| AP sources: US struck Iranian military computers this week Posted: 22 Jun 2019 08:38 PM PDT  U.S. military cyber forces launched a strike against Iranian military computer systems on Thursday as President Donald Trump backed away from plans for a more conventional military strike in response to Iran's downing of a U.S. surveillance drone, U.S. officials said Saturday. Two officials told The Associated Press that the strikes were conducted with approval from Trump. Two of the officials said the attacks, which specifically targeted Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps computer system, were provided as options after Iranian forces blew up two oil tankers earlier this month.
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| White supremacist who killed woman after driving car into Charlottesville protesters begs judge to show him ‘mercy’ Posted: 23 Jun 2019 12:47 AM PDT  The self-avowed white supremacist who ploughed his car into protesters opposing a far-right rally in Virginia two years ago, killing one person and injuring dozens of others, has asked a judge for mercy and a sentence shorter than life in prison.James Alex Fields Jr's legal team has argued in a new sentencing memo that the 22-year-old defendant should not spend his entire life in prison because of his age, a traumatic childhood and a history of mental illness.Fields has pleaded guilty to federal hate crimes in relation to the Charlottesville attack and is set to be sentenced on 28 June."No amount of punishment imposed on James can repair the damage he caused to dozens of innocent people. But this Court should find that retribution has limits," his attorneys wrote in a court document submitted on Friday.Fields' attorneys said that giving him something less than a life sentence would be akin to an "expression of mercy" and a "conviction that no individual is wholly defined by their worst moments".The attorneys highlighted his difficult upbringing and history of mental illness, but many of the details were redacted. The document did reveal he was raised by a paraplegic single mother and suffered "trauma" by growing up knowing his Jewish grandfather had murdered his grandmother before committing suicide.In their own sentencing memo, prosecutors said Fields had shown no remorse since he drove the car into the counter-demonstrators on 12 August, 2017, killing anti-racism activist Heather Heyer and injuring others protesting against the white nationalists.They argued that Fields deserves a life sentence, adding that would help deter others from committing "similar acts of domestic terrorism".Prosecutors focused on years of documented racist and antisemitic behaviour by Fields, which they said included keeping a picture of Adolf Hitler on his bedside table. They also said that he was recorded on a jail phone call making disparaging remarks about Ms Heyer's mother as recently as last month.They also argued that while Fields has a history of mental illness issues, it did not excuse his behaviour in a way that would demand a lenient sentence. "Any mental health concerns raised by the defendant do not overcome the defendant's demonstrated lack of remorse and his prior history of substantial racial animus," prosecutors wrote.Under a plea deal, federal prosecutors agreed not to pursue the death penalty against Fields after he pleaded in March to federal hate crime charges and admitted that he intentionally drove his car into a crowd of anti-racism protesters.The charges he pleaded guilty to call for life in prison under federal sentencing guidelines.In December last year he was convicted in a Virginia court of first-degree murder and other state charges for killing Ms Heyer and injuring others who were protesting. Sentencing on the state charges is scheduled for next month.The 2017 rally drew hundreds of white nationalists to Charlottesville to protest the planned removal of a statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee. Hundreds of counter-protesters demonstrated against the white nationalists.Donald Trump infamously said there were "very fine people on both sides" of the clashes in the Virginia city.Additional reporting by AP
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| Russians hit out at Kremlin ban on flights to Georgia Posted: 22 Jun 2019 03:50 AM PDT  Russia's travel industryhit out Saturday at a decision by the Kremlin to suspend flights to Georgia as a politically motivated move that has little to do with safety concerns. President Vladimir Putin signed a decree banning Russian airlines from flying to Georgia from July 8 late Friday in response to anti-government rallies in the ex-Soviet neighbour. The outbreak of protests was sparked by a parliamentary address in Tbilisi by a Moscow lawmaker earlier this week.
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| Lightfoot orders CPD not to cooperate with planned ICE raids Posted: 21 Jun 2019 04:52 PM PDT  Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced Friday that the Chicago Police Department will not cooperate with planned raids by the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency this weekend.
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| How an Aircraft Carrier and a Submarine Hunted Each Other During the Falklands War Posted: 22 Jun 2019 08:00 PM PDT  On the afternoon of April 30, 1982, the War Cabinet of Prime Minister Margret Thatcher transmitted a message to three Royal Navy submarines in the South Atlantic—designating the carrier Veinticino de Mayo a priority target to be hunted down and destroyed.The Argentine carrier—ironically, of British origin—posed an unpredictable threat to the Royal Navy taskforce commencing amphibious operations to retake the disputed Falkland Islands following their seizure by Argentinian troops on April 2, 1982.The ensuing nine-day game of cat-and-mouse between British submarines and the anti-submarine aircraft onboard the Veinticinco is recounted in A Carrier at Risk by Mariano Sciaroni, who compares interviews with Argentine sources with Reports of Proceedings filed by British submariners to shed new light on a formerly obscure subject.Sciaroni's book not only serves as a primer for the anti-submarine tactics and technology of the time, but features many maps plotting day-by-day movements of the combatants and numerous photos and color illustrations depicting the vessels and aircraft engaged. Sciaroni also captures the routines and human foibles of wartime life at sea, such as quarrels over stocking snacks in the pilot ready room and fearful crewmen sleeping at their stations in life vests.
