U.S./World category, Page 1019
Supercomputer helps in tracking East Africa locust outbreak
KAMPALA, Uganda — A supercomputer is boosting efforts in East Africa to control a locust outbreak that raises what the U.N. food agency calls “an unprecedented threat” to the region’s food security. The computer, a donation from Britain, uses satellite data to track locust swarms and predict their next destination....
Awkward moment: Trump and Irish PM skip the handshake
WASHINGTON — President Trump and Ireland’s Prime Minister Leo Varadkar found themselves in an awkward moment: How do you a greet a fellow world leader in the midst of a global viral pandemic? The two made the mutual decision upon Varadkar’s arrival Thursday for the Irish leader’s annual visit to...
Disneyland closing for rest of month amid coronavirus fears
Disneyland has announced that it’s shutting down its California theme parks Saturday over concerns about the coronavirus outbreak. The company said in a statement Thursday that Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure Park will be closed through the end of the month though there have been no reported cases of...
Pentagon threatening retaliatory strike after attack in Iraq
WASHINGTON — U.S. military leaders Thursday threatened a retaliatory strike against Iranian-backed Shia militia in Iraq, saying they know who launched the rockets in Iraq that killed and wounded U.S. and coalition troops and the attackers will be held accountable. Defense Secretary Mark Esper told reporters at the Pentagon that...
Broadway shuts its doors over ongoing coronavirus concerns
NEW YORK — New York’s governor ordered all Broadway theaters to shut their doors in the face of ongoing coronavirus concerns, plunging into darkness one of the city’s most popular tourist attractions and causing turmoil in the run-up to the Tony Awards. Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Thursday banned gatherings of...
Travel bans, market chaos: Dizzying reaction to coronavirus spread around the world
ROME — Sweeping travel bans cascaded around the globe Thursday, walling off countries and even entire continents, keeping people inside their homes, and slowing the engines of commerce to stem the coronavirus pandemic. Markets collapsed with the growing realization that there would be no fast end to the uncertainty. After...
Amid coronavirus precautions, Tokyo Olympic flame is lit in Greece
ATHENS, Greece — The flame for the Tokyo Olympics was lit Thursday at the birthplace of the ancient games in a pared-down ceremony because of the coronavirus. Standing in front of the ruined Temple of Hera in Ancient Olympia, a Greek actress playing the part of a pagan priestess used...
Trump’s ban on travel from Europe escalates pain for airlines
President Donald Trump’s decision Wednesday to impose a 30-day ban on most Europeans entering the United States is the latest calamity for airlines already reeling from falling bookings and cancelled reservations as people try to avoid contracting the coronavirus. The ban, to begin at midnight Friday, won’t apply to Americans...
NYC St. Patrick’s Day Parade postponed due to coronavirus
NEW YORK — The New York City St. Patrick’s Day Parade has been postponed for the first time in its 258-year history because of coronavirus concerns, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced on Wednesday. The postponement of the parade on March 17 adds to the roster of events and holidays upended around...
Tom Hanks says he and his wife have coronavirus
Tom Hanks says he and his wife, Rita Wilson, have contracted the coronavirus. In a Wednesday night tweet, Hanks, 63, explained that while in Australia, the couple experienced symptoms of the epidemic. “We felt a bit tired, like we had colds, and some body aches. Rita had some chills that...
O.J. Simpson tweets video showing how he’s combating the coronavirusVideo
O.J. Simpson says he is prepared to tackle the coronavirus. The Hall of Fame running back, a convicted robber who spent a decade in jail and was acquitted of killing his wife and her friend, posted a 31-second video titled “Never Too Careful” to Twitter on Tuesday that showed him...
Lawyer: Chelsea Manning attempts suicide in Virginia jail
WASHINGTON — A lawyer for Chelsea Manning said Wednesday that the former intelligence analyst tried to take her own life Wednesday, but was transported to a hospital where she is recovering. Manning has been in jail since May 2019 for refusing to testify before a grand jury investigating WikiLeaks. She...
