HealthYahoo News'You will be just fine,' says surgeon general of Johnson & Johnson vaccine, though pause continues
Surgeon General Vivek Murthy had a message Friday afternoon for the 6.8 million Americans who have received the Johnson & Johnson coronavirus vaccine and who, in recent days, have read concerning reports about blood clotting: “The vast and overwhelming likelihood is that you will be just fine,” Dr. Murthy said during a briefing of the White House COVID-19 response team. He added that the response team was quite confident in that assertion, which is in keeping with what scientists know about the vaccine. The Biden administration told states on Tuesday to stop using the Johnson & Johnson vaccine after six reports of blood clotting, including one death.
WorldAssociated PressIsrael says it will 'definitely' stop Iran from getting bomb
Israel's foreign minister said Friday that his country was determined to stop Iran from building a nuclear weapon, after Tehran promised to step up its uranium enrichment process. “We will do whatever it takes to prevent the extremists (in Iran) from succeeding, and definitely will prevent this regime from having a nuclear weapon,” Israeli Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi told reporters on a visit to Cyprus. Iranian officials say the country will begin enriching uranium up to 60% purity following an attack on its nuclear facility at Natanz, in central Iran, on Sunday, that it blamed on Israel.
U.S.Raleigh News and ObserverViolent home invasion ends with masked man shot — by his own grandfather, NC cops say
A 34-year-old man is in critical condition after he put on a mask and attempted to rob his grandfather, according to police in the North Carolina. The grandfather, who was not identified, “suffered facial injuries” during the incident, Long View police said in a news release. The suspect, identified as Jessie Dwayne Gibson, fled on foot and “was later located at a nearby hotel with life-threatening injuries,” police said.
WorldAssociated PressIndian cop arrested in Kashmir for blocking anti-rebel ops
Police in Indian-controlled Kashmir said Friday that they arrested one of their own officers and dismissed her for obstructing a counterinsurgency operation in the disputed region. The officer livestreamed a cordon and search operation by government forces in southern Frisal village on Wednesday “with the intent of disrupting the search operation,” police said in a statement. In the video, which went viral on social media, the woman was seen shouting: “This is our Kashmir” while hurling invectives at the raiding troops.
WorldReutersWith food and fuel, Hezbollah braces for the worst in Lebanon collapse
Lebanon's Hezbollah has made preparations for an all-out collapse of the fracturing state, issuing ration cards for food, importing medicine and readying storage for fuel from its patron Iran, three sources familiar with the plans told Reuters. The moves, responding to a grave economic crisis, would mark an expansion of services provided by the armed movement to its large Sh'ite support base, with a network that already boasts charities, a construction firm and a pension system. The steps highlight rising fears of an implosion of the Lebanese state, in which authorities can no longer import food or fuel to keep the lights on.
WorldThe TelegraphFace masks set to vanish from Israel's streets from Sunday as part of return to normality
Israelis will no longer be ordered to wear face masks outside from Sunday, in the latest step towards normality in the country with the world's fastest inoculations drive. As the number of daily coronavirus cases fell to only around 200 per day, Israeli health minister Yuli Edelstein said masks were no longer necessary outdoors. Israelis will still need to wear face coverings in indoor spaces, such as supermarkets, unless they are eating or drinking.
WorldAssociated PressNew blast at St. Vincent volcano; cruise ship helps evacuees
La Soufriere volcano shot out another explosive burst of gas and ash on Friday as a cruise ship arrived to evacuate some of the foreigners who had been stuck on a St. Vincent island coated in ash from a week of violent eruptions. Friday morning's blast “wasn't a big explosion compared to the ones that we last weekend, but it was big enough to punch a hole through the clouds," said Richard Robertson, lead scientist at the University of the West Indies Seismic Research Center, in an interview with local NBC radio. During a comparable eruption cycle in 1902, explosive eruptions continued to shake the island for months after an initial burst killed some 1,700 people, though the new eruptions so far have caused no reported deaths among a population that had received official warning a day earlier that danger was imminent.
WorldAssociated PressRussia to expel 10 US diplomats in response to Biden actions
Russia on Friday responded to a barrage of new U.S. sanctions by saying it would expel 10 U.S. diplomats and take other retaliatory moves in a tense showdown with Washington. The Russian Foreign Ministry also published a list of eight current or former U.S. officials barred from entering the country, including U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, FBI Director Christopher Wray, Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines and Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also said Moscow will move to shut down those U.S. nongovernment organizations that remain in Russia to end what he described as their meddling in Russia's politics.