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| ICE Plans to Target 2,000 Undocumented Immigrants in New Deportation Operation Posted: 21 Jun 2019 12:21 PM PDT  U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement will begin an operation Sunday targeting over 2,000 undocumented immigrants who have received deportation orders, according to reports.The operation will last several days and target families in up to ten U.S. cities, including those with large immigrant populations such as Los Angeles, Houston, Chicago, and Miami. Agents plan to use hotel rooms to hold undocumented individuals until all the members of their family are together, at which time they will be deported.Acting ICE head Mark Morgan stressed that the U.S. must send a message to potential immigrants that bringing a child into the country does not grant you immunity."Do not risk it. Do not pay the cartels an exorbitant amount of money, because once you receive due process and get a final order, you will be removed," Morgan said. "The message has gotten out that if you bring a kid, nothing will ever happen to you. We need to make sure we're sending the message that will not be tolerated any more."Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Kevin McAleenan has also suggested an effort to more specifically target about 150 families who were given attorneys but fled the legal process.Despite McAleenan's recommendation that immigration resources be directed toward the crisis at the southern border, President Trump has made the interior raid a priority and announced the upcoming operation earlier this week."Next week ICE will begin the process of removing the millions of illegal aliens who have illicitly found their way into the United States," Trump wrote on Monday. "They will be removed as fast as they come in.""I don't want to send ICE agents to their workplace," Morgan said of the plans for mass arrests. "I don't want to send ICE agents to their home. I don't want to send ICE agents to try and track them down and apprehend them in their communities and town. But we've applied due process. We've tried to work with them."
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| Thomas Roberts on Stonewall 50: ‘I Want LGBTQ Kids to Know It’s OK. It’s OK to Be Different, and OK to Be Gay’ Posted: 22 Jun 2019 07:28 PM PDT  Photo Illustration by Sarah Rogers/The Daily Beast / Photos GettyIn this special series, LGBT celebrities and public figures talk to Tim Teeman about the Stonewall Riots and their legacy—see more here.Thomas RobertsJournalistWhen/how did you first hear about the Stonewall Riots, and what did you make of them?I learned of the Stonewall Riots in 2006-2007. It was shortly after coming out publicly. I was utterly impressed at the bravery protesters showed. They put it all on the line for us. The Stonewall Riots: What Really Happened, What Didn't, and What Became MythWhat is their significance for you?Without Stonewall where would we be today? It was the spark.How far have we LGBT people come since 1969?Since 1969 we've come out of the shadows of shame and intolerance. In 50 years the LGBTQ community is a force to be reckon with, but we still have battles ahead. And it's not solely on LGBTQ rights. We need to show up wherever people are marginalized and oppressed. We need to show up when we aren't personally the sole beneficiaries.What would you like to see, LGBT-wise, in the next 50 years?I'd love to see an LGBTQ President. And I believe in my lifetime we just might. But in the meantime I want LGBTQ kids to know it's OK. It's OK to be different. It's OK to be gay. The world is a big and wonderful place... eventually we all find our peace. However, it doesn't come without ups and downs. There will be high highs and low lows. Keep going. It will all be OK. Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| Harris, Warren, others counter Biden's electability argument Posted: 22 Jun 2019 04:25 PM PDT  Standing before a throng of party faithful in a key early primary state, Joe Biden's leading rivals for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination sought Saturday to undercut the former vice president's argument that he's the ideal Democrat to oust President Donald Trump. California Sen. Kamala Harris charged straight at Trump as she addressed hundreds of activists at the South Carolina Democratic Party Convention. "We need somebody on our stage when it comes for that general election, who knows how to recognize a rap sheet when they see it and prosecute the case," Harris said, playing off her experience as a state and local prosecutor as she shredded Trump on a litany of policy fronts.
