The attack on Iran's Natanz nuclear facility is casting a major shadow over Tuesday's resumption of indirect talks between the U.S. and Iran over resurrection of the international accord limiting Iran's nuclear program. Neither Iran nor the U.S. say the incident will crater the negotiations. But the attack and the destruction of a significant amount of Iran's uranium enrichment capability add uncertainty to the discussions in Vienna.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) said Tuesday he directed the state's Department of Environmental Protection to develop a plan to permanently close the wastewater reservoir at Piney Point phosphate plant that recently threatened to cause a catastrophic environmental disaster, according to AP. Why it matters: The governor said that $15.4 million in agency funds will be used to treat the water, which contains waste from the phosphate production that can cause algae blooms and fish kills and eventually impact the food chain if introduced into the environment in large amounts. What they're saying: โWe want this to be the last chapter of the Piney Point story,โ DeSantis said Tuesday, according to AP.
The White House says President Joe Biden will accompany his wife, Jill Biden, Wednesday morning to an appointment where she will undergo a โcommon medical procedure. The White House says both Bidens will then return to the White House and โresume their normal schedule. Later Wednesday, the president is set to address the nation on his plans to withdraw U.S. troops from Afghanistan by September 11, 2021.
PRAGUE (Reuters) -Czech Foreign Minister Tomas Petricek, who frequently warned against risks posed by Russia and China, was sacked on Monday after losing a bid to lead his own centre-left Social Democratic party (CSSD) party last week. His replacement may take a less resolute stance on China and possibly on other issues such as Russia and its "vaccine diplomacy" or its bid in a Czech nuclear power plant tender. President Milos Zeman, who favours close ties with Russia and China and often clashed with Petricek, dismissed him after receiving a proposal to do so from Prime Minister Andrej Babis.
Former President Donald Trump released a statement Tuesday criticizing the Food and Drug Administration's recommendation to pause the use of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine, baselessly suggesting the decision was politically motivated. "The results of this vaccine have been extraordinary, but now it's [sic] reputation will be permanently challenged," Trump said. "[The FDA] should not be able to do such damage for possibly political reasons, or maybe because their friends at Pfizer have suggested it," he said.
Japan has approved a plan to release more than one million tonnes of contaminated water from the destroyed Fukushima nuclear plant into the sea. The water will be treated and diluted so radiation levels are below those set for drinking water. But the local fishing industry has strongly opposed the move, as have China and South Korea.
Disgraced Missouri state Rep. Rick Roeber announced his resignation Tuesday afternoon, just steps ahead of potential ouster proceedings in the House chamber. Roeber, of Lee's Summit, had been under investigation by the House Ethics Committee for alleged sexual assault of his now-adult child Anastasia, and physical abuse of Samson Roeber, a sibling. Gabrielle Galeano, a sister, said she was aware of Roeber's behavior at the time.
Three political newcomers appear headed for seats on the Miami Shores Village Council after unofficial results were posted Tuesday night, with just 22 votes separating the third and fourth place finishers โ although a machine recount is still possible. If the results hold, top vote-getter Sandra Harris will be sworn in April 20 as the second Black mayor in Miami Shores' 89-year history, replacing current Mayor Crystal Wagar, who will stay on the council. The current results also put Katia Saint Fleur in third place, which would make her the council's first-ever Haitian-American woman and create a Black majority on the five-person body for the first time.
A senior civil servant was granted permission to join the lender Greensill Capital while still working at the highest levels of government, a watchdog has revealed. Bill Crothers was head of Whitehall procurement, in control of a ยฃ15 billion annual purchasing budget, when he took on an external role as part-time adviser to the finance company's board in September 2015. Boris Johnson was understood to be personally concerned about the disclosure on Tuesday night, while Labour described it as "extraordinary and shocking", renewing demands for an MP-led inquiry into the lobbying row engulfing Greensill and David Cameron.
WASHINGTON โ President Joe Biden and congressional leaders paid tribute Tuesday to U.S. Capitol Police Officer William "Billy" Evans during a solemn ceremony in the Capitol Rotunda. Evans, an 18-year member of the force who served on the agency's First Responders Unit, died during an attack at the Capitol earlier this month. His body is lying in honor in the Rotunda, an unusual distinction for a private citizen.
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 โ struggling to accommodate 23,000 people who disembarked on the islands in 2020 โ 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.
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".
