PoliticsYahoo NewsProbe begins into thwarted Justice Department 'coup' to keep Trump in power
The Justice Department's inspector general announced Monday that he had started an investigation into whether current or former officials in the department had engaged in an “improper attempt” to overturn the 2020 presidential election to keep Donald Trump in power. Michael Horowitz, the DOJ inspector general, released a statement announcing the decision. The DOJ Office of the Inspector General (OIG) is initiating an investigation into whether any former or current DOJ official engaged in an improper attempt to have DOJ seek to alter the outcome of the 2020 Presidential Election.
WorldAssociated PressUN group says Sri Lanka virus cremation rule violates rights
A group of U.N experts has criticized Sri Lanka's requirement that those who die of COVID-19 be cremated, even it goes against a family's religious beliefs, and warned that decisions based on “discrimination and aggressive nationalism” could incite hatred and violence. The experts, who are part of the Special Procedures of the U.N Human Rights Council, said in a statement Monday that rule amounts to a human rights violation. “We deplore the implementation of such public health decisions based on discrimination, aggressive nationalism and ethnocentrism amounting to persecution of Muslims and other minorities in the country,” the experts said.
WorldReutersGermany backs EU export restrictions on vaccine after supply cuts
Germany's health minister supported European Union proposals to introduce restrictions on COVID-19 vaccines on Tuesday as tensions grew with AstraZeneca and Pfizer over sudden supply cuts just a month after the bloc started vaccinating citizens. The EU has proposed setting up a register of vaccine exports, amid frustration over delays in deliveries of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 shot and other supply problems. "I can understand that there are production problems but then it must affect everyone in the same way," Health Minister Jens Spahn told ZDF television.
PoliticsThe WeekBiden did not, in fact, remove Trump's 'Diet Coke button' from the Resolute Desk, White House clarifies
The new Biden administration has yet not disclosed the secrets of Area 51 or explained what the Air Force really knows about UFOs, but it did clarify, at least, the mystery of the vanished "Diet Coke button" former President Donald Trump would use to summon refreshments in the Oval Office. The usher button, as it is formally known, is not gone, even if it is no longer used to summon Diet Cokes, a White House official tells Politico. The White House official "unfortunately wouldn't say what Biden will use the button for," Politico's Daniel Lippman writes, suggesting Biden might summon Orange Gatorade and not the obvious answer, ice cream — or, let's get real, coffee.
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Iran sentences Iranian-American to prison on spying charges
An Iranian-American has been sentenced by Iran to 10 years in prison on spying charges, despite his family alleging he never had a trial or an opportunity to defend himself. A family spokesman Tuesday confirmed the sentencing of Emad Shargi, the latest dual national to be held in Iran amid tensions with the West. Iran's judiciary acknowledged the sentence without naming him or saying how many years in prison he'd face.
WorldReutersEU countries could band to sue AstraZeneca for breach of contract: Latvia
European Union member states could take AstraZeneca to court for a breach of supply contracts if the company does not honour the COVID-19 vaccine delivery schedule, Latvian foreign affairs minister Edgars Rinkevics said on Tuesday. "The possibility should be evaluated, and it should be coordinated among the EU countries," the minister told Reuters, via his spokesman. Each EU member state has a separate supply contract with the company.
PoliticsAssociated PressJoe Biden to call for end of federally run private prisons
President Joe Biden on Tuesday will formally call on the federal government to end its reliance on private prisons and acknowledge the central role the government has played in implementing discriminatory housing policies, according to a senior administration official. The moves come as Biden is set to sign a series of orders and memorandums Tuesday as the new administration says it will make combatting racial injustice a central focus of his presidency. They were detailed by a senior administration official who briefed reporters on the condition of anonymity ahead of Biden's formal announcement, scheduled for later Tuesday.
- U.S.Associated Press
Rittenhouse, mother fixated on social media treatment
An Illinois teen accused of killing two people during unrest in Wisconsin and the teen's mom were fixated on social media comments about them in the hours after his August arrest, newly released police video shows. Police in Antioch, Illinois, on Monday released four hours of video taken after Kyle Rittenhouse turned himself in hours after the Aug. 25 protest in Kenosha, the Chicago Tribune reported. The protest was part of a series of chaotic demonstrations that ensued after a white Kenosha officer shot Jacob Blake, who is Black, in the back seven times during a domestic dispute.
