U.S.BBCProtests near Minneapolis after black man shot dead by police
Protests have broken out near the US city of Minneapolis after police fatally shot a black man in a traffic stop. The man has been identified by relatives as 20-year-old Daunte Wright. Minnesota Governor Tim Walz said he was "closely monitoring the situation" and praying for Mr Wright's family.
WorldAssociated PressUS-Philippines officials discuss concerns over China's ships
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Saturday discussed with his Philippine counterpart China's recent positioning of “militia vessels” near the Philippines in the South China Sea. Austin spoke by phone with Philippine Secretary of National Defense Delfin Lorenzana while Austin was flying from Washington to Israel to begin an international trip. Pentagon press secretary John Kirby said Austin and Lorenzana discussed the situation in the South China Sea and the recent massing of Chinese vessels at Whitsun Reef, which has drawn criticism from Manila.
U.S.INSIDERFlorida cops who responded to a noise complaint at house party 'cowered away' after finding out their boss was a guest
Florida cops backed off a noise complaint at a party after they found out their boss was a guest. The officers "cowered away" when partygoers told them the sheriff was inside the house. Florida police officers were in for a big surprise after responding to a noise complaint at a house party last Saturday, only to find that a guest at the event was their own boss.
U.S.The WeekThis Black female pilot is working to get more diversity in the cockpit
Carole Hopson is blazing a trail in the sky, showing other Black women that they belong in the cockpit. The Federal Aviation Administration says that Black women make up less than 1 percent of all certified pilots, and Hopson — a pilot with United Airlines — is one of them. Hopson, 56, told People that as a kid, she would spend her summers mesmerized by the planes taking off and landing at Philadelphia International Airport.
WorldBBCWhy India and Nepal's forest fires are worrying scientists
Record forest fires Scientists say the forest fires in some parts of northern India and neighbouring Nepal have been the strongest in the past 15 years. The European Union's Copernicus Atmospheric Monitoring Service (CAMS) said that Uttarakhand's forest fires emitted nearly 0.2 mega tonnes of carbon in the past one month, a record since 2003. Based on the analysis of satellite pictures, it estimated Nepal emitted nearly 18 mega tonnes of carbon in the same period, the highest since 2016 when it emitted 27 mega tonnes of carbon.
PoliticsAssociated PressNevada GOP censures elections official who defended results
Nevada's Republican Party voted to censure the secretary of state, accusing her of failing to fully investigate allegations of fraud in the 2020 election. Barbara Cegavske, the only Republican statewide office holder in Nevada, said members of her party are disappointed with the election results and believe fraud occurred “despite a complete lack of evidence to support that belief.” Cegavske, who has overseen elections in the state since 2014, has repeatedly defended the results as reliable and accurate despite attacks from President Donald Trump and other Republicans.
WorldReutersTop U.S. diplomat criticizes China, says 'need to get to the bottom' of COVID-19 origin
China's failure to provide access to global health experts made the COVID-19 pandemic worse than it had to be, U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said on Sunday, and it was important to "get to the bottom" of the origin of the novel coronavirus. The top U.S. diplomat's sharp words underscored criticism from other members of the Biden administration over Beijing's lack of transparency in the crucial early days of the pandemic. China did not give access to international experts or share information in real time to provide true transparency, Blinken said in an interview with NBC's "Meet the Press."
WorldBBCSt Vincent volcano: Eruptions likely in coming days, experts warn
The Caribbean island of St Vincent is likely to see further volcanic eruptions and ash fall over the coming days, experts have warned. The La Soufrière volcano first erupted on Friday, blanketing the island in a layer of ash and forcing more than 16,000 people to evacuate their homes. Smaller explosions continued over the weekend, causing power cuts and disrupting water supplies.
U.S.Associated PressUS colleges divided over requiring student vaccinations
U.S. colleges hoping for a return to normalcy next fall are weighing how far they should go in urging students to get the COVID-19 vaccine, including whether they should — or legally can — require it. Universities including Rutgers, Brown, Cornell and Northeastern recently told students they must get vaccinated before returning to campus next fall. They hope to achieve herd immunity on campus, which they say would allow them to loosen spacing restrictions in classrooms and dorms.
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U.S. Army lieutenant files suit against two Virginia police officers for assault during traffic stop
A U.S. Army lieutenant filed a lawsuit against two Virginia police officers over what court papers say was a violent traffic stop, where officers pointed their guns, knocked him to the ground, pepper-sprayed him and "threatened to murder him."
WorldReutersBlinken warns of China's 'increasingly aggressive actions' against Taiwan
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Sunday the United States is concerned about China's aggressive actions against Taiwan and warned it would be a "serious mistake" for anyone to try to change the status quo in the Western Pacific by force. "What we've seen, and what is of real concern to us, is increasingly aggressive actions by the government in Beijing directed at Taiwan, raising tensions in the Straits," Blinken said in an interview with NBC's "Meet the Press." Beijing on Thursday blamed the United States for tensions after a U.S. warship sailed close to Taiwan.
U.S.Associated PressProsecutors seek 5-year term for ex-leader of neo-Nazi group
Federal prosecutors in Virginia are seeking a five-year prison sentence for a former neo-Nazi group leader who pleaded guilty to conspiring with other far-right extremists to threaten dozens of targets, including a predominantly African American church, a sitting U.S. Cabinet member and journalists. John Cameron Denton, of Montgomery, Texas, and others involved in the plot made at least 134 threats to injure people and institutions, often for racist reasons, Justice Department prosecutors wrote in a court filing last Wednesday. U.S. District Judge Liam O'Grady is scheduled to sentence Denton on Tuesday.
