- PoliticsUSA TODAY
Coast Guard officer, self-described white nationalist, planned terror attack to 'kill almost every last person,' feds say
A U.S. Coast Guard lieutenant and self-described white nationalist planned a domestic terrorist attack targeting politicians and journalists, federal prosecutors say in court papers. Christopher Paul Hasson was arrested last week on gun and drug charges, but intended "to murder innocent civilians on a scale rarely seen in this country," according to court documents filed Tuesday in the U.S. District Court in Maryland. Hasson was scheduled to appear in court Thursday afternoon in Maryland.
WorldReutersVietnam announces traffic ban for possible Kim Jong Un summit arrival route
Vietnam will ban traffic on the road North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is expected to take from a train station on the Chinese border to the capital, Hanoi, ahead of his summit next week with U.S. President Donald Trump, state media reported on Friday. Vietnam has been preparing for Kim to arrive by train for the Feb. 27-28 summit in Hanoi, two sources with direct knowledge of security and logistics planning told Reuters on Wednesday. Kim's train will stop at the border station of Dong Dang where he will disembark and proceed 170 km (105 miles) to Hanoi by car, the sources said.
WorldAFPTwo killed as Venezuela aid showdown turns violent
Ureña (Venezuela) (AFP) - A high-risk operation to get humanitarian aid into Venezuela descended into deadly chaos Saturday after President Nicolas Maduro's security forces fired on demonstrators and aid trucks were set ablaze. Two people, including a 14-year-old boy, were killed in clashes with security forces that left more than 300 people wounded at various border crossings. Despite a blockade by Maduro, opposition leader Juan Guaido had set a Saturday deadline for the delivery of food and medical aid stockpiled in Colombia and Brazil.
- NewsThe Independent
Girl banned from wearing MAGA hat claims school is violating her First Amendment rights
A California high school student who was banned from wearing a “Make America Great Again” hat on campus is challenging her school district for impinging on her First Amendment rights. Maddie Mueller, who attends Clovis North High School in Fresno, is a member of Valley Patriots. The conservative activist group asked its affiliates to wear the well-known hat bearing Donald Trump's campaign motto on Wednesday.
WorldAssociated PressFrench bishops agree to compensation for sex abuse victims
Still struggling to come to terms with their share of responsibility in the clerical sex abuse scandal rocking the Catholic Church, France's bishops have agreed to award financial compensation to victims whose cases fall outside of France's statute of limitations. "We have agreed in principle to make a financial gesture," Vincent Neymon, head of communications for the French bishops'conference, told The Associated Press in an interview this week. France has not been immune to the scandal that has prompted a credibility crisis for the Catholic hierarchy, and that is the topic of a summit at the Vatican this week on preventing sex abuse and prosecuting pedophile priests.
BusinessUSA TODAYSouthwest Airlines flights temporarily grounded due to computer outage
Southwest Airlines suffered a computer outage early Friday that temporarily grounded flights across the country, adding to a string of flight woes at the airline this week. Southwest had some issues with a computer system that automatically uploads flight plans to the Federal Aviation Administration, FAA spokesman Lynn Lunsford said. Southwest said in a statement that it suspended operations for about 50 minutes early Friday to "ensure performance'' of software systems that were upgraded overnight.
PoliticsFOX News VideosKamala Harris and Elizabeth Warren reportedly say they support reparations for black Americans affected by slavery
Senators Kamala Harris and Elizabeth Warren reportedly say they support reparations for black Americans affected by slavery.
NewsAFPFrom shy student to IS polemicist, Hoda Muthana in US crosshairs
After her abrupt transformation into a fiery supporter of Islamic State extremists, she is under the scanner of the top levels of the US government. The 24-year-old, who has since been married to three different jihadist men and has a toddler son, says she regrets her turn to radicalism and wants to return home -- but President Donald Trump has personally intervened to block her. Growing up in Hoover, Alabama, a prosperous suburb of Birmingham with a sizable Muslim community, Muthana was raised by strict Yemeni immigrant parents who forbade her from owning a smartphone -- ubiquitous among US teenagers -- until she finished high school.
