WorldReutersIsrael made a 'very bad gamble' by sabotaging Iranian nuclear site: Zarif
Iran's top diplomat said on Tuesday that an attack on its Natanz nuclear facility which it blames on Israel was a "very bad gamble" that would strengthen Tehran's hand in talks to revive a 2015 nuclear deal with major powers. Tehran has said an explosion on Sunday at its key nuclear site was an act of sabotage by arch-foe Israel and vowed revenge for an attack that appeared to be latest episode in a long-running covert war. Israel, which the Islamic Republic does not recognise, has not formally commented on the incident.
WorldAssociated PressPope asks US bishop to resign after cover-up investigation
Pope Francis asked a bishop in the U.S. state of Minnesota to resign after he was investigated by the Vatican for allegedly interfering with past investigations into clergy sexual abuse, officials said Tuesday. The Vatican said Francis accepted the resignation of Crookston Bishop Michael Hoeppner on Tuesday and named a temporary replacement to run the diocese. The Roman Catholic Diocese of Crookston said in a statement that the pontiff asked Hoeppner to resign following the Vatican probe, which it said arose from reports that the bishop "had at times failed to observe applicable norms when presented with allegations of sexual abuse involving clergy."
WorldThe WeekBiden reaches agreement with 3 countries to try to keep migrants from reaching southern border
The Biden administration has reached a deal with Mexico, Honduras, and Guatemala to increase security at their borders in order to curb increased migration at the U.S. southern border. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki on Monday said Mexico will keep 10,000 troops stationed at its southern border and Honduras has deployed 7,000 police officers and members of the military to its border. Guatemala has sent 1,500 police officers and troops to its southern border and will also set up 12 checkpoints inside the country, along a route taken by migrants.
- U.S.Reuters
Cockpit voice recorder from crashed Indonesian jet downloaded successfully: investigator
The cockpit voice recorder (CVR) from a crashed Sriwijaya Air jet has been downloaded successfully and includes the last minutes of the flight that ended with 62 people dead, an official at Indonesia's air accident investigator said on Monday. The contents of the recording from the 26-year old Boeing Co 737-500 that crashed shortly after take-off on Jan. 9 cannot be disclosed publicly at this stage of the probe, Indonesia National Transportation Safety Committee (KNKT) investigator Nurcahyo Utomo said. The channels will need to be synchronised with each other as well as radio communications and the flight data recorder (FDR) for analysis to help determine the cause of the crash.
WorldAssociated PressTrial starts of German far-right group that planned attacks
Twelve Germans went on trial Tuesday accused of being part of or supporting a far-right group that plotted to carry out deadly attacks on Muslims with the aim of stoking civil unrest and overthrowing the government. Members of the so-called “Group S” had hoarded firearms, axes and swords for the planned attacks, which were foiled by their arrests in February last year. Federal prosecutors accuse eleven members of the group of seeking to “rock and ultimately overturn the state and social order of the Federal Republic of Germany.
WorldAssociated PressPhilippines summons Chinese ambassador over reef dispute
The Philippine government summoned the Chinese ambassador to press its demand for Chinese vessels to immediately leave a reef claimed by Manila in the South China Sea and said their presence was stoking tensions, officials said Tuesday. The escalating feud between Manila and Beijing started after more than 200 Chinese vessels suspected by Philippine authorities to be operated by militias were spotted early last month at Whitsun Reef. The Philippine government demanded the vessels leave then deployed coast guard and patrol vessels to the area but China said it owns the reef and the Chinese vessels were sheltering from rough seas.
WorldBBCTaiwan: 'Record number' of China jets enter air zone
Taiwan has said a record number of Chinese military jets flew into its air defence zone on Monday. The defence ministry said 25 aircraft including fighters and nuclear-capable bombers entered its so-called air defence identification zone (ADIZ) on Monday. The incursion is the largest in a year and comes as the US warns against an "increasingly aggressive China".
BusinessReutersTexas oil pipelines face dry months as production languishes
NEW YORK (Reuters) -Nearly half of all oil pipelines from the Permian basin, the biggest U.S. oilfield, are expected to be empty by the end of the year, analysts and executives said. Pipeline companies went on a construction spree throughout 2018 and 2019 to handle blistering growth in U.S. crude production to a record 13 million barrels per day (bpd). Major pipeline companies are exploring ways to ship other products in those lines and considering selling stakes in operations to raise cash.