U.S.Fort Worth Star-TelegramMan who smoked legal weed in Nevada now faces years in prison in Dubai, lawyer says
A Las Vegas man faces prison time after he traveled to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates and marijuana was detected in his urine, his lawyer said. Peter Clark, 51, traveled to Dubai for a business trip on Feb. 24 but was hospitalized for pancreatitis, Clark's attorney Radha Stirling wrote on her website Detained in Dubai. The hospital took a urine test, found traces of marijuana and reported it to the police, who charged Peter and took him to the Al Barsha police station on March 3, Stirling said.
WorldThe TelegraphExclusive: Ukrainian president warns Russian build-up 'threatens entire democratic order'
Ukraine must be allowed to join Nato, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy told the Telegraph on Friday as he warned that Russia's military build-up on his country's borders “threatens the entire democratic order”. Mr Zelenskiy reiterated his country's longstanding call for Nato membership in an exclusive interview with the Telegraph hours before travelling to Paris for talks with Emmanuel Macron and Angela Merkel. He backed Joe Biden's call for a bilateral summit with Vladimir Putin to defuse the crisis, warning that it was a test of “Europe and the West as a whole”.
WorldReutersEU post-Brexit imports from UK halve in Jan-Feb, trade surplus rises
The European Union's imports from Britain almost halved in the first two months of the year following the UK exit from the EU single market, data showed on Friday, and the 27-nation bloc's trade surplus with Britain rose as exports fell by less. The European Union's statistics office Eurostat said EU imports from Britain dropped 47.0% year-on-year in January-February to 16.6 billion euros ($19.9 billion) while exports to the United Kingdom declined only 20.2% to 39.8 billion euros.
U.S.Associated PressPortland, Oregon, police fatally shoot man at city park
An angry crowd gathered in a park in Portland, Oregon, on Friday after police fatally shot a man while responding to reports of a person with a gun, the deputy police chief said. Deputy Police Chief Chris Davis said at a news conference that a white man in his 30s was shot and killed by police, who fired both non-lethal projectiles and a gun at him. A witness at the scene said the man, who had removed his shirt and was blocking an intersection, appeared to be in a mental health crisis, The Oregonian/OregonLive reported.
U.S.The StateA week after she was found in a Florida Keys swimming pool, Georgia toddler dies
A 2-year-old Georgia girl died Thursday, almost a week after she was found unresponsive in the swimming pool of the Florida Keys vacation rental home in which she and her family were staying. Leland Rudeen's family released a statement on Facebook Thursday saying that she had died a day after undergoing an MRI at Nicklaus Children's Hospital near South Miami. “Shortly after the devastating MRI results, as we were trying to wrap our head around some hard decisions ahead of us, Leland took the choice out of our hands and started her painless decline,” the statement reads.
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Texas's longest-serving death row has sentence overturned
An appeals court has overturned the sentence of Texas's longest-serving death row inmate, whose attorneys say has languished in prison for more than 45 years because he's too mentally ill to be executed.
WorldThe Telegraph'We are ready for the assault': Ukraine's war-weary troops brace for new onslaught from Russia
“They're celebrating Easter,” said Sasha Iovenko, a 33-year-old combat medic who has served for five years on the frontlines of Ukraine's forever war. There has been a lot of that kind of thing since February, said Sgt Iovenko, when Russian-backed separatists on the other side of no-man's land began “testing” the Ukrainian troops after a peaceful winter. After seven years, the cycle of violence on Eastern Ukraine's frontlines is not so much one of fear and loathing as weariness and uncertainty.
LifestyleArchitectural DigestThe 9 Best Wireless Headphones for Every Kind of Use
From the most comfortable pair to the best value buy, these headphones will carry you through the spring, summer, and beyond Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
WorldBBCRaúl Castro steps down as Cuban Communist Party leader
Raúl Castro says he is resigning as Cuban Communist Party leader, ending his family's six decades in power. The move, which was expected, ends the era of formal leadership by him and his brother Fidel Castro, which began with the 1959 revolution. "I believe fervently in the strength and exemplary nature and comprehension of my compatriots," he told party delegates in Havana on Friday.