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| School will no longer be recognised as Catholic after refusing to fire gay teacher, church officials say Posted: 22 Jun 2019 11:50 AM PDT  A school that refused to fire a gay teacher as ordered by the Archdiocese of Indianapolis says it has been told by church officials that it will no longer be recognised as Catholic. But school leaders pledged to keep the institution's religious identification.The archdiocese announced in a statement that it would no longer recognise Brebeuf Jesuit Preparatory School, an independently operated school, because it was not insisting that all employees "be supportive of all teachings of the Catholic Church," the Catholic News Agency reported. The church is against homosexual activity.A statement by the Reverend Brian G Paulson, who heads the Midwest Province of Jesuits, said the archdiocese told Brebeuf Jesuit Preparatory School two years ago not to renew the contract of a teacher whose "marital status does not conform to church doctrine." He also said the decision, to be formalised in a church decree, would be appealed through a church process and would go as high as the Vatican "if necessary."Leaders of Brebeuf Jesuit posted an open letter to their community on the Indianapolis school's website saying the archdiocese had directly inserted itself into a school governance matter in an "unprecedented" way and that it would not do what Archbishop Charles Thompson had demanded.The letter said in part: "Specifically, Brebeuf Jesuit has respectfully declined the Archdiocese's insistence and directive that we dismiss a highly capable and qualified teacher due to the teacher being a spouse within a civilly-recognised same-sex marriage."The unidentified teacher was said by Mr Paulson to be "a valued employee" who does not teach religion. He wrote that Brebeuf Jesuit became aware through social media "that one of its teachers entered into a civil marriage with a person of the same sex."According to the Associated Press, a school operated by the archdiocese, Indianapolis Roncalli High School, has fired or suspended two guidance counsellors in the past year because they are in same-sex marriages.Brebeuf Jesuit's leaders who signed the open letter are the Reverend William Verbryke, the school president; W Patrick Bruen, chair of the school's Board of Trustees; and Daniel M Lechleiter, chair-elect of the trustees board. They promised in the letter that the school's mission would not change as a result of this conflict with the archdiocese."We understand that this news will likely spur a host of emotions, questions and even confusion in the days ahead. Please be assured, the Archdiocese's decision will not change the mission or operations of Brebeuf Jesuit."On Friday, the school's name was not on the archdiocese's list of Catholic schools in its region.The church says there are 68 Catholic schools - 57 elementary schools and 11 high schools - in the Archdiocese of Indianapolis, according to its website. Collectively, they enrolled some 23,200 students during the 2018-2019 school year.Most of those schools are operated by a school division within the archdiocese, which is headed by Superintendent Gina Kuntz Fleming, who did not return phone calls about Brebeuf Jesuit. While Brebeuf Jesuit is a Catholic school within the archdiocese, it is independently operated. The school has nearly 800 students in grades nine through 12.The school leaders' letter said that, while the archdiocese "may choose to no longer attend or participate in the school's Masses and formal functions, Brebeuf Jesuit is, and will always be, a Catholic Jesuit school."It also said church leaders assured them that "Jesuit priests may continue to serve at Brebeuf Jesuit and will retain their ability to celebrate the sacraments of the Catholic Church."The Washington Post
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| How to Mow Your Lawn in Hot Weather and Keep It Green Posted: 21 Jun 2019 01:05 PM PDT  With the dog days of summer finally here, it's time to re-evaluate how you mow your lawn. While a low-cut, manicured lawn might seem ideal, turf grass actually does better in the summer heat when...
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| Spain's top court convicts 5 men in gang rape case Posted: 21 Jun 2019 12:13 PM PDT  Spain's Supreme Court on Friday overruled two lower courts and sentenced five men to 15 years in prison for raping an 18-year-old woman. The case had triggered an outcry because the lower courts last year convicted the men of the lesser crime of sexual abuse and handed down nine-year sentences. Women's rights advocates had expressed anger about what they saw as the lower court's leniency and the confirmation of that sentence by a second court.
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| Ethiopia army chief of staff shot amid unrest Posted: 22 Jun 2019 11:58 PM PDT  Ethiopia's army chief of staff has been shot, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed announced on television Sunday as the government said it had thwarted an attempted coup in a regional state of this Horn of Africa nation. Abiy took to national television in the early hours dressed in military fatigues and announced that army chief Seare Mekonnen had been shot, an AFP correspondent said.
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| Two Nazi Soldiers Proved How Deadly a Sniper Can Be on the Battlefield Posted: 23 Jun 2019 02:00 AM PDT  The three Soviet tanks edged forward slowly as the drivers scanned for the concealed Germans that lay ahead. The lead tank suddenly clanked to a stop and swung its long barrel around. It looked much like one of Hannibal's elephants with its trunk raised, sniffing the air before its planned lunge forward toward the hapless enemy.The Wehrmacht troops were in a precarious situation. They lacked air support there as the Soviets mounted a heavy attack in mid-August 1943 along the length of the Donets Front in eastern Ukraine. Antitank panzerfausts were not available to the 3rd Gebirgsjager (Mountain) Division, and the unit had few, if any, sticky charges to blow the tracks from the Soviet T-34 tanks. All they had were their wits and their bolt-action Mauser rifles against the three steel titans that loomed in front of them with scores of Red Army soldiers trailing.Suddenly, the lead tank's hatch opened about 10 inches and a head appeared with binoculars to scan the scene. Sniper Josef "Sepp" Allerberger brought the Soviet tanker's head into the center of his scope, and at some 500 feet he squeezed off a round. A splat of blood hit the hatch as the head sank into the bowels of the tank.
