WorldAFPIran says US troop boost 'threat to international peace'
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said Saturday a US decision to deploy 1,500 additional troops to the Middle East is a "threat to international peace," state media reported. "Increased US presence in our region is very dangerous and a threat to international peace and security and must be confronted," Zarif told the official IRNA news agency before heading home from a visit to Pakistan. Washington says the reinforcements, which come after the deployment earlier this month of an aircraft carrier task force, B-52 bombers, an amphibious assault ship and a missile defence system, are in response to a "campaign" of recent attacks approved by Iran's top leadership.
WorldReutersTrump arrives in Japan for ceremonial visit as trade tensions loom
U.S. President Donald Trump and his wife, Melania, landed in Japan on Saturday on a largely ceremonial visit meant to showcase strong ties with Tokyo even as trade tensions loom. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will treat Trump to an imperial banquet and front row seats at a sumo tournament during the trip, which lasts through Tuesday. The two men share a warm relationship, which the Japanese leader aims to emphasize as Washington mulls tariffs on Japanese auto exports that the Trump administration views as a potential national security threat.
WorldAssociated PressUS sanctions on Iran felt in Iraqi Shiite tourist districts
For years, Karar Hussein has sold sweets in his shop near the entrance to one of Shiite Islam's holiest shrines, accepting whatever currency was offered to him by his clients, many of them religious tourists from neighboring Iran. Hussein and many other shop owners in Baghdad's northern Shiite holy neighborhood of Kadhimiya have seen sales drop sharply over the past year since President Donald Trump began re-imposing sanctions on Iran, home to the largest number of Shiite Muslims around the world. The value of Iran's currency, the rial, has decreased almost fourfold, pushing the price of nearly everything beyond the reach of ordinary Iranian consumers in Iran and abroad.
- NewsThe Independent
Violence and disruption against abortion clinics at highest rates since 1999
Violence and disruption against abortion clinics in the US increased to its highest levels since the 1990s last year, a report by the National Abortion Federation has found. The increase in violence was attributed, at least in part, to president Donald Trump and his administration's rhetoric. “Anti-choice individuals and groups have been emboldened by the rhetoric of president Trump, vice president Pence, and other elected officials and we are seeing this play out in more instances of activities meant to intimidate abortion providers and disrupt patient services,” said Dr Katherine Hancock Ragsdale, who serves as interim president and CEO of NAF.
NewsUSA TODAY51 attorneys general call on Betsy DeVos to cancel up to 42,000 disabled veterans' student debts
In April last year, DeVos announced a new partnership between the Departments of Education and Veterans Affairs that would match borrowers in the Department of Education's records system with disabled veterans in the Department of Veterans Affairs records system. People deemed eligible for loan discharges would be mailed a letter including an application for "totally and permanently disabled" (TPD) status. Under the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008, if student borrowers die or become permanently disabled, they are eligible to have their loans forgiven, so a successful granting of TPD status would allow for the complete discharge of student loans.
- NewsThe Daily Beast
Amanda Eller, Missing Maui Yoga Instructor, Ate Berries and Drank From Waterfalls to Survive
Amanda Eller, the 35-year-old yoga instructor and physical therapist who went missing on a hike in a Maui forest on May 8, ate plants and berries and drank from the base of waterfalls to survive, her rescuers say. Hours after rescuers in a helicopter plucked Eller from a ravine, she said that she had to make the choice to stay alive while lost for 16 days in the forest. “There were times of total fear and loss and wanting to give up, and it did come down to life and death, and I had to choose,” Eller said from her hospital bed on Saturday.
NewsReutersRescuers search for survivors after Oklahoma tornado kills at least two
The tornado that hit El Reno on Saturday night was the latest in a barrage of violent weather that is expected to continue after pounding the Central Plains states last week with deadly tornadoes, high winds, drenching thunderstorms and widespread flooding. In addition to the two fatalities, 29 people suffered minor to critical injuries in the El Reno twister and hundreds more were displaced, the city's mayor said. People have absolutely lost everything." Rescue workers searched the debris field that had been a mobile home park and an Americas Best Value Inn motor lodge where the tornado did its worst damage in the community about 25 miles (40 km) west of Oklahoma City.