HealthReutersAstraZeneca denies report vaccine less effective in elderly
AstraZeneca denied on Monday its COVID-19 vaccine is not very effective for people over 65, after German media reports said officials fear the vaccine may not be approved in the European Union for use in the elderly. German daily papers Handelsblatt and Bild said in separate reports the vaccine - co-developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University - had an efficacy of 8% or less than 10%, respectively, in those over 65. German officials were concerned that the vaccine may not receive approval from the EU's medicines authority EMA for use in those over 65, Bild said in its online edition.
PoliticsBBCSarah Huckabee Sanders: The Trump defender enters political race
Known to millions around the world for her staunch defence of Trump from the press briefing room, now it's her turn to speak for herself. Sarah Huckabee Sanders is back in the political game, announcing on Monday that she's running for the Republican nomination to be the governor of Arkansas in the 2022 election. In true Trumpian fashion, his former White House press secretary broke the news in a video posted on Twitter.
WorldAssociated PressUS exploring new bases in Saudi Arabia amid Iran tensions
The U.S. military is exploring the possibility of using a Red Sea port in Saudi Arabia and an additional two airfields in the kingdom amid heightened tensions with Iran, the military said Tuesday. While describing the work as "contingency" planning, the U.S. military said it already has tested unloading and shipping cargo overland from Saudi Arabia's port at Yanbu, a crucial terminal for oil pipelines in the kingdom. Using Yanbu, as well as air bases at Tabuk and Taif along the Red Sea, would give the American military more options along a crucial waterway that has come under increased attack from suspected mine and drone boat attacks by Yemen's Iranian-backed Houthi rebels.
WorldThe TelegraphHong Kong police obtain financial records of arrested democracy activists
Hong Kong authorities are scrutinising the financial records of pro-democracy activists as they crack down on political opposition, according to some activists and a senior bank executive. Six pro-democracy activists told Reuters that Hong Kong police obtained some of their bank records without their consent and questioned them about certain transactions after they were arrested earlier this month on suspicion of subversion under the territory's national security law. The number of requests for customers' financial records by Hong Kong police has more than doubled over the past six months or so, an executive at a major retail bank in Hong Kong with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters.
ScienceThe WeekSurging global ice melt suggests sea level rise predictions are far too conservative
The world's ice is melting so fast that sea level rise predictions can't keep up. Climate change is largely responsible for the huge ice melt surge, the Cryosphere study reports. In fact, about three percent of all the energy trapped within the Earth's systems because of climate change has gone toward that ice melt, the study estimates.
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Mexico's president claims Biden offered $4B aid for Central America
FOX News correspondent Mark Meredith joins 'America's News HQ' with the latest from Washington.
PoliticsReutersAt U.N., Washington assures support for two-state solution in Middle East
U.S. President Joe Biden's administration supports a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians and will overturn several Trump administration decisions, the acting U.S. envoy to the United Nations assured the Security Council on Tuesday. The Palestinians want a state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip with east Jerusalem as its capital, all territory captured by Israel in 1967. However, under a failed peace proposal by former President Donald Trump, Washington would have recognized Jewish settlements in occupied territory as part of Israel.
WorldAssociated PressLawmakers say North Korean diplomat defected to South Korea
A North Korean diplomat who served as the country's acting ambassador to Kuwait has defected to South Korea, according to South Korean lawmakers who were briefed by Seoul's spy agency. Ha Tae-keung, a conservative opposition lawmaker and an executive secretary of the National Assembly's intelligence committee, said Tuesday he was told by officials from the National Intelligence Service that the diplomat arrived in South Korea in September 2019 with his wife and at least one child. That would make him one of the most senior North Koreans to defect in recent years.
WorldReutersIran urges Biden to lift sanctions affecting medicines as it fights COVID-19
Iran urged U.S. President Joe Biden on Tuesday to lift sanctions which it said were hampering Tehran's fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. Tehran also said it had approved Russia's Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine for domestic use, and that it was trying to buy vaccines from AstraZeneca and other companies. Sanctions reimposed by former U.S. President Donald Trump formally exempt food, medicine and other humanitarian supplies, but many foreign banks have been deterred from doing business with Iran.
WorldAssociated PressOfficials say Israeli minister visited Sudan to discuss ties
An Israeli delegation headed by the country's intelligence minister quietly visited Sudan and met with the African nation's leaders, officials from both countries said Tuesday. The visit Monday was the first by an Israeli minister to Sudan less than three weeks after Khartoum inked an agreement to normalize ties with Israel. Intelligence Minister Eli Cohen, head of the Israeli delegation, met with Sudanese Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan, head of the ruling sovereign council, Defense Minister Yassin Ibrahim and other military and government officials.