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| Iran silent on reports of US cyberattack on weapons systems Posted: 23 Jun 2019 09:08 AM PDT  Iran warned the US against 'wrong behaviors' but made no mention of reports that Iranian military computers were the target of a cyberattack.
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| E. Coli scare leads to multi-state recall of brownie mix Posted: 21 Jun 2019 06:09 PM PDT  With the weekend upon us it might seem like a lovely time to make yourself a tasty treat. If you've got a box of brownie mix in your pantry -- and you happen to live in Alabama, Iowa, Ohio, Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Minnesota, New York, or South Carolina -- you might want to think again.The FDA just posted a new product recall bulletin for cookie and brownie mixes sold in those states, and the risks of accidentally consuming the tainted product could be high. The flour used in the various mixes may be contaminated with E. Coli.According to the recall notice, the flour used in mixes carrying the brand names Brand Castle, Sister's Gourmet, and In The Mix comes from supplier ADM Million Co., and that's where the trouble originated.> The product is being recalled because an ingredient supplier, ADM Milling Co., has issued a recall for the flour used in these products due to E. coli contamination found in a single lot code of H&R Flour at their Buffalo production plant.The full list of UPCs and lot numbers are available in the FDA's bulletin, so if you think you might have a jar of this mix sitting in a cupboard it would be wise to check.E. Coli is a group of bacteria that can cause some pretty serious issues if ingested. Strains of the bacteria can produce a variety of symptoms including cramping, vomiting, and diarrhea.The company says that it hasn't received any complaints of illness over the consumption of its products, but it's issuing the recall out of an abundance of caution. The company is offering refunds to anyone who purchased the recalled mix, and a phone number and email address are provided on the recall notice.
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| On Iran, Trump talks loudly and carries a big stick — but doesn't use it Posted: 21 Jun 2019 03:06 PM PDT  Donald Trump's public life and presidency have been characterized by a pattern of ambivalence toward U.S. military action.
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| Woman falls asleep on flight and wakes up in pitch dark on locked and empty plane Posted: 22 Jun 2019 08:09 AM PDT  A woman has claimed she was left alone in a dark and locked plane after falling asleep on a flight.Tiffani Adams took a 90-minute Air Canada flight from Quebec to Toronto on 9 June.Ms Adams fell asleep during the journey but woke up to find the aircraft empty, cleared and parked in Toronto.She had somehow been left inside the dark plane, which appeared to have been locked for the night."I fell asleep probably less than halfway through my short 1.5 hour flight," she said, in a message posted on Air Canada's Facebook page."I wake up around midnight (few hours after flight landed) freezing cold still strapped in my seat in complete darkness (I'm talking pitch black)."Ms Adams described her ordeal as "terrifying" and said she thought she was having a bad dream.The stranded passenger called a friend but her phone died around a minute into the call. Ms Adams then attempted to charge the phone but found that the plane's power had been switched off."I can't charge my phone to call for help I'm full on panicking [because] I want off this nightmare asap," she said."As someone with an anxiety disorder as is I can tell you how terrifying this was," she wrote"I think I'm having a bad dream bc like seriously how is this happening!!?"Ms Adams said she found a torch in the plane's cockpit and eventually made her way to the aircraft's main door.She eventually opened the door, only to find herself around 50 ft above ground and unable to negotiate the drop beneath her.The passenger said she sat with her legs dangling out of the aircraft while sending out distress signals with her torch.Ms Adams said she was unable to tell how much time had passed before she saw a man driving a luggage cart, who passed the plane.She said she flagged the startled airport employee down, saying he was "in shock" to see her. "He [asked] how the heck they left me on the plane," Ms Adams said, describing her rescue."I'm wondering the same."The man then accompanied Ms Adams to the airport building, where she was met by Air Canada representatives.Ms Adams said being forgotten on the plane had left her with recurring "night terrors".She said she struggled to sleep and would wake "anxious and afraid [she was] locked up someplace dark".An airline spokesperson confirmed the account and told The Independent that Air Canada was reviewing the incident and remained in contact with the passenger.
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| Bikers, military vets mourn 7 killed in rural highway crash Posted: 22 Jun 2019 10:36 PM PDT  Motorcyclists and military veterans mourned Sunday as authorities sought help in determining why a pickup truck collided with a group of bikers on a rural highway, killing seven of them. The crash in remote northern New Hampshire involved members of Marine JarHeads MC, a motorcycle club that includes Marines and their spouses. Authorities said they might begin identifying victims by name as soon as Sunday.
