WorldYahoo News‘They responded by killing us’: Nigerians seek to end police brutality with #EndSARS protests
Protests calling for an end to police brutality in the West African country of Nigeria turned deadly this week after soldiers in Lagos opened fire on demonstrators on Tuesday, killing at least 12 people. Soldiers from a police unit called the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, or SARS, shot at protesters who had gathered in the Lekki toll gate area of Lagos, according to Amnesty International. There was] no provocation whatsoever,” Chioma Agwuegbo, an activist in Nigeria, told Yahoo News in a video chat interview.
PoliticsYahoo NewsWhy 780 retired generals and former national security leaders spoke out against Trump
On June 1, retired Army Vice Chief of Staff Gen. Peter Chiarelli sat staring out at the Pacific Ocean in Gearhart, Ore., where his family had vacationed throughout his long military career. In a Rose Garden speech that afternoon, President Trump addressed the racial justice protests spreading across the nation after the brutal killing of George Floyd in police custody a week earlier. In the speech, Trump proclaimed himself “your president of law and order,” and claimed the protests had been hijacked by “professional anarchists, violent mobs, arsonists, looters, criminals, rider rioters, antifa and others” intent on “domestic terror.”
U.S.USA TODAY'Mama, they just shot us for nothing': Waukegan police officer fatally shoots Black teen, injures woman
The incident happened just before midnight Tuesday, when an officer approached a "suspicious" vehicle, Waukegan Police Commander Edgar Navarro told reporters Wednesday. As the officer was conducting his investigation, the vehicle fled and was spotted moments later by another officer, who got out of his car to approach the vehicle, Navarro said. "That officer exited his vehicle, and the vehicle that he was investigating began to reverse towards the officer.
LifestyleArchitectural Digest26 Neutral Rugs That Make the Case for Beige
Warm up any room with a wallet-friendly classic. Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
- PoliticsReuters Videos
Trump says Obama underestimated him
Obama returned to the campaign trail on Wednesday, launching a blistering attack on Donald Trump with less than two weeks to go before the Republican president's Election Day face-off with Democratic nominee Joe Biden. Trump also referenced his interview with 60 Minutes this week, telling his supporters "we have a little surprise" for the CBS news program. The last days of campaigning are taking place amid a surge in new cases of COVID-19 and hospitalizations in battleground states, including North Carolina and Pennsylvania but also Wisconsin, Ohio, and Michigan.
- WorldChristian Science Monitor
After teacher’s murder, France touts secularism. But Muslims feel heat.
Marie Saumet was meant to be enjoying last weekend relaxing with friends in the northern French town of Tours. Instead, she donned her mask, made a sign reading “Je suis enseignante” (“I am a teacher”), and joined the tens of thousands of people across France protesting the killing of junior high teacher Samuel Paty last Friday in the sleepy town of Conflans-Sainte-Honorine. “Freedom of expression is part of our national education program, and teachers are the ones taking on these politicized topics,” says Ms. Saumet, who is a history and geography teacher in the Paris suburbs.
U.S.INSIDERA sheriff's sergeant is questioning the rescued Zion National Park hiker's story, saying there's no way she could have survived for 2 weeks off river water
Holly Courtier was found in Zion National Park in Utah on Sunday, nearly two weeks after she disappeared on a day hike. Sgt. Darrell Cashin, who helped the search-and-rescue effort, now says he has questions about Courtier's story and pointed out discrepancies. For example, Courtier's daughter told CNN that her mother hit her head early in the hike and became so dehydrated that she couldn't open her mouth.
PoliticsThe IndependentMitch McConnell’s hand is discoloured and bandaged – but he insists nothing is wrong
After photos showing his hand discoloured and bandaged went viral earlier this week, Mitch McConnell denied that he had any health issues. The Republican Senate Majority Leader was pictured reaching down to pick up a face mask he had dropped, showing the skin on his right hand much darker than the rest of his body, and a bandage around his thumb. The Independent has contacted Senator McConnell's office for comment but was yet to receive a response.
WorldMiami HeraldTrinidad says idle Venezuela oil vessel not a threat. Environmentalists are not convinced.
The government of Trinidad and Tobago said Thursday that a floating oil-storage vessel with nearly 55 million gallons of Venezuelan crude oil floating off its coast is not taking on water and shows no sign of capsizing and creating an environmental disaster off the coast of South America. Trinidad Energy Minister Franklin Khan also confirmed press reports that Venezuela had started to transfer the crude oil onboard the FSO Nabarima to a tanker via a barge. Khan said while the process of emptying the 1.3 million barrels of oil from the Nabarima is safe, they are concerned about the inordinate amount of time — approximately 35 days — it will take and plan to ask Venezuela to use a larger ship.