- BusinessThe Independent
Airlines admit having cameras installed on back of passengers' seats
Three of the world's biggest airlines have admitted some of their planes have cameras installed on the backs of passenger seats. American Airlines, United Airlines and Singapore Airlines have new seat-back entertainment systems that include cameras. Companies that make the entertainment systems are fitting them with cameras to offer passengers options such as seat-to-seat video conferencing, according to an American Airlines spokesman.
- WorldReuters
Pakistan reimposes ban on Islamist charities linked to militant leader
Pakistan has re-instated a ban on two charities linked to the founder of an Islamist militant group that has carried out attacks in India, the interior ministry said on Friday. The ban comes as Pakistan faces international pressure to act against militant groups, amid escalating tension with its nuclear-armed neighbor, India, following a suicide bomb attack on Indian police in the disputed region of Kashmir. The attack, in which 40 Indian paramilitary troops were killed, was claimed by the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) militant group.
WorldBloombergFiery Skirmishes Erupt as Guaido Tries to Bring Venezuela Aid
On the border with Colombia, National Guard soldiers fired volleys of tear gas and plastic pellets at supporters of opposition leader Juan Guaido, who were trying to persuade them to defect and permit tons of food and medicine into the country. Masked paramilitary gangs supporting the autocrat Maduro tore through the area there on motorcycles, firing guns in the air. Maduro said on state television that his forces had managed to repel an invasion and said he was breaking off diplomatic relations with Colombia.
WorldAFPVietnam readying for Kim train arrival next week: sources
Vietnamese authorities are preparing for North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to arrive by train next week ahead of his summit with US president Donald Trump, several sources told AFP Friday. The leaders are slated to meet in Hanoi on February 27-28 to follow up on their first meeting last June in Singapore that ended with vaguely worded commitments on dismantling Pyongyang's nuclear programme. In the northeastern Chinese city of Dandong, which borders on North Korea, there were signs that Kim's train could be crossing over into China imminently en route to Vietnam.
- WorldTime
Saudi Sisters Stranded for Months in Hong Kong After Fleeing the Kingdom, Rights Group Says
Two Saudi Arabian sisters have spent almost six months hiding in Hong Kong after authorities reportedly foiled an attempt to flee the conservative kingdom, a human rights group says. Using aliases to protect their identities, non-profit Justice Centre Hong Kong said in a statement that Reem, 20, and Rawan, 18, arrived in the city on Sept. 6, 2018, after escaping during a family holiday in the Sri Lankan capital Colombo. The pair had booked a connecting flight to Melbourne Australia, where they planned to seek asylum, but they were intercepted upon landing and told their flight had been cancelled.
- CelebrityUSA TODAY
How did police catch 'Empire' actor Jussie Smollett? Lots and lots of cameras
CHICAGO – Dozens of private and city-owned security cameras played a critical role in helping investigators unravel “Empire” actor Jussie Smollett's alleged hoax attack, police and prosecutors say. Officials say investigators were suspicious of Smollett from the outset. Officers were dispatched to investigate a brutal racist, homophobic attack on Smollett early on the morning of Jan. 29.
NewsAssociated PressThe Latest: Part of I-10 closed because of snow
Car crashes and heavy snow have closed part of Interstate 10 in southeastern Arizona, an important corridor for commerce. The Arizona Department of Transportation said Friday it had closed eastbound lanes near Benson and has no estimated reopening time. Winter weather has shut down several roads and small highways around Arizona.
PoliticsReutersAs 2020 candidates turn left, some Democrats worry about the center
Party activists have been energized as Cory Booker, Kirsten Gillibrand, Kamala Harris and other candidates endorsed plans to provide Medicare coverage to every American, some form of tuition-free college, a national $15 minimum wage and the so-called “Green New Deal” advocated by U.S. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Some Democrats fear the argument has potency. "The big progressive programs are popular in a caucus or primary electorate, but probably don't move the needle among voters who want to find someone who will change Washington by tilting the system to favor people in the middle — not the very rich or the very poor,” said Jeff Link, an Iowa Democrat who worked for former President Barack Obama's campaign.