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| Georgia death row inmate becomes 1,500th person to be executed since US brought back death penalty Posted: 21 Jun 2019 01:08 PM PDT  The United States has executed the 1,500th person since the Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty in 1976, according to a database keeping track of executions.Marion Wilson Jr was killed by lethal injection at 9.52pm on Thursday at the Georgia Diagnostic and Classification Prison in Jackson, Georgia after the US Supreme Court denied a stay of execution.The state's Department of Corrections confirmed his death. According to their press release, he was the 73rd person executed in Georgia since 1976, and the 51st put to death by lethal injection.Nationally, lethal injection counts for 1,323 of the 1,500 deaths, according to the Death Penalty Information Centre.In 1997, WIlson was convicted along Robert Earl Butts Jr in the March 1996 slaying of 24-year-old Donovan Corey Parks.Prosecutors said Parks, a stranger to the two men, was killed after agreeing to give the two men a ride outside a Walmart in rural Georgia.Butts was sentenced to death as well; his death by lethal injection was fulfilled last year.The state's Department of Corrections says Wilson was given a final statement and a prayer before the state administered deadly injection of pentobarbital."I ain't never took a life in my life," Wilson said.To his friends and family he added: "I love y'all forever. Death can't stop it. Can't nothing stop it."Outside the prison where Wilson's death was administered, protestors of the death penalty held signs that read "1,500 executions and counting. Abolish the death penalty."Around 2,500 prisoners currently face the death penalty in America. The largest numbers are in California (740), Florida (354), and Texas (228).
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| Democratic White House candidates face grilling on abortion Posted: 22 Jun 2019 07:08 PM PDT  Democrats running for US president in next year's election sat down with voters on Saturday to outline their stance on abortion, a long-simmering issue newly inflamed by attempts to curtail it nationwide. With abortion now among the most-discussed topics in the presidential race, the candidates aimed to impress an audience cheering "Who decides? "If you're not pro-choice, you're not getting my vote," declared 34-year-old Jennifer Egor, who traveled to the forum held in the South Carolina state capital Columbia.
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| Utah Woman Tortured Puppy for Days to `Keep the Dog Quiet,` Police Say Posted: 22 Jun 2019 07:45 AM PDT  A puppy is in need of surgery and a woman is facing a felony charge for what she allegedly did to keep her dog quiet.
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| Ethiopia foils coup attempt after military chief shot dead by bodyguard in his home Posted: 23 Jun 2019 02:52 AM PDT  he Ethiopian government appeared to have foiled a coup attempt last night after the army's chef of staff was shot dead by his own bodyguard and several other high-ranking officials were killed. The failed coup in the Amhara region was led by a high-ranking military officer and others within the military, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, wearing military fatigues, announced on the state broadcaster. Since taking office just over a year ago, Mr Abiy has embarked on unprecedented reforms in Ethiopia, Africa's second-most populous country and one of its fastest-growing economies. But the prime minister's shake-up of the military and intelligence services has earned him powerful enemies, while his government is struggling to rein in powerful figures in Ethiopia's myriad ethnic groups fighting the federal government and each other for influence and resources. In a related development, the head of Ethiopia's military was shot dead in the capital not long after the attack in Amhara, during which soldiers attacked a building in which a meeting of regional officials was taking place, Nigussu Tilahun, spokesman for the prime minister, told a news conference Sunday. The regional president and at least two other officials were among the victims of that attack, he said. The violent attack in Bahir Dar, capital of Amhara, was linked to the subsequent assassination of army chief Gen. Seare Mekonnen, who was shot dead by a bodyguard at his residence in Addis Ababa. A retired army general visiting the army chief at the time was also killed in the same attack, said the spokesman. "There is a link between the two attacks," Nigussu said. The attack in Bahir Dar was allegedly led by a renegade brigadier who had recently been pardoned by Ethiopia's prime minister after being jailed for some offenses. Most of the perpetrators of the attack in Bahir Dar have been apprehended and others are being hunted down, said the spokesman. The US Embassy reported gunfire in the capital Saturday and urged people to be careful. In Bahir Dar residents told The Associated Press they could still hear gunshots late Saturday. Ethiopia's internet appeared to be shut down on Sunday. The attempted coup in Amhara is the latest challenge to Abiy, who was elected last year as a reform-minded young leader. Abiy has captured the imagination of many with his political and economic reforms, including the surprise acceptance of a peace agreement with bitter rival Eritrea, the opening of major state-owned sectors to private investment and the release of thousands of prisoners including opposition figures once sentenced to death. Along the way he has faced some challenges. In June 2018, only months in office, an attempt to hurl a grenade at Abiy caused a deadly explosion at a massive rally in support of the sweeping changes in Ethiopia. Nine police officials were arrested over that incident, state media reported. In October rebellious Ethiopian soldiers protested over pay, causing a security incident in the capital. Ethiopia's army is one of the largest in Africa. The country is a key regional security ally for the United States and others in the restive Horn of Africa region.