U.S.Business InsiderProsecutors say the woman accused of stealing Pelosi's laptop is attempting a cover-up by deleting her social-media activity during house arrest
Video: Inside the pro-Trump mob attack on the Capitol Department of Justice prosecutors have accused Riley June Williams, the 22-year-old woman suspected of stealing House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's laptop during the Capitol riot, of trying to cover up her tracks by deleting her social-media activity, according to Law & Crime and the NBC 4 reporter Scott MacFarlane. In a court hearing on Monday, prosecutors also said Williams had been telling others to delete messages she had sent them, WHTM reported. The judge hasn't decided on the matter, as Monday's hearing ended abruptly because of a scheduling conflict with Williams' new public defender, Law & Crime reported.
WorldReutersVietnam's Communists proclaim pandemic, economic wins at Party congress
Vietnam's ruling Communist Party chief Nguyen Phu Trong hailed booming economic development and containment of the COVID-19 pandemic as major achievements on Tuesday as he presided over the opening of a key party congress in Hanoi. Over nine days of meetings, mostly behind closed doors, delegates will pick a new leadership team, aiming to bolster Vietnam's ongoing economic success - and the legitimacy of the Party's rule. Party congresses take place once every five years.
U.S.The IndependentNew threats of a second attack on the US Capitol loom over lawmakers ahead of Trump’s second impeachment trial
A surge in threats against lawmakers and the US Capitol have forced National Guard troops to remain in Washington ahead of former President Donald Trump's second impeachment trial. The troops will remain on Capitol Hill as the US Senate trial begins on 8 February, marking the first time in American history in which a former president has faced an impeachment trial after leaving office. The House voted to impeach Mr Trump for fomenting a deadly insurrection at the Capitol as Congress convened to certify his electoral defeat in the 2020 elections, citing his speech held just before the deadly attacks and conduct during the riots, which left at least five people dead, including United States Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick.
BusinessAssociated PressDifferent types of gambling, media converging for growth
The many different types of gambling are quickly coming together with each other and with media outlets — and Wall Street is taking notice. Casino gambling, internet gambling, sports betting and daily fantasy sports are no longer separate silos with unique audiences: Gambling companies are increasingly combining them and partnering with media companies to expand the reach of gambling. This expansion is leading Wall Street analysts to predict fast-growing revenue in the U.S. over the next five to 10 years.
WorldReutersIran asks Indonesia to explain seizure of tanker accused of illegal oil transfer
Iran has asked Indonesia to provide details about the seizure of an Iranian-flagged vessel, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said on Monday, a day after Jakarta said it had seized Iran and Panama-flagged tankers in its waters. Indonesia said on Sunday its coast guard had seized the Iranian-flagged MT Horse and the Panamanian-flagged MT Freya vessels over suspected illegal oil transfer in the country's waters. Khatibzadeh said that the seizure was over a "a technical issue and it happens in shipping field".
U.S.Associated PressMossimo Giannulli loses bid to finish prison term at home
Fashion designer Mossimo Giannulli's request to serve the remaining three months of his prison term in the college admissions bribery scheme at home was denied Tuesday by a federal judge. Giannulli argued he should be released to home confinement for the rest of his five-month sentence because he spent eight weeks under “extreme” conditions in solitary confinement because of the coronavirus pandemic after reporting to prison in November. But U.S. District Judge Nathaniel Gorton said Giannulli failed to demonstrate an "'extraordinary and compelling' reason warranting his release," though he noted that the quarantine was “longer than anticipated.
WorldReutersLebanese herders, Israeli military row over cows grazing near border
The Israeli military said on Tuesday cows which crossed from Lebanon would be returned, after cattle herders from a Lebanese border village accused Israeli soldiers of taking the animals which have grazed freely near the disputed frontier for decades. Lebanon and Israel are in a formal state of war and have long contested their land and maritime borders. The herders from the village of Wazzani say Israeli patrols crossed into a grey zone on Sunday between a fence that separates the countries and the 'Blue Line' that constitutes the United Nations-designated frontier, taking seven cows.
“By encouraging this act of terror on our capital, Trump’s legacy is destroyed.”
“Both backers and critics of Trump agreed that he remade the federal judiciary — a change that will impact America for decades.”
“He was largely responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Americans who did not need to die.”
“I do know what the future should hold for this country. That is to say, a policy of Trumpism without Trump.”
“It will be decades before the consequences of his tenure are fully known.”