U.S.Miami HeraldCops went to a Florida mom’s home on a child abuse call. Then they saw a Dr. Seuss book
Dr Seuss books have made headlines lately, but not for this reason. According to a police report from the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office, deputies went to a Largo home on a call of suspected child abuse. When they arrived around 9 p.m.
U.S.Associated PressUS investigating possible air bag failures in GM vehicles
The U.S. government's highway safety agency is investigating complaints that the air bags may not inflate in a crash on thousands of General Motors vehicles. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says the probe covers nearly 750,000 Chevrolet, Cadillac and GMC vehicles from the 2020 and 2021 model years. The agency says in documents posted Tuesday on its website that it has 15 complaints of air bag malfunctions, including six crashes with eight reported injuries.
- NewsYahoo News Video
Vatican same-sex ruling dismays some Catholics
Two days after he married his partner of many years, Anselm Bilgri, a former monk and prior at one of Germany's most famous monasteries, learned that the Vatican would not bless relationships like his.
WorldBBCVietnam country profile
Vietnam, a one-party Communist state, has one of south-east Asia's fastest-growing economies and has set its sights on becoming a developed nation by 2020. It became a unified country once more in 1975 when the armed forces of the Communist north seized the south. This followed three decades of bitter wars, in which the Communists fought first against the colonial power France, then against South Vietnam and its US backers.
WorldAssociated PressIndia reels amid virus surge, affecting world vaccine supply
Compounding concerns about rising cases is the fact that the country's vaccination drive could also be headed for trouble: Several Indian states have reported a shortage of doses even as the federal government has insisted there's enough in stock. After a sluggish start, India recently overtook the United States in the number of shots it's giving every day and is now averaging 3.6 million. But with more than four times the number of people and that later start, it has given at least one dose to around just 7% of its population.
U.S.The StateMistaking Asian woman as white, Asian man attacks her over hate crimes, CA cops say
An Asian man was arrested after California police say he kidnapped and tried to sexually assault an Asian woman, believing she was white, in retaliation for the rise in hate crimes against Asians. Michael Sangbong Rhee, 37, was arrested Thursday night at his Lake Forest home, Irvine police said in a Facebook post. Rhee was charged with kidnapping with intent to commit a sexual assault and is being held at Orange County Jail on $1 million bail.
WorldAssociated PressSudan’s leader visits Darfur after tribal clashes killed 144
Sudan's leader visited West Darfur province Monday following tribal violence earlier this month that killed at least 144 people, posing a challenge to the country's fragile democratic transition. Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan, head of the ruling sovereign council, met separately with representatives of the non-Arab Masalit and the Arab Rizeigat tribes in Genena, the provincial capital of West Darfur, the sovereign council said. Burhan, who travelled to West Darfur along with top security and military officials, vowed to take “decisive decisions” to foster security and stability in the province, the council said without elaborating.
PoliticsAssociated PressAustin: US adds 500 troops in Germany, despite Trump pledge
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced on Tuesday that he is expanding the U.S. military presence in Germany by 500 troops and has stopped planning for large-scale troop cuts ordered by the Trump administration. “This planned increase in U.S. personnel underscores our commitment to Germany and the entire NATO alliance,” Austin said in a notable counterpoint to the Trump administration's repeated complaints that Germany is a weak partner on defense and security. Austin made the announcement after talks with German Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer on his first tour of Europe since becoming Pentagon chief in January.
U.S.INSIDERBlack Army officer pepper-sprayed by police said he thought he could be murdered as officers gave quickly changing commands
A uniformed Black Army officer was held at gunpoint and pepper-sprayed during a traffic stop. Second lieutenant Caron Nazario filed a lawsuit against the 2 Virginia officers involved. In a complaint, Nazario said they gave conflicting orders and he was worried he would be murdered.