Nicola Sturgeon and Ruth Davidson have paid tribute to the Duke of Edinburgh for being decades ahead of his time by sacrificing his career to support a powerful woman. In a special session at Holyrood, which was recalled following the duke's death, both the First Minister and Ms Davidson noted that few men in the 1950s were willing to play a supporting role to their wives. Ms Sturgeon said "that reversal of the more traditional dynamic was highly unusual", while the Scottish Tories' Holyrood leader said Prince Philip was "a moderniser in life as well as work."
Protests erupted against police after an officer fatally shot a young Black man after stopping his vehicle for a traffic violation on Sunday.
Daunte Wright, 20, was fatally shot by a police officer in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, on Sunday. Brooklyn Center Mayor Mike Elliott says the officer who shot Wright should be fired. Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, Mayor Mike Elliott says the police officer who fatally shot 20-year-old Daunte Wright on Sunday should be fired and face "full accountability" in the shooting.
These fantastical houses range from a 64,000-acre Texas ranch to an oceanside estate in the south of France Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
At least 50 journalists in the US have been arrested during Black Lives Matter demonstrations across the US, while dozens of others have also been injured by rubber bullets, pepper spray and tear gas. The US Press Freedom Tracker has collected nearly 500 incidents from 382 reports, from the unrest in Minneapolis in the wake of George Floyd's killing by police in late May, to demonstrations in more than 70 cities across 35 states since. At least 46 journalists were arrested between the end of May and the beginning of June, according to data collected by the organisation.
With India attempting to ramp up vaccinations as Covid infections rise, the authorities have said they will fast track emergency approval for foreign-made vaccines. The Russian-developed Sputnik V has been given approval, as India's main domestic vaccine maker struggles to meet demand at home and globally. Can India meet its domestic needs?
Joel Greenberg has been cooperating against Rep. Matt Gaetz since last year, NYT reported. Greenberg reportedly told investigators that he and Gaetz had interactions with women who were given cash or gifts in exchange for sex. Gaetz has been embroiled in a political firestorm since The Times reported that he was being investigated over whether he broke sex trafficking laws.
You don't have to commit to full-on maximalism to make a statement Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
Now, two years later, the church is still going through a massive restoration. This jewel of Gothic architecture is being rebuilt with oak trees from local forests, as 200 construction workers operate on-site every day. The goal, according to French president Emmanuel Macron, is to have the church repaired before the city hosts the 2024 Summer Olympics, which is slated to begin on July 26, 2024, in Paris.
The White House distanced itself from calls of "Squad" member Rashida Tlaib for "no more" policing and incarceration following the shooting of Daunte Wright. The Democratic congresswoman from Michigan said the shooting by Minneapolis officer Kim Potter "wasn't an accident" and that policing in the United States was "inherently and intentionally racist". Asked if the Biden administration "disavows" Ms Tlaib's calls to end the practice of policing, press secretary Jen Psaki said the president does not share her position.
It's unclear exactly how Meghan Markle spends her days in sunny Montecito, California, when she isn't taking care of baby Archie, tending to her rescue chickens, and riling up the British royal family by simply existing. Markle โ who co-founded the nonprofit Archewell and recently guest edited British Vogue โ will have some free time more immediately, too, since she wasn't medically cleared to fly with Prince Harry the 12 hours to the U.K. for her grandfather-in-law's funeral.
The Suez Canal Authority said the Ever Given can't leave until $1 billion in damages is paid. The $1 billion would likely include paying for the tugboats and dredging ships that freed the ship. The owner of the Ever Given declared "General Average," so insurance could pay some of the damages.
Caron Nazario's lawyer said the army officer feared for his life as he was pulled over by two Virginia police officers who aimed their guns at him and used pepper spray during a violent traffic stop. Attorney Jonathan Arthur told CNN: "He was terrified that if he was going to move his hands below where Officer Gutierrez could have seen them to undo that seatbelt, they would have murdered him." Apart from pointing their guns at him, the officers also pushed Lt Nazario to the ground and pepper sprayed him.
โThereโs no โboth sides of the debateโ when it comes to active voter suppression.โ
โCompanies that do this ooze contempt for their own customers and employees who are not in the leftmost quarter of opinion.โ
โThe truth is that Fortune 500 companies were never taking moral stances from the goodness of their corporate hearts.โ
โThe truth is, the companies hold the cardsโฆIf companies stick to their guns, Georgia is likely to back down as well.โ
โWhen a company folds to the unfounded outrage of a few misinformed nuts, they are forever at the mobโs beck-and-call.โ