U.S./World category, Page 816
San Diego Zoo employee bitten by venomous snake
SAN DIEGO — A San Diego Zoo employee was hospitalized Monday after being bitten by a venomous snake, officials said. The incident occurred as the wildlife care specialist was caring for the African bush viper in a non-public area, the zoo said. Native to parts of western and central Africa,...
Video shows Black player forced to sit near banana peels in hazing incident
A Black football player at a northwest Illinois high school is seen on video sitting down in a locker littered with banana peels after a teammate threatens to break his knees if he doesn’t comply. Moline Police Chief Darren Gault called the incident at Moline High School a “disturbing racist...
Michigan police shocked by convicted murderer’s release
DETROIT — A Detroit-area man who was convicted of killing his first wife and whose second wife died under suspicious circumstances was granted an early release from prison after he argued that the risk of catching covid-19 behind bars endangered his life. Federal prosecutors fought to keep Roger Sweet locked...
Aggressive takeoff caused Hawaii plane crash that killed 11
WASHINGTON — A pilot’s aggressive takeoff led to an aerodynamic stall, causing the 2019 crash of a skydiving plane in Hawaii that killed all 11 people on board, government safety investigators have determined. The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board said the stall caused a loss of control at an altitude...
U.S. sets new 9/11 target date for Afghanistan withdrawal
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden has decided to leave American troops in Afghanistan beyond the May 1 deadline negotiated with the Taliban by the Trump administration, and has set the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks as the new goal, U.S. officials said Tuesday. Biden has been hinting for...
Resource officer shot at Tennessee high school recovering
A police officer wounded in a shooting at a Tennessee high school is a 20-year veteran of the force who worked at the school, authorities said Tuesday. Knoxville Police Officer Adam Willson was recovering from surgery after being shot in the upper leg at Austin-East Magnet High School on Monday,...
Minnesota cop, police chief resign 2 days after Black motorist’s deathVideo
BROOKLYN CENTER, Minn. — A white police officer who fatally shot a Black man during a traffic stop in a Minneapolis suburb resigned Tuesday, as did the city’s police chief — moves that the mayor said he hoped would help heal the community and lead to reconciliation after two nights...
Biden raises concerns with Putin about Ukraine confrontation
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden spoke Tuesday morning with Russian President Vladimir Putin, warning him against aggressive moves against Ukraine but also inviting him to a summit meeting, the White House said in a statement. The White House did not say whether Putin had accepted the invitation but said Biden...
U.S. agency says women can get abortion pill via mail
WASHINGTON — Women seeking an abortion pill will not be required to visit a doctor’s office or clinic during the covid-19 pandemic, U.S. health officials said Tuesday in the latest reversal in an ongoing legal battle over the medication. The Food and Drug Administration announced the policy change a day...
Defense Sec.: U.S. adds 500 troops in Germany, despite Trump pledge
BERLIN — Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced on Tuesday that he is expanding the U.S. military presence in Germany by 500 troops and has stopped planning for large-scale troop cuts ordered by the Trump administration. “This planned increase in U.S. personnel underscores our commitment to Germany and the entire NATO...
Expert says Chauvin was justified in pinning down George FloydVideo
MINNEAPOLIS — Former Officer Derek Chauvin was justified in pinning George Floyd to the ground because he kept struggling, a use-of-force expert testified for the defense Tuesday, contradicting a parade of authorities from both inside and outside the Minneapolis Police Department. Taking the stand at Chauvin’s murder trial, Barry Brodd,...
Official: Iran to enrich uranium to highest level ever
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Iran will begin enriching uranium up to 60% purity after an attack on its Natanz nuclear facility, a negotiator said Tuesday, pushing its program to higher levels than ever before though still remaining short of weapons-grade. The announcement marks a significant escalation after the sabotage...
Facebook users can appeal harmful content to oversight board
LONDON — Facebook’s quasi-independent Oversight Board said Tuesday that it will start letting users file appeals over posts, photos, and videos that they think the company shouldn’t have allowed to stay on its platforms. The board said it will accept cases from users who object to content posted by others...