U.S.The Daily BeastOath Keeper Becomes First Capitol Insurrectionist to Rat Out Fellow Rioters
A heavy metal guitarist and self-described “founding” member of the Oath Keepers who stormed the U.S. Capitol armed with bear spray has become the first Jan. 6 insurrectionist to plead guilty and cooperate with the feds, prosecutors said Friday. Jon Ryan Schaffer, a 53-year-old from Indiana, pleaded guilty to obstruction of an official proceeding and entering a restricted building with a deadly or dangerous weapon during a Friday hearing. During the hearing, Judge Amit Mehta also revealed that Schaffer will be sponsored for witness protection.
U.S.Kansas City StarSearch for kayaker’s body suspended after dog was found in Colorado lake, cops say
Crews have suspended the search for a missing man, who is now presumed dead, after officials spotted a capsized kayak on Sunday and rescued his dog from Carter Lake in Colorado, according to officials. The Larimer County Sheriff's Office officials said on Friday that the search has been suspended after teams have spent more than 700 hours looking for the man believed to be from Loveland. Rangers found an uninjured dog wearing a flotation device and a kayak in the lake Sunday afternoon but no kayaker.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderBiden is running out of time to dodge Trump's traps with Iran
Despite calling for a return to the Iran nuclear deal, President Joe Biden has yet to do so while in office. The window of opportunity to revive the deal is closing, and Biden needs to act quickly and boldly to clear the political traps set by Trump. The future of the Iran nuclear deal hangs in the balance, and with it the prospect of a nuclear-armed Iran or another Middle East war to stop it.
CelebrityThe TelegraphPrinces William and Harry to be reunited before Prince Philip's funeral
The Duke of Cambridge and the Duke of Sussex will be reunited behind closed doors at Windsor Castle on Saturday before laying their beloved grandfather to rest. Members of the Royal family including Prince William and Prince Harry will gather in the State Entrance Hall before the Duke of Edinburgh's coffin emerges from the State Entrance at 2.41pm. In an apparent sign of ongoing tensions between the brothers, they will not walk shoulder to shoulder in the funeral procession but will be separated by their cousin Peter Phillips, the Queen's eldest grandchild.
U.S.Miami Herald‘I was in disbelief.’ Florida’s youngest Powerball winner just revealed what’s next
The Central Florida man is $235.4 million richer Friday after winning the Powerball jackpot on March 27, according to the Florida Lottery. The Land O' Lakes man, at 23, is the youngest winner in Florida Lottery history to win the Powerball. Three cheers for Thomas Yi from #LandOLakes who just became Florida's 15th POWERBALL jackpot winner!
PoliticsBusiness InsiderMitt Romney, Liz Cheney, and other GOP lawmakers who criticized Trump or voted to impeach him have spent tens of thousands of dollars on private security
Lawmakers who criticized Trump or voted to impeach him spent thousands to improve personal security after the Capitol attack. Republicans including Mitt Romney and Liz Cheney beefed up their security, per Punchbowl News. Prominent lawmakers spent tens of thousands of dollars on private security guards and other protection following the Capitol riots, a Punchbowl News analysis of campaign finance records shows.
CelebrityThe TelegraphMike Tindall pays tribute to Prince Philip with photograph of Duke with great-granddaughter Mia
Mike Tindall has paid tribute to his grandfather-in-law, the Duke of Edinburgh, calling him a "devoted family man who we will forever miss but always love." The former England centre who married the Queen and Prince Philip's granddaughter, Zara Phillips paid a personal tribute on Instagram, sharing a photo of his eldest daughter Mia enjoying a picnic at a log cabin with the Duke. "It's been a very sad week but it has given us time to reflect on great memories and stories both personal and shared," Mr Tindall said.
U.S.INSIDERLawyer for the police officer who shot Adam Toledo complained that people hadn't asked how his client was doing
Eric Stillman fatally shot the 13-year-old Adam Toledo in Chicago on March 29. A lawyer for the police officer who fatally shot the 13-year-old Adam Toledo in Chicago has complained that few people have asked how his client is doing. The lawyer for Eric Stillman said in a statement quoted by The Daily Beast: "What is amazing and disheartening is that very few have asked about the welfare of the officer."
“There’s no ‘both sides of the debate’ when it comes to active voter suppression.”
“Companies that do this ooze contempt for their own customers and employees who are not in the leftmost quarter of opinion.”
“The truth is that Fortune 500 companies were never taking moral stances from the goodness of their corporate hearts.”
“The truth is, the companies hold the cards…If companies stick to their guns, Georgia is likely to back down as well.”
“When a company folds to the unfounded outrage of a few misinformed nuts, they are forever at the mob’s beck-and-call.”