It’s cloudy with a chance of iron rain at hot, faraway planet
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — At one hot, faraway world, it’s always cloudy with a chance of iron rain. That’s the otherworldly forecast from Swiss and other European astronomers who have detected clouds full of iron droplets at a hot Jupiterlike planet 390 light-years away. This mega planet is so hot...
AP sources: Feds wiretap former DEA supervisor in leak probe
MIAMI — Federal investigators took the unusual step of wiretapping a retired supervisor in the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s Miami office as part of an inquiry into whether sensitive case information was leaked to attorneys for suspected drug traffickers in Colombia, current and former law enforcement officials told The Associated...
Inside a massive DEA raid targeting a drug cartel
CHANTILLY, Va. — In the darkness, team members suit up quietly, putting on their helmets and tactical gear. Federal agents lug battering rams, bolt cutters and heavy weaponry by foot up a hill on a residential California street that’s softly aglow from street lamps. Then the agents turn onto the...
Afghans set to release 1,500 Taliban; U.S. wants less violenceVideo
KABUL, Afghanistan — After a series of delays, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani issued a decree early Wednesday promising to release 1,500 Taliban prisoners as a goodwill gesture to get intra-Afghan negotiations started. A recent peace deal signed between the United States and the Taliban called for the release of up...
France, Spain honor hundreds of terrorism victims, vow unity
PARIS — The president of France and the king of Spain paid homage Wednesday to victims of terrorism in a special ceremony prompted by attacks that hit both their countries and changed Europe’s security posture. France’s Emmanuel Macron and Spain’s King Felipe and Queen Letizia led a ceremony on Trocadero...
Down syndrome abortion ban is going before a federal court
COLUMBUS, Ohio — A federal court in Cincinnati will hear complex legal arguments Wednesday for and against Ohio’s Down syndrome abortion ban in a case viewed as pivotal in the national debate over the procedure. Attorneys for the government contend in legal filings that the sidelined 2017 law does not...
Family of man convicted of Lockerbie bombing can appeal
LONDON — Scotland’s criminal appeals body said Wednesday that the family of a Libyan man jailed for the 1988 bombing of an American airliner over the town of Lockerbie can launch a posthumous appeal against his conviction. The Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission said the family of Abdelbaset al-Megrahi is...
Harvey Weinstein sentenced to 23 years for sexual assaults
NEW YORK — Harvey Weinstein was sentenced Wednesday to 23 years in prison for rape and sexual assault, a sight the disgraced Hollywood mogul’s multitude of accusers thought they would never see. Weinstein, who has been accused of violating scores of women, was convicted last month of raping a once-aspiring...
Nuclear waste cleanup efforts in Washington could be delayed
RICHLAND, Wash. — The Department of Energy has announced priority plans for environmental cleanup nationwide and indicates a slower process for the decommissioned nuclear site in Washington state, a report said. The focus at the Hanford Site will be to start treating waste at the $17 billion vitrification plant, but...
Police shooting leads to tension, protests in North Carolina
RALEIGH, N.C. — A police shooting that wounded a suspect during a foot chase in Raleigh, N.C., sparked protests early Wednesday from hundreds who demanded answers and burned a flag outside the governor’s mansion. Police Chief Cassandra Deck-Brown said officers responded to a 911 call Tuesday evening reporting a man...
Russia passes bill allowing Putin to stay in power past 2024
MOSCOW — The Russian parliament approved a sweeping constitutional reform in the third and final reading Wednesday, a move that will allow President Vladimir Putin to stay in power for another 12 years after his current term ends in 2024. The Kremlin-controlled lower house, the State Duma, endorsed a set...
Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones arrested on DWI charges in Texas
AUSTIN, Texas — Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones was arrested in Texas on a misdemeanor charge of driving while intoxicated after his wife called police to their house over an argument, according to court records released Tuesday. The Infowars founder was booked into an Austin jail shortly after midnight and released...
Store owner charged after homemade sanitizer burns youths
RIVER VALE, N.J. — A convenience store owner in New Jersey reacting to the coronavirus outbreak created and sold a spray sanitizer that left four children with burns, state and county law enforcement officials said. Authorities on Tuesday issued a summons charging Manisha Bharade, 47, of Wood-Ridge with endangering the...