- WorldBloomberg
Brexit Wreaks Havoc on Main U.K. Parties in EU Elections
Brexit wrought more havoc on Britain's main political parties in European Parliament elections, with both Conservatives and Labour scoring their worst results in decades as voters opted for politicians with clear pro- and anti-European Union messages. With nearly all the vote counts complete, Nigel Farage's Brexit Party, which wants the U.K. to leave the EU without a deal, was in first place, with 32% of the vote. In second place, with 20%, were the Liberal Democrats, who want to stay in the bloc.
PoliticsYahoo News VideoJudge blocks Trump from building sections of U.S.-Mexico border wall
A federal judge on Friday blocked President Trump from building key sections of his border wall with money secured under his declaration of a national emergency, delivering what may prove a temporary setback on one of his highest priorities.
WorldAFPTwo journalists released in Libya: TV channel
Two Libyan journalists held by an armed group for more than three weeks have been released, the television channel they work for said Saturday. "We congratulate the press world for the release of our two colleagues, Mohamad al-Gurj and Mohamad al-Chibani, who were kidnapped by Haftar's forces on May 2 while they were covering the assault on Tripoli," said the private channel Libya al-Ahrar, which is based in Turkey. The capital's southern suburbs have been the target of an offensive launched April 4 by Khalifa Haftar, military strongman of an eastern administration aimed at seizing Tripoli from an internationally-recognised Government of National Accord (GNA).
- WorldThe National Interest
Eating Way Too Much Rice Almost Doomed Japan's Imperial Navy
After the war, the Emergency Beriberi Investigative Committee investigated the disease's devastation of Japanese ranks. In August 1882 in Incheon Bay near Seoul, four Japanese warships were locked in a tense stand-off with two Chinese warships that had brought troops to quell a revolt on the Korean peninsula. On paper, the Japanese flotilla outnumbered the Chinese, but the hulls of the Japanese ships hid a deadly secret.
- BusinessArchitectural Digest
AD PRO's 20 Favorite Furnishings from ICFF
Miss New York's International Contemporary Furniture Fair? Senior style and market editor Benjamin Reynaert shares his favorite new products that launched at the fair Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
- WorldThe Telegraph
Rouhani says Iran could hold referendum on nuclear programme as tensions with US rise
Iran's president Hassan Rouhani has suggested that the Islamic Republic could hold a public referendum on its nuclear programme, in the wake of rising tensions in the Persian Gulf. "Article 59 of the Constitution (referendum) is a deadlock breaker ... and could be a problem-solver at any junction," the semi-official news agency ILNA quoted Rouhani as saying late on Saturday. The statement followed Mr Rouhani's public dressing-down by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei for his handling of the country's fast-unravelling nuclear deal.
- PoliticsUSA TODAY
Trump lawyers and House Committees reach an agreement that prevents Trump's financial records from being made public -- for now
President Donald Trump's financial records from two banks will not have to be turned over for now, according to a new court filing with the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. At the end of April, Trump sued Deutsche Bank and Capital One to prevent them from supplying information to congressional investigators related to subpoenas from the House Intelligence and Financial Services Committee. Federal judges upheld the subpoenas in later rulings, saying that they related to a "legitimate legislative purpose" of congressional oversight According to the filing, "the parties have reached an agreement regarding compliance with and enforcement of the subpoenas during...
- WorldThe Independent
Pope Francis likens abortion in any scenario to ‘hiring a hitman’
Pope Francis has compared having an abortion to hiring a hitman and said the procedure can never be condoned, even when the foetus is gravely sick. Speaking at a Vatican-sponsored anti-abortion conference, he urged doctors and priests to support families to carry all pregnancies to full term. The pontiff said that the matter was not a religious issue but a human one.
- WorldReuters
RPT-Hong Kong protestors demand China be held to account for 1989 Tiananmen crackdown
Thousands of protesters marched through central Hong Kong on Sunday as part of annual demonstrations demanding that China be held accountable for its democracy crackdown in and around Tiananmen Square three decades ago. Human rights groups and witnesses say that hundreds, perhaps thousands, died in the bloodshed as Chinese tanks rolled into Tiananmen Square and soldiers fired on student-led democracy protesters, beginning on the night of June 3, 1989. The Tiananmen crackdown is a taboo subject in China and authorities have refused to accept full accountability or release the death toll.
WorldAssociated PressUN court: Russia must free 3 detained Ukraine ships, sailors
A U.N. maritime tribunal ruled Saturday that Russia must immediately release three Ukrainian naval vessels it captured in November and free the 24 sailors it detained. The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea issued its order at its Hamburg headquarters following a hearing earlier this month. Russia stayed away from both the hearing and Saturday's session.
