WorldLA TimesIn abrupt escalation, Hamas rockets target Jerusalem and Israel retaliates
Hours after hundreds of Palestinians were injured in confrontations with Israeli police near a flashpoint religious site in Jerusalem's contested Old City, Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip fired dozens of rockets into Israel on Monday evening, triggering retaliatory Israeli strikes. The exchange of fire continued into Tuesday, with deadly results. Israeli airstrikes on Gaza killed 26 people, nine of them children, Palestinian health officials said.
U.S.Associated PressRansomware gang threatens release of DC police records
A Russian-speaking ransomware syndicate that stole data from the Washington, D.C., police department says negotiations over payment have broken down and it will release sensitive information that could put lives at risk if more money is not offered. The extortion threat comes amid a separate ransomware attack on a major pipeline that's affected part of the U.S.'s fuel supply, highlighting the power of internet-savvy criminal gangs to sow mayhem from a half a world away with impunity. The Babuk group said on its website late Monday that it would release “all the data” it stole from the Washington police department if it did not “raise the price.”
U.S.AxiosPutin orders new gun control regulations after school shooting kills 8
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday ordered the Russian Federal Service of National Guard Troops to start working on new gun regulations following a school shooting that left at least eight people dead, according to the Kremlin. Driving the news: A gunman on Tuesday morning attacked a school in the city of Kazan and killed seven students and one teacher, while leaving 21 other people hospitalized, AP reports. The suspect was 19 years old and the firearm used was registered in his name, said Rustam Minnikhanov, governor of the Tatarstan republic where Kazan is located, per AP.
WorldAssociated PressScores of dead bodies found floating in India's Ganges River
Scores of dead bodies have been found floating down the Ganges River in eastern India as the country battles a ferocious surge in coronavirus infections. Health officials working through the night Monday retrieved 71 bodies, officials in Bihar state said. More corpses were found floating in the river on Tuesday, washing up in Ghazipur district in neighboring Uttar Pradesh state.
WorldReutersBritish soldiers shot dead innocent Northern Irish people in 1971 - inquiry
British soldiers unjustifiably shot or used disproportionate force in the deaths of nine of the 10 innocent people killed in an 1971 incident in Belfast that sparked an upsurge of violence during Northern Ireland's 'Troubles', a judge-led inquiry found. A Catholic priest and a mother of eight who served soldiers tea during the 'Troubles' were among the victims in an event Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney described on Tuesday as "one of the most tragic days" of Northern Ireland's three decades of bloodshed. Judge Siobhan Keegan delivered her findings to applause from families of the victims shortly after the British government announced it would introduce legislation to give greater protection to former soldiers who served in Northern Ireland, plans Dublin and many in Belfast fiercely oppose.
PoliticsNational ReviewJoni Ernst Accuses GOP of Partaking in ‘Cancel Culture’ over Cheney Ouster
Senator Joni Ernst on Monday likened efforts to remove Representative Liz Cheney (R., Wyo.) from her leadership role to “cancel culture” and accused some of her fellow Republicans of “trying to silence others in the party.” “I feel it's OK to go ahead and express what you feel is right to express and, you know, cancel culture is cancel culture no matter how you look at it,” the senator from Iowa said when asked about the push to oust Cheney. Ernst's comments come as House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R., Calif.) announced that a vote would be held Wednesday on whether to remove Cheney from her role as House Republican Conference chair.
WorldAssociated PressIran rejects US claim that speedboats sparked encounter
Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guard on Tuesday rejected the U.S. Navy's claim that fast-approaching Iranian speedboats in the Strait of Hormuz sparked a tense encounter in the already sensitive region. The Guard's website, sepahnews.com, published a statement Tuesday saying Americans were guilty of using “false narratives and unprofessional behavior” and should more strictly “abide by international regulations. Specifically, the statement said the Guard's navy warned the U.S. vessels to stop their “provocative and aimless shooting.
CelebrityThe TelegraphMelinda Gates met with divorce lawyers in 2019 amid concern over Bill's relationship with Jeffrey Epstein
Melinda Gates first contacted divorce lawyers two years ago, after the scope of her husband Bill's relationship with billionaire paedophile Jeffrey Epstein was made public, it has been claimed. Mr Gates met with the disgraced financier on multiple occasions, even posing for a photo at the New York townhouse where Epstein was accused of abusing young girls, and once stayed there “late into the night,” according to the New York Times. While the 65-year-old has not been accused of any wrongdoing, his dealings with Epstein were a “source of concern” for his wife, 56, a former employee of the Gates Foundation told the Wall Street Journal.
