 'the Benjamins' and they are trying to make her apologize. You sure are using it to shake the government up, but you have nothing to apologize for,” Farrakhan said during his annual Saviour's Day address in Chicago, in comments first reported by the Washington Free Beacon.
- WorldThe Telegraph
Donald Trump threatens Venezuela's military if aid is blocked from entering country
President Donald Trump has warned the Venezuelan military not to block tonnes of humanitarian aid due to arrive in the country on Saturday, threatening the soldiers with grave consequences for remaining loyal to President Nicolas Maduro. “Today I have a message for every official who is keeping Maduro in place,” he said, speaking at a university in Miami – the city with the highest population of Venezuelan exiles in the US. You can choose to accept President Guaido's offer of amnesty, and live your life in peace with your country.
- PoliticsTime
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Celebrated Amazon Pulling Out of New York––But the Governor Says It Cost the City 25,000 Jobs
The dispute between the two Democrats lays bare a divide over the plan to offer $2.8 billion in tax breaks for Amazon to establish a major presence in New York City. On one side, old hands like Cuomo; on the other, the newly insurgent, left-leaning wing represented by Ocasio-Cortez. Today was the day a group of dedicated, everyday New Yorkers and their neighbors defeated Amazon's corporate greed, its worker exploitation and the power of the richest man in the world,” Ocasio-Cortez wrote on Twitter.
- U.S.KABC – Los Angeles
Jussie Smollett attack: Police seek to re-interview Jussie Smollett; Brothers tell police 'Empire' star paid them to stage attack, sources say
Chicago police want to re-interview "Empire" star Jussie Smollett about the alleged attack, and that could happen Monday.
NewsAFPBelgian Jewish museum trial interrupted as juror questioned
The trial of a Frenchman accused of shooting dead four people at the Jewish museum of Belgium was briefly interrupted on Monday as police were summoned to question a juror. "We cannot start the closing arguments under these conditions," judge Laurence Massart said, after recusing the juror for having communicated with outside parties. "The sixth juror contacted police officials on Friday afternoon to say he met with parties not heard in this trial with whom he discussed the case file," she added.
- HealthUSA TODAY
How many push-ups can you do? Study finds men who can do 40 have lower risk of heart disease
Those who could do more than 40 push-ups during a timed test at a preliminary examination were 96 percent less likely to have developed a cardiovascular problem compared to those who could do no more than 10 push-ups, according to the report published Friday in the medical journal JAMA Network Open. Nearly half of U.S. adults deal with some form of cardiovascular disease as of 2016, according to the American Heart Association.The study's authors believe push-ups may be an easy way to test men's risk for heart disease.
- NewsThe Independent
Man awarded £120m in compensation from Ford after being paralysed in car accident
An Alabama jury has awarded $151.8m (£117.4m) to a young man paralyzed in a 2015 rollover accident involving a Ford Explorer sport utility vehicle, Ford and lawyers in the case said on Sunday. The jury awarded $100m in punitive damages and the rest in compensatory damages after finding that the 1998 Ford Explorer did not meet the company's own safety guidelines, according to a court document seen by Reuters and lawyers for plaintiff Travaris “Tre” Smith. The document, released on Friday, said Ford “acted wantonly” in designing the vehicle.
- BusinessCar and Driver
The New Ford Focus ST Looks Awesome and Makes 276 Horsepower
Ford newest hot hatch, the Focus ST, has officially arrived-unfortunately only for the European market. Based on the new-generation Focus compact car, the new Focus ST has a turbocharged 2.3-liter four-cylinder engine with 276 horsepower that mates with either a six-speed manual or seven-speed automatic transmission. Enthusiasts will be bummed that Ford has no plans to bring any version of the new Focus to America, as the company has killed off all car nameplates in its U.S. lineup save for the Mustang.
WorldReutersIran arrests militants linked to attack on Revolutionary Guards
Revolutionary Guards have broken up a group of militants in southeast Iran who were linked to a suicide bombing that killed 27 guards near the border with Pakistan last week, the Corps said on Monday. quot;Last night, a terrorist cell was identified and destroyed in an operation," the Corps said in a statement carried by the semi-official Tasnim news agency. Three militants were arrested and explosive material was seized from houses in the cities of Saravan and Khash, it said.
