- WorldThe Telegraph
Beirut explosions: Blast detonated 2,750 tons of chemicals - latest news and video
At least 100 dead and more than 4,000 injured, officials say Thousands of tons of ammonium nitrate detonated Everything we know so far 'It was like a nuclear explosion': How terrified residents fled the fireball Explained: What is ammonium nitrate? In pictures: Ancient city ripped apart The president of Lebanon has said that 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate were detonated in massive blasts in Beirut that have killed at least 100 people and injured more than 4,000. Explosions shook Lebanon's capital on Tuesday and the death toll is expected to rise.
- U.S.National Review
Poll: Most Black Americans Want Police to Remain in Their Areas
Most black Americans say they want police to continue their current presence in local areas, even as protests against racism and police brutality sweep the nation, and calls to reform and even defund police departments persist. Close to two-thirds, 61 percent, of black Americans said they want the police presence in their area to remain the same, while 20 percent said they would like to see police spend more time in their neighborhood, according to a new Gallup poll. Another 19 percent said they would like to see the police presence in their area decrease.
- PoliticsUSA TODAY
'Blatant disrespect of Black women': Women leaders criticize treatment of Black women being considered as Biden VP pick
WASHINGTON – Over 100 Black women leaders and activists slammed comments made of Black women being considered to be Joe Biden's running mate as racist and sexist in an open letter published Wednesday. Sen. Kamala Harris, Rep. Karen Bass, former US Ambassador Susan Rice, Rep. Val Demings and former Georgia Democratic Gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams have all been floated as possible vice presidential contenders for Biden. The letter comes as Biden is nearing an announcement on his vice presidential pick.
- WorldBusiness Insider
A Uighur man recorded life inside a high-security Chinese internment camp. Here's what he said it was like.
Mergan Ghappar, a 31-year-old Uighur man from Xinjiang, China, had been working as a model in Foshan, southern China. More than a month later, he contacted his family to say he was in an internment camp for Uighurs in Xinjiang, and described the brutal conditions there, the BBC reported. Ghappar had smuggled a cell phone into the camp, and was able to record footage of himself and the camp's conditions, which have since been passed to the BBC and The Globe and Mail.
- WorldThe Independent
One American is dying every 80 seconds from coronavirus as Trump shrugs off death toll: ‘It is what it is’
At least one person in the United States has died every 80 seconds on average over the last seven days, according to new research, as President Donald Trump said the nation's soaring death toll “is what it is” in a recent interview. The grim figures were first reported by NBC News on Wednesday, which noted its own tally revealed 7,486 people died in the last seven days due to Covid-19. Whereas the rate of deaths was somewhat slower in July, with one American dying every 102 seconds on average throughout the month, the latest figures appeared to show an acceleration in pace, as NBC News reported.
- U.S.INSIDER
A Florida woman was kicked off American Airlines flight for wearing a 'F--- 12' face mask
Joe Raedle/Getty Images A South Florida woman was kicked off an American Airlines flight for wearing an "offensive" face mask, Miami's WPLG reported. Arlinda Johns told the outlet that she complied when asked to cover her face mask that read "F--- 12," but was later escorted off the plane. The airline said in a statement to Insider that Johns "refused to follow crew member instructions to remove or cover a face mask with offensive language."
- PoliticsNBC News
Senate Democrats propose 'Force to Fight COVID-19' in next relief package
The senators' so-called Force to Fight COVID-19 proposal combines seven existing bills, including ones with bipartisan support, that were drafted in response to the coronavirus pandemic, which has strained hospitals and public health agencies, shuttered businesses and left about 30 million Americans to file for unemployment. "Americans need resources and coordination in order to save lives, end the pandemic, its broader social consequences, and get our lives to 'normal,'" the senators wrote in a letter shared with NBC News and sent to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif.
- WorldBBC
Kashmir: 'I could land up in jail if I express myself freely'
On 5 August last year India revoked the special status of Jammu and Kashmir, split it into two federally-run territories and imposed an unprecedented lockdown. Jehangir Ali reports from Srinagar on why the move has come as a blow to freedom of expression in the valley. Months after Narendra Modi's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) stripped the region of its autonomy, a homemaker in the Muslim-dominated valley told a friend of her son to be careful.