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| After high arsenic reports, Keurig Dr Pepper pulls bottled water sold at Target, Walmart Posted: 23 Jun 2019 08:46 AM PDT  All bottles of unflavored Peñafiel mineral spring water are part of a voluntary withdrawal, Keurig Dr Pepper said in a statement Friday.
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| Trump learns it’s not always easy going it alone Posted: 23 Jun 2019 03:56 AM PDT  The president's unilateral actions on Iran, North Korea and China have often left him forging ahead alone on critical foreign policy issues.
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| George Clooney Has Plumbing Disaster as Obamas Visit Lake Como Villa Posted: 23 Jun 2019 08:29 AM PDT  Flavio Lo Scalzo/ReutersThings are always a little stressful when visitors come around for the weekend, even for George and Amal Clooney who are hosting Barack Obama and his family at his lavish Lake Como villa in Italy from Saturday through Monday.Not only has security been an issue with any vehicle or boat coming within a few hundred meters of the property subject to fines of over $500, the neighbors are up in arms that the Clooneys have been monopolizing the local gardeners. One told the newspaper La Repubblica that he hasn't had his lawn cut for a week because his gardener is on "special assignment" sprucing up the Clooney estate. Then, just before Obama, his wife Michelle and their daughters Malia and Sasha arrived from Milan on Saturday in a armored entourage of seven cars with darkened glass, a white van for luggage, six police cars, and a helicopter overhead, Clooney noticed that the swimming pool was half full and the water was like ice. He asked his bodyguard Giovanni to call Dante Pennè, the local Lake Como plumber to sort him out. Speaking to Corriere Della Sera newspaper, Pennè explained that when he arrived at the Clooney household, things were out of hand. "What a race," he said. "I arrive and they are all upset. Giovanni says to me: hurry up, hurry up!" Penne, who did not know who the special guests were, said he responded, "Let me work, otherwise I won't be able to fix it."After a few minutes, Pennè said he was able to sort out the thermometer and drain. Clooney, wearing a sweaty Casmigos t-shirt, was thrilled. He obliged the plumber and granted a quick selfie. "Thank you, I was worried," Clooney said, according to the plumber. "You know, my friend is a tanned guy, he doesn't like cold water." The plumber did not respond to a Daily Beast call for clarification. The Obamas were in Italy to attend a charity dinner Saturday evening for the Clooney Foundation for Justice, which will soon be awarding a double date with George and Amal as part of a new promotion.There is also widespread speculation that Clooney is considering political office, and what better place to discuss it with a former president than a perfectly heated pool. Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| The Latest: Company linked to motorcycle crash cooperating Posted: 22 Jun 2019 06:10 PM PDT  The owner of a company that employs the truck driver identified as involved in a deadly collision with motorcycles says he can't reach the driver. Dartanyan Gasanov is the owner of Westfield Transport of Springfield, Massachusetts.
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| Would You Pay This Much For A Corvette Body? Posted: 22 Jun 2019 05:52 AM PDT  This isn't exactly a budget-friendly deal... Quite a few people love the look of a classic Chevy Corvette Stingray, and why not? The iconic lines are like nothing you find on any other vehicle around, making it a real standout even among other classics. While that's certainly true, you might be wondering why this 1966 Chevrolet Corvette convertible body is so pricey.At $18,000 for a body that not long has the original Rally Red paint, it's understandable why anyone would question the sanity in paying so much. All you get is the body, doors, hinges, rear exhaust valance, convertible decklid, bird cage, and windshield frame, plus the glass. Nothing from the black vinyl interior, drivetrain, chassis, etc. comes along, meaning you need to source the rest.Consider this: you could easily spend upwards of $125,000 or more for a clean, low-mileage 1966 Chevrolet Corvette Convertible. That's not exactly a low price, because quite a few people love the look of the C2, especially when it comes topless. Even higher-mileage examples tend to go for somewhere between $80,000 and $100,000 or more, with prices constantly climbing.It's not like GM is making any more of these classic bodies. While you might have your heart set on a complete Stingray, this body offers up all kinds of possibilities. It works for restoring a car with serious body damage, including rust. Alternatively, you could use that impeccable styling for a potent restomod project, making for a unique creation. Add a compatible chassis, whatever motor you desire, plus a great interior for something which turns heads and breaks necks.When you start to realize just how much a 1966 'Vette sells for these days, and consider that they're going to keep going up in value, suddenly this body seems like a much better deal than before. Classic Corvettes are definitely hot items, making it a solid idea to snatch up whatever you can when possible.