- LifestyleThe Daily Beast
Scouted: The 10 Best Memorial Day Mattress Sales, According to Experts
Memorial Day Weekend is famous for the many mattress sales it surfaces — and this year is no exception. To help you sift through all of your options, we teamed up with the expert reviewers over at Mattress Advisor to help us break down each of the best mattress deals around right now. Using a 6-point testing procedure and 8-point evaluation* in their Mattress Lab for every single mattress, they gave us some tips on what Scouted readers should know and keep in mind as they're shopping this Memorial Day weekend for the greatest savings and highest quality mattress.
WorldAFPMacron and Le Pen in battle for EU's soul
The fight between President Emmanuel Macron and far-right leader Marine Le Pen in Sunday's European election in France mirrors a larger battle across the continent between competing visions of bloc's future. Macron, France's youngest ever president, and Le Pen have a lot riding on the results of the polls which both have pitched as a re-run of their duel for the presidency two years ago. The last opinion surveys appeared to show the far-right National Rally (RN) with a slight edge over Macron's centrist alliance, including his Republic on the Move (LREM) party.
- U.S.Architectural Digest
Get the Charming Look of the Kentucky Getaway
A former Kentucky tobacco farm morphs into a high-voltage weekend wonderland of pattern, color, and open-armed hospitality Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
- BusinessReuters
Huawei founder says he would oppose Chinese retaliation against Apple- Bloomberg
Huawei Technologies' founder and Chief Executive Ren Zhengfei told Bloomberg https://bloom.bg/2HT7DUY that retaliation by Beijing against Apple Inc was unlikely and that he would oppose any such move from China against the iPhone maker. When asked about calls from some in China to retaliate against Apple, Ren said that he would "protest" against any such step if it were to be taken by Beijing. "That (Chinese retaliation against Apple) will not happen first of all and second of all, if that happens, I'll be the first to protest," Ren said in the interview with Bloomberg.
BusinessAssociated PressJudge: Anheuser-Busch must pull some ads about MillerCoors
A Wisconsin judge has ordered Anheuser-Busch to stop suggesting in advertising that MillerCoors' light beers contain corn syrup, wading into a fight between two beer giants that are losing market share to small independent brewers. U.S. District Judge William Conley for the Western District of Wisconsin on Friday granted a preliminary injunction sought by MillerCoors that temporarily stops Anheuser-Busch from using the words "corn syrup" in ads without giving more context. MillerCoors sued its rival in March, saying St. Louis-based Anheuser-Busch has spent as much as $30 million on a "false and misleading" campaign, including $13 million in its first commercials during this year's Super Bowl.
- WorldThe Telegraph
Shinzo Abe 'will offer to mediate with Iran' as Donald Trump sends 1,500 troops to Middle East
Shinzo Abe, the Japanese prime minister, is set to offer himself as a mediator amid the escalation of tensions between the United States and Iran. Mr Trump landed in Tokyo on Saturday for a four-day visit during which Mr Abe will discuss the proposal with him, and seek his consent. The Japanese leader is considering a visit to Tehran net month to mediate with President Hassan Rouhani, according to media reports in Japan, and a final decision may depend on the results of his talks with Mr Trump.
- NewsThe Independent
Jayme Closs kidnapping: Jake Patterson jailed for life for killing girl’s parents and keeping her prisoner
The kidnapper of 13 year-old Jayme Closs has been jailed for life after she told the judge she wanted him “locked up forever” for murdering her parents and keeping her prisoner for 88 days. Jake Patterson, 21, targeted the teenager after spotting her getting on a school bus in a rural area of Wisconsin while he was driving to work at a cheese factory. After two aborted attempts to kidnap her, he dressed up in black clothing, armed himself with his father's shotgun and drove to her home in Barron in the early hours of 15 October.
WorldReutersGermany in push to resurrect Afghan talks with Taliban
Germany, a leading donor and member of the NATO-led coalition in Afghanistan, has been talking with the Taliban and the Afghan government in an effort to restart peace talks to end 18 years of conflict, officials said. While the Taliban have been talking with U.S. officials since October about a withdrawal of international troops, they have so far refused formal talks with the Western-backed government, which they dismiss as a "puppet" regime. Berlin's special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, Markus Potzel, has visited Kabul for talks with the Afghan government and met Taliban officials in Doha at least twice this month.
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