U.S.Associated PressJudge dismisses 1 charge against former cop in Floyd’s death
A Minnesota judge has dismissed a third-degree murder charge filed against the former Minneapolis police officer who pressed his knee against George Floyd's neck, saying there was not enough probable cause for that count to proceed to trial. Hennepin County District Judge Peter Cahill's ruling, dated Wednesday and made public Thursday, found probable cause for Chauvin to be tried on one count of unintentional second-degree murder and one count of second-degree manslaughter. Cahill also found probable cause to move forward with the aiding and abetting counts against three other former officers, Thomas Lane, J. Kueng and Tou Thao.
WorldThe TelegraphOne million Hong Kongers coming to UK could generate £6bn in tax revenues
Up to one million Hong Kongers could take up the UK's citizenship offer to escape Chinese repression, netting the UK economy nearly £6 billion in tax revenues, a Home Office assessment has revealed. The influx – as a result of the Government's fast-track immigration lifeboat for Hong Kongers – would see up to 500,000 arrive in the UK in the first year, dwarfing any previous similar scheme, from the 15,000 Windrush arrivals in the 1950s to the 28,000 Ugandan Asians in the 1970s. The total potential one million spread over five years would be larger than the population of Liverpool and would bring the number of Chinese in the UK to 1.5 million, overtaking the number of Indians at 1.4 million.
WorldReutersExclusive: 'Dumb mistake' exposed Iranian hand behind fake Proud Boys U.S. election emails - sources
Government analysts and private sector investigators were able to rapidly attribute to Iranian hackers a wave of thousands of threatening emails aimed at U.S. voters because of mistakes made in a video attached to some of the messages, according to four people familiar with the matter. Those failures provided a rare opportunity for the U.S. government to identify and publicly announce blame for a malicious cyber operation in a matter of days, something that usually requires months of technical analysis and supporting intelligence. "Either they made a dumb mistake or wanted to get caught," said a senior U.S. government official, who asked not to be identified.
PoliticsThe IndependentLindsey Graham accused of dodging debate as polls show challenger Jaime Harrison closing in
Senator Lindsey Graham skipped a debate and insisted he would not return to his home state of South Carolina until Supreme Court nominee Judge Amy Coney Barrett was confirmed by the senate, as polls showed him facing an increasingly tough re-election bid. The senator did not attend the debate previously scheduled for Wednesday against his Democratic challenger Jaime Harrison, stating at a rally earlier in the week that he was “headed back to Washington” and adding: “I'm not coming back until Amy Coney Barrett is a Supreme Court Justice.” Recent polls have shown Mr Harrison, associate chairman of the Democratic National Committee and a former chair of the state's Democratic Party, rising in his bid to unseat the Republican incumbent.
WorldAssociated PressTurkey slams joint declaration by Cyprus, Greece and Egypt
Turkey's Foreign Ministry on Thursday slammed a joint statement by Greece, Cyprus and Egypt that condemns Turkish energy exploration in the eastern Mediterranean and numerous “provocations” that they maintain are threatening regional peace. The Foreign Ministry said in a statement that it “fully rejected the declaration containing baseless accusations and allegations.” During a trilateral regional summit Wednesday in Nicosia, Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis urged Ankara to end its “aggressive" actions.
U.S.USA TODAYTexas woman died from COVID-19 after Spirit flight was diverted to Albuquerque in July
A woman in her 30s died from COVID-19 while on a Spirit Airlines flight in July, according to airport officials in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The late July flight from Las Vegas to Dallas-Fort Worth was diverted to Albuquerque when the crew reported an unresponsive female on board, Stephanie Kitts, a spokesperson for Albuquerque International Sunport, said in an email to The Arizona Republic, part of the USA TODAY Network. "Based on that report, and the fact that there was no mention of COVID at the time of the diversion, we treated this as we would any other medical incident," Kitts said.
PoliticsThe WeekTrump says he'll 'terminate' ObamaCare if he wins re-election
But Trump would "like to terminate ObamaCare" and "come up with a brand new beautiful plan," which he thinks will happen because the Democrats would be under "tremendous pressure." "We might even have the House by that time," Trump said, repeating that "I think we're going to win the House." Trump later revealed a bit more about his overly hopeful House victory plan: He's counting on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's (D-Calif.