WorldArchitectural Digest31 Glass Coffee Tables for Any and Every Living Room
Could we be any clearer? Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
PoliticsAssociated PressVatican warns US bishops over get-tough Communion proposals
The head of the Vatican's doctrine office is warning U.S. bishops to deliberate carefully and minimize divisions before proceeding with a possible plan to rebuke Roman Catholic politicians such as President Joe Biden for receiving Communion even though they support abortion rights. The strong words of caution came in a letter from Cardinal Luis Ladaria, prefect of the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, addressed to Archbishop José Gomez of Los Angeles, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. There is division among the bishops, with some pressing for Biden and other Catholic public figures to be excluded from Communion over their abortion stance, and other bishops warning that such a move would be politically polarizing.
CelebrityThe WeekCaitlyn Jenner reveals she didn't vote in 2020: 'I just couldn't get excited about it'
California gubernatorial candidate Caitlyn Jenner has revealed she sat out the 2020 election and headed to the golf course instead. Jenner, the former reality TV star and athlete who's running to oust California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) in a recall election, told CNN she "didn't even vote" last year. Jenner is a Republican, and she said that "out here in California," a blue state, voting for a Republican president is "not gonna work."
- SportsYahoo News Video
Medina Spirit could lose Kentucky Derby win and track bans Baffert
Medina Spirit's win in the Kentucky Derby is in serious jeopardy because of a failed postrace drug test, one that led Churchill Downs to suspend Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert on Sunday in the latest scandal to plague the sport.
WorldThe TelegraphStarmer attacked for seeking counsel from Labour's ‘prince of darkness’ Lord Mandelson
Sir Keir Starmer has been urged to publicly renounce Lord Mandelson, as trade union leaders hit out at the growing influence of the prince of darkness'' over the Labour Party. Despite efforts to draw a line under the bitter infighting sparked by his frontbench reshuffle, Sir Keir risked being dragged into a new confrontation on Monday over the role of the Labour grandee, who is said to be providing political counsel to him. Lord Mandelson, who rose to prominence as Tony Blair's "fixer" during the New Labour era, has been increasingly active in recent weeks and has used a number of media interviews to blame Labour's electoral woes on Jeremy Corbyn and the hard-Left.
BusinessNational ReviewBiden Denies Workers Are Turning Down Jobs to Collect Unemployment — Then Announces Push to Make Them Stop
President Biden on Monday claimed that generous unemployment benefits are not incentivizing people to remain out-of-work, arguing that Americans would return to the workforce for a “decent wage,” but nevertheless said that the administration would take action to push would-be workers to accept job offers instead of staying home. “People will come back to work if they're paid a decent wage,” Biden said in an address on the economy at the White House. “We're going to make it clear that anyone collecting unemployment who is offered a suitable job must take the job or lose their unemployment benefits,” Biden continued, before arguing that the dynamic he vowed to address is not prevalent anyway.
U.S.Fort Worth Star-TelegramWoman says she was body shamed and kicked out of Six Flags in Oklahoma over her shorts
A woman said a Six Flags officer threatened and body shamed her over shorts that were deemed too short for the Oklahoma amusement park. Bailey Breedlove — who documented her experience at the Oklahoma City park on TikTok and Facebook — said she has since been banned from Six Flags. Breedlove said she and her family were at Frontier City Theme Park for around two-and-a-half hours on April 30 before an officer approached her daughter for rolling down a hill on her skate shoes.
PoliticsThe GuardianTrump family members got ‘inappropriately close’ to Secret Service agents, book claims
Two Trump family members got “inappropriately – and perhaps dangerously – close” to agents protecting them while Donald Trump was president, according to a new book on the US Secret Service. Zero Fail: The Rise and Fall of the Secret Service, by the Washington Post reporter Carol Leonnig, is published next week. Leonnig won a Pulitzer prize in 2015, for her reporting on security failures at the Secret Service.
HealthNational ReviewFauci: U.S. Needs ‘To Start Being More Liberal’ in Loosening COVID Restrictions
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert, suggested that the U.S. could soon see a loosening of indoor mask requirements and that recommendations should become more “liberal” as more Americans are vaccinated. During an appearance on ABC's This Week, Fauci said he agreed with former FDA commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb, who has said now is the time to loosen indoor mask mandates as more than one-third of U.S. adults is fully vaccinated against COVID. “No I think so, I think you're going to probably see that as we go along and as more people get vaccinated,” Fauci told ABC's George Stephanopoulos.