Putin foe Navalny says he sues prison for withholding Quran
MOSCOW — Imprisoned Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny said Tuesday he was suing his prison for withholding the Quran, which he intended to study while serving time in a prison outside Moscow. Navalny has been on a hunger strike for two weeks, protesting prison officials’ refusal to let his physician...
Poll: 15% of Americans worse off a year into pandemic
While most Americans have weathered the pandemic financially, about 38 million say they are worse off now than before the outbreak began in the U.S. Overall, 55% of Americans say their financial circumstances are about the same now as a year ago, and 30% say their finances have improved, according...
Japan to start Fukushima water release to sea in 2 years
TOKYO — Japan’s government said Tuesday it has decided to start releasing massive amounts of radioactive water stored in tanks at the wrecked Fukushima nuclear plant in two years after treatment. The decision, long speculated but delayed for years because of safety concerns and protests, came Tuesday at a meeting...
Student fires at officers at Tennessee school, is killedVideo
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — A student opened fire on officers responding to a report of a possible gunman Monday at a Tennessee high school, and police shot back and killed him, authorities said. The shooting wounded an officer and comes as the community reels from off-campus gun violence that has left...
Georgia sheriff: 3 officers wounded, 1 suspect dead, 1 held from chase
VILLA RICA, Ga. — Three Georgia police officers were shot and wounded as they pursued two brothers from Alabama in a high-speed chase that ended early Monday with one brother shot and killed and the other in custody, authorities said. A Georgia State Patrol trooper clocked a Nissan Sentra going...
‘Skilled predator’ FBI boss harassed 8 women, watchdog finds
NEW YORK — One woman carried a ruler at FBI headquarters so she could smack James Hendricks’ hands when he reached for her legs and breasts. Another went home shaken after he tugged on her ear and kissed her cheek during a closed-door meeting. And when Hendricks went on to...
Ukraine leader’s request to talk to Putin ignored: official
KYIV, Ukraine — Ukraine’s leader has asked for a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin about the Russian troop buildup across his country’s border and the escalating tensions in eastern Ukraine, but the request has not been answered so far, his spokeswoman said Monday. The concentration of Russian troops...
Off-duty Italy art cops find looted statue in Belgian shop
Italian police say they have recovered a 1st century Roman statue that was stolen from an archaeological site in 2011 and found in a Belgian antiques shop by two off-duty Italian art squad police officers. An Italian businessman who used a Spanish pseudonym has been referred to prosecutors for further...
Georgia sheriff: 3 officers wounded, 1 suspect dead, 1 held
VILLA RICA, Ga. — Authorities in Georgia said three officers were wounded in a police chase that ended Monday morning with one suspect killed and another in custody. A Georgia State Patrol trooper clocked a car going 111 mph on Interstate 20 and initiated a traffic stop around 3:30 a.m.,...
George Floyd’s brother sheds tears on stand during Chauvin’s trial
MINNEAPOLIS — George Floyd’s younger brother took the witness stand Monday and lovingly recalled how George used to make the best banana mayonnaise sandwiches, how George drilled him in catching a football, and the way George used to mark his height on the wall as a boy because he wanted...
‘Huge’ explosion rocks St. Vincent as volcano keeps erupting
KINGSTOWN, St. Vincent — La Soufriere volcano fired an enormous amount of ash and hot gas early Monday in the biggest explosive eruption yet since volcanic activity began on the eastern Caribbean island of St. Vincent late last week, with officials worried about the lives of those who have refused...
Investigation finds Syria likely behind 2018 chlorine attack
THE HAGUE, Netherlands — An investigation by the global chemical weapons watchdog found “reasonable grounds to believe” that a Syrian air force military helicopter dropped a chlorine cylinder on a Syrian town in 2018, sickening 12 people, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons said Monday. It is the...