WorldAFPDecision time, not extra time, EU Brexit negotiator says
Brexit talks now require a "decision" rather than going into "extra time", the EU's chief negotiator Michel Barnier said Friday as the clock runs down on March 29 when Britain is set to leave the block, with or without an exit deal. "We don't need extra time, what we need now is a decision and for everyone to take responsibility," Barnier told Europe 1 radio. He did not exclude granting Britain more negotiating time -- beyond March 29 -- for concluding an agreement on the Brexit divorce terms, but said it was now up to "the British to take their responsibilities and assume the consequences of decisions they took democratically," he said.
- LifestyleCar and Driver
A 1967 Ford Mustang Fastback Is the Latest to Be Immortalized in Legos
This 1970s-era Ford Mustang kit is customizable; there's a supercharger, front and rear spoilers, tail or side pipes, and even a nitrous-oxide tank. A removable roof panel permits access to the attentively detailed interior. The kit will be available directly from Lego stores or online, starting March 1.
- LifestyleMashable
Get the Insignia 8-Quart Multi-Function Pressure Cooker for less than $40 at Best Buy
When you get home from a long day, the last thing you want to do is spend an hour bent over a hot stove making dinner. Yeah you can pop something in a slow cooker before you leave for your day, but that takes advanced planning and sometimes you just don't have the time or energy for that. With a pressure cooker, you can just toss ingredients in like a slow cooker, but the food cooks in a fraction of the time.
- WorldThe Independent
Venezuela: Two killed in clashes over humanitarian aid as Maduro breaks relations with Colombia
At least two people have been killed in Venezuela in clashes with security forces over the opposition's plan to bring in humanitarian aid from neighbouring Brazil and Colombia, doctors said. Hospital staff in a town near the border said another 18 were injured as violence between residents and soldiers erupted, though Bogota later claimed a much higher figure of 285. Trucks loaded with food were set ablaze after president Nicolas Maduro deployed troops and armoured vehicles to turn back humanitarian assistance at border crossings.
WorldAssociated PressWorry about US-SKorea alliance grows before Trump-Kim summit
As President Donald Trump seeks a nuclear deal with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un next week in Vietnam, some in Seoul are wondering if the fate of Washington's decades-long military alliance with South Korea could be at stake. Much of this worry is linked to Trump's repeated assertions that the U.S. military deployment in South Korea is too costly, and to his surprise suspension of some U.S. military exercises with South Korea — including a major summertime drill — as a concession to Kim after their first summit in Singapore last year. Added to this concern are policies by South Korea's liberal President Moon Jae-in that critics say favor engagement with North Korea at the expense of the alliance with Washington.
NewsUSA TODAYIt's not just the Florida spa investigation allegedly tied to Robert Kraft. Sex trafficking is rampant across US
While charges against New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft for soliciting prostitution brought national attention to the issue of sex trafficking on Friday, data, expert opinion and cases from around the USA show how widespread the problem is. Sex trafficking accounted for 6,081 of the more than 8,500 reported cases of human trafficking in the United States in 2017, according to statistics from the National Human Trafficking Hotline. There is no official estimate of the total number of human trafficking victims in the U.S. Polaris, a non-profit that operates the hotline on human trafficking, estimates that the total number of victims nationally reaches into the hundreds of thousands when estimates of both adults and minors and sex trafficking and labor trafficking are aggregated.
- CelebrityUSA TODAY
Twitter rips PETA for criticizing Steve Irwin's Google doodle on the late conservationist's birthday
After tweeting criticism of the late wildlife conservationist and TV personality Steve Irwin, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals is facing backlash on social media. Irwin would have turned 57 on Friday, and to honor the host of "The Crocodile Hunter," Google changed the logo on its search page. The doodle was a slideshow featuring illustrations of Irwin searching for crocodiles and feeding the animals while working at the Australia Zoo.
StyleAFP Relax NewsMilan fashion week: catwalk beauty looks from day two
Day two of Milan Fashion Week was all about classic red lipstick and glossy hair. At Fendi, the models had the front sections of their hair gelled into a wet-look texture and combed forward to curl off to one side of the forehead, forming a modern twist on the '50s quiff. Bleached brows and razor-sharp center parts made for a severe yet beguiling beauty look at Prada, teamed with matte complexions.