WorldReutersWHO reviewing Seychelles COVID-19 data after fully vaccinated people test positive
The World Health Organization said on Tuesday it was reviewing coronavirus data from Seychelles after the health ministry said more than a third of people who tested positive for COVID-19 in the past week had been fully vaccinated. Both the ministry and the WHO stressed that the majority of those who tested positive had not been vaccinated or had only received one dose, that no one who had died had been fully vaccinated and that nearly all of those needing treatment for severe or critical cases were unvaccinated. But the WHO said it was closely following the situation in the Indian Ocean nation, which has a population of less than 100,000 and daily cases numbers in the low hundreds.
U.S.INSIDERA Houston man was arrested after fleeing from his home with his pet Bengal tiger. The big cat is still running wild.
Victor Hugo Cuevas was confronted by Houston cops after a tiger was spotted lounging on his lawn. After a short standoff with the cops, Cuevas, 26, took off in a white Jeep - Bengal tiger in tow. The residents of a sleepy West Houston suburb were shocked to see a full-sized Bengal tiger stalking down the street.
HealthCBS NewsPfizer vaccine could be available for ages 2 and up by fall
Data from Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine trials in children aged two years and older could be available as early as this fall, Pfizer's Senior Vice President of Vaccine Clinical Research and Development Dr. William Gruber said, possibly paving the way for use before the end of 2022. The drugmaker is also conducting clinical trials on their vaccine for babies aged six months and older. Speaking on "CBS This Morning" just a day after the Food and Drug Administration granted Pfizer emergency use authorization for its COVID-19 vaccine in children aged 12 to 15, Gruber called the move a "major step" toward herd immunity in the United States.
U.S.The GuardianHomeless Oaklanders were tired of the housing crisis. So they built a ‘miracle’ village
But most importantly, it's fostering a sense of community and dignity, according to the unhoused and housed residents who came together to build it. They hope their innovative approach will lead to big changes in how the city addresses its growing homeless population. It is about uniting everybody,” says Dmitri Schusterman, a nearby resident who also serves as the Director of Innovation for Artists Building Communities, one of the organizations that helped build the center at the end of last year.
WorldReutersLatin America's pandemic tragedy as death toll nears one million
Ñañez's story is a grim reflection of the tragedy unfolding in Latin America, a resource-rich but politically volatile region of some 650 million people stretching from Mexico to the near-Antarctic southern tips of Chile and Argentina. The region has recorded 958,023 coronavirus-related fatalities, a Reuters tally shows, some 28% of the global death toll. It is set to hit the 1 million mark this month, which will make it the second region to do so after Europe.
U.S.Fort Worth Star-TelegramFort Worth mayoral candidate forum will focus on business issues
A Fort Worth mayoral forum featuring Deborah Peoples and Mattie Parker will focus on issues facing the business community. The event is scheduled for 11 a.m. to noon Wednesday at the Texas A&M University School of Law. The forum will be hosted by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce, Fort Worth Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, the Fort Worth Metropolitan Black Chamber of Commerce, the Texas A&M University School of Law and The Meeting Squad.
WorldThe IndependentBiden to discuss Russian ransomware hackers with Putin and suggests Moscow bears ‘some responsibility’
President Joe Biden has announced he would be speaking to Russian President Vladimir Putin on the Colonial Pipeline cyberattack, given the hackers responsible were a Russia-based ransomware group. “I'm going to be meeting with President Putin,” Mr Biden said. Date and location have yet to be announced for the meeting between Mr Biden and the Russian president.
BusinessReutersInflation fears push S&P 500 to one-month low
Wall Street's main indexes fell for a second straight session and the S&P 500 hit a one-month low on Tuesday, as investors feared that rising inflation could push the Federal Reserve to tighten monetary policy faster than expected. The outperformers of 2020, Apple, Amazon.com Inc, Microsoft Corp, Google-parent Alphabet Inc and Tesla Inc fell between 0.8% and 2.4%, weighing the most on the benchmark index. The yield on benchmark U.S. 10-year Treasury note ticked up to session high of 1.631% ahead of consumer price index report on Wednesday.
“If Facebook lets Trump back on Facebook and Instagram, he'll assuredly restart his assault on democracy.”
“Facebook should have known better than to believe that it could limit speech on its platform without setting a terrible precedent.”
“Providing a microphone and an amplifier for deceit isn't fighting the good fight for free speech.”
“It’s no defense of Mr. Trump’s conduct to say that the digital public square shouldn’t suppress speech by political leaders.”
“The former president no longer gets the ‘head of state’ exception to terms of service.”