WorldReutersCarnival-loving, eloquent Soeder wants to be Germany's first Bavarian chancellor
Dismissed for decades by critics as a country bumpkin who loves silly carnival costumes, Bavarian leader Markus Soeder said on Sunday that he was willing to run as the conservative candidate for German chancellor, provided he had the bloc's full backing. Angela Merkel, who has clocked up four election victories and led Europe's biggest economy for 16 years, is not standing for a fifth term when Germany goes to the polls in September. This means the parliamentary bloc formed by her Christian Democrats (CDU) and their sister party, Bavaria's Christian Social Union (CSU), must decide on a candidate.
U.S.Associated PressEx-officer's trial in Floyd's death shows courtroom tactics
The murder trial of a former Minneapolis police officer charged in George Floyd's death has introduced viewers from around the world to a vast array of defense and prosecution tactics aimed at swaying the jury. Some strategies and terms that have become part of Derek Chauvin's trial are rare outside criminal courtrooms. The Associated Press has taken closer looks into them to better explain what viewers are seeing and hearing.
U.S.INSIDERPolice declared an unlawful assembly in Huntington Beach after groups clashed at a 'White Lives Matter' rally
Last week, residents in Huntington Beach received flyers promoting a "White Lives Matter" rally. On Sunday, hundreds of counter-protesters arrived to confront the rally. Demonstrators clashed with each other and police, prompting an unlawful assembly to be declared.
U.S.Associated PressLas Vegas pushes to become first to ban ornamental grass
A desert city built on a reputation for excess and indulgence wants to become a model for restraint and conservation with a first-in-the-nation policy banning grass that nobody walks on. Las Vegas-area water officials have spent two decades trying to get people to replace thirsty greenery with desert plants, and now they're asking the Nevada Legislature to outlaw roughly 40% of the turf that's left. The Southern Nevada Water Authority estimates there are almost 8 square miles (21 square kilometers) of “nonfunctional turf" in the metro area — grass that no one ever walks on or otherwise uses in street medians, housing developments and office parks.
WorldReutersNew Zealand's Ardern says border workers must take COVID-19 vaccine after new cases
New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Monday that people working at the borders must be vaccinated by the end of this month or risk being moved out of the role, after a third coronavirus case related to a frontline staff was reported. New Zealand has virtually eliminated the COVID-19 virus within its borders and there's been no community transmission for more 40 days. But it reported a positive COVID-19 in the community last week of a border worker who had missed two vaccine appointments.
U.S.Associated PressMom arrested in death of her 3 kids was in custody dispute
The woman arrested on suspicion of killing her three young children at her Los Angeles apartment had been involved in a custody dispute with their father, according to a newspaper report Sunday. Liliana Carrillo, 30, was arrested Saturday in Tulare County after fleeing the gruesome scene and leading law enforcement officers on a long-distance chase, authorities said. The Los Angeles Times cites family court documents that show Eric Denton sought custody of the children — ages 3, 2 and 6 months — on March 1.
WorldBusiness InsiderIran calls blackout at underground atomic facility 'nuclear terrorism.' Israeli outlets blame an Israeli cyberattack.
Iran blames a Sunday blackout at a nuclear facility on "nuclear terrorism." The country hasn't assigned blame, but Israeli media has reported an Israeli cyberattack is responsible. The attack comes as US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is in Israel to meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
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Man shot to death outside west Houston corner store
The victim and another person were in a car when the gunman walked up and fired one shot before taking off, police said.
WorldBBCChinese official says local vaccines 'don't have high protection rates'
China's top disease control official has said the efficacy of the country's Covid vaccines is low, in a rare admission of weakness. In a press conference, Gao Fu added that China was considering mixing vaccines as a way of boosting efficacy. China has developed four different vaccines approved for public use, though some trials abroad had suggested efficacy as low as 50%.
WorldReutersAustralia abandons COVID-19 vaccination targets after new advice on AstraZeneca shots
Australia has abandoned a goal to vaccinate nearly all of its 26 million population by the end of 2021 following advice that people under the age of 50 take Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine rather than AstraZeneca's shot. Australia, which had banked on the AstraZeneca vaccine for the majority of its shots, had no plans to set any new targets for completing its vaccination programme, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said in a Facebook post on Sunday afternoon. "While we would like to see these doses completed before the end of the year, it is not possible to set such targets given the many uncertainties involved," Morrison said.
WorldAssociated PressMuslims navigate restrictions in the second pandemic Ramadan
For Ramadan this year, Magdy Hafez has been longing to reclaim a cherished ritual: performing the nighttime group prayers called taraweeh at the mosque once again. Last year, the coronavirus upended the 68-year-old Egyptian's routine of going to the mosque to perform those prayers, traditional during Islam's holiest month. The pandemic had disrupted Islamic worship the world over, including in Egypt where mosques were closed to worshippers last Ramadan.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderCorporate America is still dangerously delusional about what the GOP has become
The GOP corporate America used to know and love is gone. What we have now is an angrier GOP willing to punish companies that disagree with it. Corporations need to hear this, and probably a few half-hearted Republicans do too - former House Speaker John Boehner's GOP isn't coming back.
WorldReutersPacific island devotees of Prince Philip send their condolences
The chief of an indigenous group in the South Pacific island of Vanuatu that venerated Prince Philip offered condolences to Britain's royal family on Sunday and recalled meeting the late prince during a visit to England. "The connection between the people on the Island of Tanna and the English people is very strong," said Chief Yapa of Ikunala village, Tanna. "We are sending condolence messages to the royal family and the people of England."
“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.”