WorldAssociated PressIsraeli leaders' Nazi comments derail European summit
Poland on Monday withdrew from a European summit in Jerusalem, derailing the meeting and embarrassing its Israeli hosts, to protest claims by Israel's acting foreign minister that Poles collaborated with the Nazis and "suckled anti-Semitism with their mothers' milk." The abrupt cancellation marked a new low in a bitter and long-running conflict between Poland and Israel over how to characterize Polish actions toward its Jewish community during World War II. It also was a diplomatic setback for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who had touted the gathering as a milestone in his outreach to the emerging democracies of central and eastern Europe.
- WorldThe Telegraph
Donald Trump demands Britain puts jihadists on trial as Isil makes desperate last stand
Donald Trump has demanded Britain and its continental neighbours repatriate their captured Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant fighters and put them on trial - or face the terrorists being set free to "permeate Europe." In a strongly-worded message tweeted late on Saturday night, the US president warned he would have little choice but to release approximately 800 "jihadists" currently held by American-backed Kurdish forces in Syria. He said now was the time for the ant-Isil coalition partners to "step up" and take over ownership of its rogue citizens who threaten the safety of Europe.
- BusinessTime
Here's What's Open and Closed on President's Day 2019
Remember that day in February that isn't Valentine's and isn't Groundhog Day? Many places throughout the country will observe this President's Day by closing their doors so people can enjoy a 3-day weekend honoring our the birthday of nation's first President, George Washington. Here's what's open and closed on President's Day 2019.
- NewsUSA TODAY
Emails show how fake university set up by ICE lured foreign students
The email exchanges with Ali Milani – who is described in a LinkedIn profile as the president of the University of Farmington – show how the school in Farmington Hills, Michigan, may have lured students to enroll in a fake university set up by The Department of Homeland Security. Jan. 30: Feds set up fake university in Michigan to nab undocumented immigrants A federal indictment unsealed Jan. 30 said that the university was produced by federal agents with an investigative division of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which is part of DHS. Federal agents posed as university officials such as "Ali Milani" to trick the students, say attorneys.
NewsAFPInvestigation into alleged attack on US actor has 'shifted': police
An investigation into an alleged attack on an openly gay black actor has "shifted" and police are now seeking a follow-up interview with the "Empire" cast member, a spokesman said Sunday. Jussie Smollett, 36, reported to police on January 29 that two men beat him, yelled racial and homophobic slurs, poured bleach on him and tied a rope around his neck while he walked downtown in the third-largest American city. "The information received from the individuals questioned by police earlier in the Empire case has in fact shifted the trajectory of the investigation," Chicago police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said in a statement.
WorldAFPPakistan to honour Saudi crown prince after $20bn deals
Pakistan will confer its highest civilian honour on the Saudi crown prince on Monday, a day after he signed investment deals worth $20 billion on the first stop of an Asian tour clouded by his alleged role in the grisly murder of a dissident journalist. President Arif Alvi will award Mohammad bin Salman the Nishan-e-Pakistan (Order of Pakistan), the foreign office said in a statement, before the crown prince leaves the country for his next stop, Islamabad's arch-rival India. Pakistan is facing a serious balance of payments crisis and hopes the huge deals signed over the two-day visit -- seven separate agreements and memorandums of understanding -- will boost its struggling economy.
BusinessBloombergGlobal Slowdown Leaves Growth Weakest Since Financial Crisis
The global economy's loss of momentum has left expansion now looking like its weakest since the global financial crisis, a development that's already sparked a dramatic shift among central banks. A UBS model suggests world growth slowed to a 2.1 percent annualized pace at the end of 2018, which it says would be the weakest since 2008-2009. An early reading for this quarter shows a slight improvement, but the numbers still mean there'll need to be a dramatic improvement to reach the 3.2 percent pace UBS has forecast for the three months as a whole.