PoliticsReutersExplainer: Red mirage, blue mirage - Beware of early U.S. election wins
The states that count mail-in votes before Election Day are likely to give Biden an early lead, since opinion polls and early voting data suggest those ballots favor the Democrat. Conversely, the states that do not tally mail-in votes until Nov. 3 will likely swing initially for Trump. These so-called red or blue mirages will disappear as more ballots are counted, though experts say it may take days or even weeks to process the huge number of mail-in ballots, spurred by voters seeking to avoid crowded polling stations because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
PoliticsUSA TODAY100-year-old voter shares advice ahead of election, names favorite president in her lifetime
Mabel Cook is older than the right to vote, and in advance of her 101st birthday on Oct. 28, she exercised that right. The only reason she did not vote for the other four — Woodrow Wilson, Warren G. Harding, Calvin Coolidge or Herbert Hoover — was because she was just too young. Now, at her advanced age, Cook is living up to her maiden name — Duty — by doing her civic duty and voting.
PoliticsThe Independent2020 polls: Half of all Americans want Trump criminally investigated after presidency, Independent poll finds
Donald Trump is gearing up to “beat off” state and federal probes based in New York City of his finances, business dealings and family, investigations nearly half of Americans support, according to an exclusive new poll. “They then send it to New York, which is all political,” he said of former Special Counsel Robert Mueller deferring some parts of his 2016 Russia election meddling probe to the Justice Department's Southern District of New York. “It's the same stuff, they send to New York, have to beat that off, you know, they've got New York all over,” the president said without elaborating on anything he might have a hunch federal prosecutors are looking into.
WorldAssociated PressIn Dubai, oil-rich UAE sees a new wonder: A coal power plant
A new wonder is rising in the southern desert of Dubai against the backdrop of Persian Gulf beaches, but it's not another skyscraper to grace the futuristic sheikhdom. The construction of the $3.4 billion Hassyan plant in Dubai appears puzzling, as the United Arab Emirates hosts the headquarters of the International Renewable Energy Agency. It's also building the peninsula's first nuclear power plant and endlessly promotes its vast solar-power plant named after Dubai's ruler.
WorldReutersEU tells Britain to make up its mind as Brexit deal 'within reach'
The European Union told Britain on Wednesday to make up its mind on Brexit, putting the onus back on London to unlock trade talks as the bloc's chief negotiator said an agreement was still within reach with 10 weeks to go. A frustrated European Union and piqued Britain both exhorted each other this week to compromise to avoid a disruptive finale to the five-year Brexit drama that would add to economic pain from the coronavirus crisis. "Time is very short and we stand ready to negotiate 24/7, on all subjects, on legal texts.
PoliticsAssociated PressJob on the line, Wray threads needle on controversial issues
Less than four years into his 10-year term, FBI Director Christopher Wray's future in the job is decidedly uncertain heading into the presidential election. President Donald Trump has been escalating his rhetoric against Wray, angry over his public statements on issues like antifa, voting fraud and Russian election interference. With Washington abuzz about his possible dismissal, Wray and the FBI have engaged in a delicate balancing act as they address hot-button issues.
WorldUSA TODAYFact check: Australia never counted Aboriginal people as animals under 'Flora and Fauna Act'
The claim: Until the 1960s, Australia classified its Aboriginal population as animals under the Flora and Fauna Act That their government used to group Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as wildlife is a prevalent claim in Australia, one that's been frequently repeated in recent years online as well as by Australian politicians and celebrities. Upon becoming the first Aboriginal person elected to the New South Wales Parliament in 2003, Linda Burney said: “For the first 10 years of my life, like all Indigenous people at the time, I was not a citizen of this country. We existed under the Flora and Fauna Act of New South Wales.
SportsMiami Herald‘Nature can sure throw some curveballs.’ Two deer die with antlers locked in Kansas
Two bucks died in Kansas with their antlers locked together, leaving a big clue about how they died. Kansas Wildlife, Parks and Tourism game wardens posted a Facebook photo Thursday of the deer lying on a field of grass with their antlers still touching. “Nature can sure throw some curveballs at times,” the game wardens posted.
PoliticsAssociated PressBiden's lessons learned: spending time, money in Midwest
Joe Biden has visited Wisconsin just twice as the 2020 Democratic presidential nominee. More than budgeting some of his carefully planned time, and certainly spending prodigiously more money on advertising, Biden's team also has attempted to correct Clinton's more glaring failure in the two states by reaching out directly to voters. “When you don't come and ask people for their vote, they feel like it doesn't matter," said Karen Finney, a senior Clinton adviser who in retrospect says Clinton's campaign was more concerned with modeling voter behavior than reaching voters.
“Until solar and wind power take more of the energy load, I like not paying an arm and a leg to heat my house.”
“It is imperative to ramp down greenhouse gas emissions as quickly as possible.”
“Any kind of ban on fracking would cause severe damage to our stressed economy.”
“Climate scientists are urging us to leave all fossil fuels in the ground so that they’ll never be burned. That includes natural gas.”
“Any immediate economic repercussions to the economy can be offset if oil-and-gas companies are made to pay their fair share.”