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| How You Can Modernize Your Old Beater with the Latest Tech Posted: 22 Jun 2019 04:30 AM PDT |
| Iran reports previous incident with 'spy drone' in May Posted: 23 Jun 2019 06:11 AM PDT  Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif tweeted a map on Sunday showing a border incident with a "spy drone" encroaching its airspace in late May. Days after Iran shot down another US drone it said had entered its territory, Zarif said the US-made MQ9 Reaper -- also widely used for carrying out military strikes -- had entered Iranian airspace on May 26.
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| Mini Glock Gun: Why the Glock 42 Is One Dangerous Weapon Posted: 21 Jun 2019 07:00 PM PDT  In the right hands, the Glock 42 pistol could conceivably become as deadly as its larger caliber brethren. The smallest Glock, it is also suitable for whom concealability is a major purchase factor. While not for everyone, the combination of Glock's pistol platform and John Browning's small automatic caliber is still a compelling choice for users who combine both skill and discretion.(This article originally appeared earlier this month.)A combination of the successful Glock pistol design and a caliber invented by armsman John Moses Browning, the Glock 42 is certainly worth taking a look at.The pistol combines the Austrian gun manufacturer's gun operating system with the .380 ACP pistol cartridge. The result is both a pistol for concealed carriers who desire a low recoil pistol and the smallest pistol in Glock's lineup.Austrian gun manufacturer Glock has taken a tree-like approach to its pistol lineup, with the original Glock 17 9-millimeter pistol the trunk each major caliber it forays into a branch. The company will typically introduce the full-sized Glock in a new caliber, then quickly follow with compact, sub-compact, and competition-sized pistols to round out the caliber offering.Unlike other branches, like the .45 ACP and the .40 Smith & Wesson, the .380 ACP branch of the Glock tree is the smallest of them all, consisting of a single pistol: the Glock 42. The smallest and least powerful of all calibers the company has endorsed, the nature of the .380 ACP round makes it only suitable for a modern subcompact design.
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| Arab ministers to discuss financial support for Palestinian Authority -agency Posted: 22 Jun 2019 01:26 PM PDT ![Arab ministers to discuss financial support for Palestinian Authority -agency]( "Arab ministers to discuss financial support for Palestinian Authority -agency") Arab finance ministers will hold an emergency meeting in Cairo on Sunday to discuss helping the Palestinian Authority cope with a deepening cash crunch amid a persistent dispute with Israel over payments to families of jailed and deceased militants. The meeting comes ahead of a U.S.-led economic conference in Bahrain expected to call for a $50 billion global investment fund for the Palestinians, Egypt, Jordan and Lebanon which the Palestinian Authority is boycotting. The Palestinian Authority sees the economic conference as an attempt to circumvent its demands for the creation of a Palestinian state in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip with East Jerusalem as its capital.
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| ICE raids expected to begin soon Posted: 22 Jun 2019 10:01 AM PDT  The Bipartisan Policy Center director of immigration and cross-border policy Theresa Cardinal Brown says ICE officials would rather their operations be kept secret.
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| Fox News’ Sean Hannity and convicted Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort secretly shared information about Mueller investigation, text messages reveal Posted: 22 Jun 2019 06:18 AM PDT  He has been called the shadow White House chief of staff, but Sean Hannity also sought to assist Paul Manafort as he defended himself from the special counsel's investigation, according to court documents unsealed on Friday.Mr Hannity, a Fox News host who is a close ally of Donald Trump, advised Manafort on how to fight his prosecution in the court of public opinion and also pressed for confidential details about the case, according to a compilation of hundreds of text messages exchanged between the men, made public as part of the winding down of the case.Mr Hannity at times appeared to try to gauge whether Manafort, a former Trump campaign aide, might be poised to cooperate with investigators and, if so, what he might tell them about Mr Trump and his inner circle.After Manafort's former deputy, Rick Gates, pleaded guilty last year and agreed to cooperate with investigators, Mr Hannity asked why Manafort did not "get a sweetheart deal like Gates." Manafort responded that prosecutors "would want me to give up" the president or his family, especially his son-in-law and White House adviser, Jared Kushner. "I would never do that."The messages underscore the outsize role Mr Hannity has played in Mr Trump's orbit.On his daily syndicated radio programme and nightly Fox News show, he serves as a top supporter, leading the charge against Mr Trump's enemies. But Mr Hannity also speaks regularly to the president about strategy and messaging, and the messages suggest he sought to play a similar role for Manafort, raising the spectre that he may have helped the two parties coordinate their strategies or at least given him real-time visibility into both sides' thinking.Days before Manafort and Gates were