BusinessAFP Relax NewsGMC Acadia souped up with new engine, trim, and tech
GMC has unveiled the refreshed Acadia for the 2020 model year complete with a new trim, a fresh look, and the latest GMC infotainment system. GMC announced on Monday that the Acadia has gotten its midcycle refresh, and now, the lineup looks more like a group of Sierra pickups from the front than mid-size SUVs. In addition to its new exterior styling, the Acadia has a new powertrain option and an assortment of new technologies including an enhanced infotainment system and heads-up display.
- BusinessUSA TODAY Opinion
New York's Amazon rejection exposes US opportunity gap and Democrats' political disconnect
Most localities would crawl through broken glass to land that prize, and 238 did as they bid for Amazon's second headquarters. Activists in Queens didn't want it, and Amazon wasn't about to fight for it. The reason 238 cities and regions bid for the Amazon headquarters is that most of America is hungry for opportunity while enough of Queens and New York City is not.
WorldReutersIndia says mastermind of Kashmir bombing killed in clash
Indian forces on Monday killed three militants, including the suspected organizer of a suicide bombing in the disputed region of Kashmir that fueled tension between nuclear-armed India and Pakistan, police said, with five troops also killed in the clash. The suicide bomb attack on a paramilitary police convoy in Indian-controlled Kashmir last Thursday killed at least 40 men, the deadliest single assault on Indian forces in 30 years of insurgency in the Muslim-majority region. The Pakistan-based militant group Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) claimed responsibility for the attack.
- WorldThe Telegraph
Pope's credibility 'on the line' as Vatican convenes global meeting on combating child abuse by clergy
Victims of clerical sex abuse have warned Pope Francis that his credibility is on the line as he confronts the biggest challenge of his papacy with a landmark conference on protecting children from rape and molestation. Nearly 200 bishops, archbishops, patriarchs and other senior Catholic figures from around the world will convene in Rome on Thursday for an unprecedented four-day conference that is supposed to tackle the scourge of child abuse by clergy. It is the biggest effort so far to address scandals that have eroded faith in the Catholic Church in the US, Ireland, Australia and elsewhere.
WorldAssociated PressTrump pleads with Venezuela's military to back Guaido
President Donald Trump on Monday pleaded with Venezuela's military to support opposition leader Juan Guaido and issued a dire warning if they continue to stand with President Nicolas Maduro's government. You will lose everything," Trump said in a speech at Florida International University in Miami before large American and Venezuelan flags. The Venezuelan military could play a decisive role in the stalemate but has largely remained loyal to Maduro.
- NewsUSA TODAY
Southwest Airlines under FAA investigation for aircraft weight, balance calculations
The investigation, disclosed for the first time Monday by the Wall Street Journal, began in February 2018, FAA spokesman Gregory Martin confirmed to USA TODAY. There have been no fines nor enforcement action from the investigation to date. "Since that time, the FAA has directed the development of a comprehensive solution to the methods and processes used by Southwest Airlines to determine this (weight and balance) performance data,'' he said in a statement.
- WorldTime
7 Lawmakers Quit U.K.'s Labour Party Over Brexit and Anti-Semitism
Seven lawmakers resigned from the U.K.'s opposition Labour party on Monday morning, in what they described as an act of protest against the party's Brexit policy and persistent allegations of anti-Semitism, just 39 days before the country is set to leave the European Union. The lawmakers said they supported calls for a so-called “People's Vote,” or second Brexit referendum, which the Labour party leadership has so far refused to back. No deal has yet been struck between the U.K. and the E.U. over Brexit, with U.K. lawmakers rejecting May's deal and the bloc saying renegotiation is off the table.
WorldReutersUK's May to speak to every EU head in bid for Brexit deal changes
In her talks with EU leaders and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker she will be seeking to change the Irish backstop, one of the most contentious parts of the withdrawal agreement she agreed in November, her office said. May has told EU leaders she could pass her deal with concessions primarily around the backstop - a guarantee that there can be no return to border controls between the British province of Northern Ireland and EU-member Ireland. The backstop has become one of the main points of contention ahead of Britain's planned departure from the EU next month after 45 years.