- U.S.CBS News
NYC setting up COVID-19 checkpoints for visitors
New York's Governor Andrew Cuomo announced Tuesday that New York City had no COVID-19 deaths for three straight days. Despite the progress, the governor issued a stark warning for residents to continue to take the virus seriously — and the city announced it's setting up checkpoints to inform visitors of quarantine rules. "Our progress in New York is even better than we expected, thanks to the hard work of New Yorkers," Cuomo said in a statement.
- U.S.Military Times
Esper says he underestimated how much racial injustice affects service members
In the wake of the late May killing of George Floyd, an unarmed Black man prosecutors say was murdered by a white Minneapolis police officer, nationwide protests and demonstrations stirred up feelings across the military services, up to and including the Pentagon's boss. Defense Secretary Mark Esper said Wednesday that the moment was a wake-up call not only for America, but for himself, and has shaped his recent efforts around diversity and inclusion in the Defense Department. “I don't think what everybody appreciated — at least me, personally — is the depth of sentiment out there among our service members of color, particularly Black Americans, about how much the killing of George Floyd — and the other incidents that preceded it and succeeded it — had on them and what they were experiencing in the ranks as well,” Esper said during a virtual appearance at the Aspen Security Forum.
- U.S.Reuters
Georgia prosecutor asks court to revoke bond for former Atlanta policeman charged with murder
A Georgia prosecutor has asked a judge to revoke the bond for the former Atlanta policeman charged with murder in the shooting of Rayshard Brooks, saying in court papers that he had violated its terms by taking an out-of-state vacation. Brooks, a Black man, was fatally shot in June in the parking lot of a Wendy's restaurant in Atlanta, an incident that was caught on video and set off days of protests over racial inequality and social injustice. District Attorney Paul Howard asked the court late on Tuesday to send former officer Garrett Rolfe, 27, back to jail for violating the terms of his bond, which include a 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew and an order that he stays within the court's jurisdiction.
- WorldUSA TODAY
This is what it looked like after the US dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima 75 years ago
The most powerful weapon to ever be used against other humans was detonated by the United States in Japan 75 years ago. On August 6, 1945, a B-29 bomber famously known as the Enola Gay dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, marking the first of two times the bomb has ever been used in warfare. The city was leveled – less than 10 percent of the buildings in Hiroshima were left undamaged by the bomb, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.
- PoliticsFOX News Videos
Sen. Blackburn: Democrats will not come out and say violence and breaking the law is wrong
Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn reacts to the heated Senate hearing on Antifa and the upcoming hearing on Sally Yates and the Russia probe.
- WorldBusiness Insider
Aerial footage shows the full scale of Beirut's devastating explosion, which killed 100 and reduced buildings into rubble
Aerial footage broadcast by Sky News show the full scale of the explosion that rocked Beirut on Tuesday. The government said the blast was caused by a stockpile of 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate that had been kept at the port for years. Numerous hospitals were damaged in the explosion, meaning they could not treat many of those injured who needed medical care.
WorldAFPUS announces 'highest level' visit in decades to Taiwan
The United States on Wednesday announced its "highest level" visit in decades to Taiwan, a move sure to infuriate China at a time when relations between Washington and Beijing are at historic lows. Washington's trade office in Taipei confirmed that health chief Alex Azar would lead an upcoming delegation to the self-ruled island, which China's communist leaders claim and have vowed to one day seize. "This marks... the first Cabinet member to visit in six years, and the highest level visit by a US Cabinet official since 1979," the American Institute in Taiwan said.
- PoliticsThe Week
Biden may have narrowed his VP list down to Kamala Harris and Susan Rice
Former Vice President Joe Biden could be down to two contenders in his search for a running mate. A new report from Axios details how Biden confidants believe he has narrowed his list down to Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) and former National Security Adviser Susan Rice. As far as Harris goes, Axios writes that Biden's brain trust has "deep and trusting relationships" with those who are pushing for the California senator while touting her skills as a prosecutor.