WorldArchitectural DigestThe World’s 9 Most Expensive Listings Currently on the Market
These fantastical homes range from a 64,000-acre Texas ranch to an oceanside estate in the south of France Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
WorldAssociated PressThailand records more than 900 cases for third day in a row
Thailand recorded a third day in a row with more than 900 coronavirus cases on Tuesday, as thousands of people swarmed to beaches on the first day of a long national holiday despite warnings from health officials. Dr. Opas Karnkavinpong, director-general of Disease Control Department, warned that possible lockdowns will be implemented next week when people return to the cities after the traditional New Year festival, known as Songkran. The government reported 965 new cases Tuesday to bring the totals since the pandemic began to 34,575 infections and 97 deaths.
CelebrityThe WeekLate night hosts could totally believe Matt Gaetz is dim enough to publicly Venmo young women for sex
Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) "has been under fire since news broke of him being under investigation over possible sex trafficking — but like a Karen in a Bath & Body Works, he refuses to back down," Trevor Noah said on Monday's Daily Show. ... Nobody writes the real thing for a Venmo payment, all right? "It's like organizing a hit on 'Words With Friends.'" And sure, that already "seems incredibly stupid and incriminating," but "the icing on this stupid, stupid cake: At the time, all these interactions could be viewed on Gaetz's public Venmo page."
WorldAssociated PressCanary Islands hotel offers shelter to migrants in need
When hotel director Calvin Lucock and restaurant owner Unn Tove Saetran said goodbye to one of the last groups of migrants staying in one of the seaside resorts they manage in Spain's Canary Islands, the British-Norwegian couple didn't know when they would have guests again. The Spanish government — struggling to accommodate 23,000 people who disembarked on the islands in 2020 — contracted hundreds of hotel rooms left empty due to the coronavirus travel restrictions. The deal not only helped migrants and asylum-seekers have a place to sleep, it also allowed Lucock to keep most of his hotel staff employed.
BusinessKansas City StarParts shortage forces months-long layoffs for thousands at Kansas City Ford, GM plants
A new car hasn't rolled off the line of General Motors' sprawling Kansas City, Kansas, factory in more than two months. The factory, which makes the Chevrolet Malibu sedan and the Cadillac XT4 crossover SUV, has been crippled by a global shortage of semiconductors that has hit the nation's automakers particularly hard. The chip shortage has affected both of Kansas City's auto plants: Ford closed its Transit van line this week at the Claycomo Assembly Plant in its latest disruption.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderTop GOP senator says it's 'an impossible sell' for Republicans to strike a deal on an infrastructure package that rolls back Trump tax cuts
Sen. Roger Wicker downplayed the odds of an infrastructure deal that included rolling back Trump's tax cuts. Wicker met with Biden to discuss his jobs plan along with other Republicans and Democrats. Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi, the ranking Republican on the Senate Commerce Committee, downplayed the prospect of a bipartisan deal on President Joe Biden's infrastructure plan that included rolling back the 2017 Trump tax cuts.
BusinessCharlotte ObserverCharlotte housing prices have skyrocketed and supply has plummeted after year of COVID
Last March, the local real estate market was largely shut down amid restrictions on businesses to curb the spread of COVID-19. A year later, the impact of the virus on the housing market is coming into clearer view: March data released Monday reveals the housing crunch has tightened severely. The inventory of homes for sale in Charlotte plummeted 70% from the year before, the report released by the Canopy Realtor Association using MLS data showed.
CelebrityThe TelegraphPrince Harry’s lonely return home without Meghan is royal history repeating itself
As Prince Harry boarded a plane from Los Angeles to London, we can only imagine the inner turmoil he must have felt as he prepared for the long and lonely journey home. Prince Philip's death may have prompted an outpouring of national gratitude and affection, but the question now is whether it can cement the deep fissures within the House of Windsor itself. Not to mention following reports, via Gayle King, a US news anchor and friend of Meghan, that private telephone calls between the California-based prince and his father and brother had been “unproductive” - disclosures said to have gone down badly at the Palace.
“There’s no ‘both sides of the debate’ when it comes to active voter suppression.”
“Companies that do this ooze contempt for their own customers and employees who are not in the leftmost quarter of opinion.”
“The truth is that Fortune 500 companies were never taking moral stances from the goodness of their corporate hearts.”
“The truth is, the companies hold the cards…If companies stick to their guns, Georgia is likely to back down as well.”
“When a company folds to the unfounded outrage of a few misinformed nuts, they are forever at the mob’s beck-and-call.”