- SportsArchitectural Digest
Direct-to-Consumer Furniture Brand Burrow Expands Its Offerings
The company is welcoming benches and credenzas to its product line starting today Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
- U.S.The Telegraph
Governor Cuomo begs wealthy New Yorkers to come home to save ailing city
The governor of New York has begged the city's wealthy, who fled the coronavirus outbreak, to return and help it recover. Andrew Cuomo said he was extremely worried about New York City weathering the Covid-19 aftermath if too many of the well-heeled taxpayers who fled to second homes decide there is no need to move back. They are in their Hamptons homes, or Hudson Valley or Connecticut.
- PoliticsThe Independent
Trump campaign demands early September presidential debate
Donald Trump's campaign has requested the first presidential debate ahead of November's general election be rescheduled to early September if a fourth debate cannot be added to the schedule. A letter from the president's personal attorney Rudy Giuliani, to the Commission on Presidential Debates argued that voting in more than a dozen other states means several million voters will already have cast mailed-in ballots before the first scheduled debate on 29 September. “For a nation already deprived of a traditional campaign schedule because of the Covid-19 global pandemic, it makes no sense to also deprive so many Americans of the opportunity to see and hear the two competing visions for our country's future before millions of votes have been cast,” said Giuliani, calling the current schedule “an outdated dinosaur and not reflective of voting realities in 2020.”
- U.S.BBC
Chicago rapper FBG Duck killed in brazen daytime shopping attack
A Chicago rapper known as FBG Duck has been killed in an upscale retail shopping district as the city reels from above average levels of violence. The rapper, whose legal name is Carlton Weekly, was shot by four people who emerged from two cars at 16:30 local time (22:30BST) on Tuesday, then fled. The shooting occurred in the Gold Coast area, a luxury and boutique shopping district near the city's downtown.
- U.S.USA TODAY
MS-13 gang members charged with sex trafficking, other charges in abuse of 13-year-old runaway
Federal prosecutors have charged 11 alleged members and associates of the MS-13 street gang with sex trafficking and other charges after they say a 13-year-old runaway was repeatedly beaten with a baseball bat and forced into prostitution in northern Virginia. A child trafficking task force found the 13-year-old girl nearly two months later at an apartment in Mount Rainier, Maryland. The girl, initially reluctant to talk to police, eventually told authorities she was twice beaten on her backside and legs 26 times on two separate occasions with a baseball bat – once as an initiation to the gang, and once as a punishment for talking to rival gang members and allegedly stealing from fellow gang members.
- WorldNBC News
Latin America now has world's highest coronavirus death toll
Latin America surpassed Europe on Tuesday to become the region with the highest coronavirus death toll worldwide, according to a Reuters tally. The region has now recorded more than 206,000 deaths, approximately 30% of the global total. Brazil, the Latin American country most affected by the novel coronavirus, has now recorded a total of 95,819 deaths as of Tuesday.
- SportsBusiness Insider
An unassuming Las Vegas house with a massive bunker 26 feet underground and a faux outdoor space is on the market for $18 million — take a look inside
Las Vegas underground house. Las Vegas underground house. Las Vegas underground house.
- LifestyleINSIDER
I tried making Guy Fieri's signature recipes for a week, and I didn't love my whole trip to Flavortown
For one week, I recreated seven of Guy Fieri's signature recipes and favorite go-to meals to see if they lived up to their hype. Food Network personality and restaurateur Guy Fieri has established himself as the "Mayor of Flavortown" with his unique brand of down-to-earth humor and non-pretentious, yet elevated, American cuisine. Fieri's eccentric style has become iconic, and his twists on classic recipes like mac and cheese and chili are well-known among fans.
- WorldDefense News
A nuclear sea-launched cruise missile will help deter nuclear aggression
The United States retired both the warheads and the systems that carried them, including the nuclear Tomahawk Land Attack Cruise Missile. The TLAM-N was deployed from 1983 to 1991 on surface ships and submarines before being retired in 2010. Unfortunately, Russia and China did not follow our example regarding this class of weapons, and are instead expanding their arsenals despite repeated U.S. overtures for negotiations.
“He’s not a radical. But he is running on the most liberal policy platform of any Democratic candidate in modern history.”
“Public opinion has been shifting leftward, and Biden’s thinking has shifted with it.”
“Biden shows that he’s more moderate than some in his party.”
“Biden has always been a creature of his time, and the COVID-19 crisis could force him to veer further left.”
“Liberal activists have lauded the campaign’s outreach to progressives.”