indicted in October 2017, Mr Hannity suggested he had information. Manafort responded within 10 minutes, and the subsequent messages suggest they spoke on the phone, after which Manafort thanked Mr Hannity for "the news," adding, "You are the best!"A few months later, Manafort arranged for Mr Hannity to speak with his lawyer Kevin Downing, then quickly followed up, asking how the call went. "Good," Mr Hannity said. "I asked him to feed me everyday," adding, "He has to SEND ME STUFF.""He will," Manafort responded."Every day," Mr Hannity demanded.Later, they speculated on the fate of Mr Kushner, with Manafort positing that the special counsel, Robert Mueller, might be targeting the president's son-in-law as a way of pressuring Mr Trump into an interview."He won't agree," Mr Hannity said. "The lawyers will fight tooth and nail. Proffered agreement. All pre-planned."In a statement responding to the release of the text messages, Mr Hannity said, "My view of the special counsel investigation and the treatment of Paul Manafort were made clear every day to anyone who listens to my radio show or watches my TV show."Neither Mr Downing nor a spokesperson for Manafort responded to a request for comment.The messages began in July 2017 as prosecutors ramped up their investigations into Manafort and Gates, but months before the men were indicted on charges related to their unregistered lobbying work for Russia-aligned Ukrainian interests.The messages ended in June 2018, the day after Manafort was charged with additional counts on witness tampering. Two months later, he was found guilty on tax and banking violations. He subsequently pleaded guilty to additional charges and was sentenced in March to 7 1/2 years in prison.Mr Hannity and Manafort seemed to have developed a bond, sharing misplaced confidence that Manafort would beat the charges against him, as well as a disdain for Mr Mueller and his investigators. In one text, Manafort compared Mr Mueller to the Gestapo.Both men expressed raw animosity for Andrew Weissmann, a member of the special counsel's team who helped lead the prosecution of Manafort. He called Mr Weissmann a "slime ball," "unethical" and "illegal" while Mr Hannity concurred with the dismal view of Mr Weissmann.They thought little of former attorney general Jeff Sessions, expressing disappointment that he did not appoint a second special counsel to investigate the Clinton Foundation."Sessions is totally worthless," Manafort wrote in April 2018. Mr Hannity responded, "Worthless."Mr Hannity, who has repeatedly attacked the special counsel and the investigation into the president, regularly exchanged messages with Manafort about Fox News segments defending him and assailing his critics.After an episode in October 2017, Manafort messaged to compliment Mr Hannity and to complain about the lack of attention towards a dossier of research, which included claims about Manafort, that had been compiled for Democrats by a former British spy."It's really important that this doesn't fade," Manafort wrote. "Congress must engage."Mr Hannity responded, "I mentioned that!! Congress is finally engaging."Later, Manafort, who professed to be a regular viewer, wrote to Mr Hannity: "In a fair world you would get a Pulitzer for your incredible reporting." After another broadcast, Manafort told the Fox host that he loves him.At one point early in their correspondence, Mr Hannity indicated he would do "anything I can" to aid Manafort, adding, "I'm NOT a fair weather friend."But there was a limit to their relationship. Mr Hannity deflected on multiple occasions when Manafort asked for help drawing attention to efforts to raise money for his legal defence, initially suggesting he might allow Manafort to highlight the fund if he appeared on Mr Hannity's show.Manafort repeatedly begged off, citing his gag order. He made a final urgent appeal to Mr Hannity for fundraising assistance in May 2018, writing: "Do you think you can do a tweet or a like to the site? I need to draw traffic to it quickly."Mr Hannity responded, "Paul it may be problematic with Fox. I need to get the ok. Hope u understand."The New York Times
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| Istanbul Revote Pits Erdogan's Party Against Deposed Challenger Posted: 23 Jun 2019 05:12 AM PDT ![Istanbul Revote Pits Erdogan's Party Against Deposed Challenger]( "Istanbul Revote Pits Erdogan's Party Against Deposed Challenger") (Bloomberg) -- Polls are open again in Istanbul as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's party tries to extend its quarter century of rule in Turkey's biggest city after forcing a controversial rerun of a mayoral election.More than 10 million people are eligible to vote, and the candidates put a priority on getting some of the 1.7 million who didn't cast ballots in the last round to go to the polls on Sunday.The March 31 tally, overturned on appeal to the elections board, gave the opposition challenger, CHP's Ekrem Imamoglu, a margin of only about 14,000 votes over a former prime minister and candidate of the ruling AK Party, Binali Yildirim.Gizem Konak, 26, said she's always supported the pro-Kurdish HDP party -- until now."This time I voted for Imamoglu," she said in Kucukcekmece, a suburb of Istanbul. "This guy may be the only one to unite opposition parties under one roof in so many years. I think Imamoglu has the potential to change the destiny of this country."The AK Party's narrow defeat in March laid bare new vulnerabilities Erdogan faces after 16 years of increasingly authoritarian rule. With Turkey's economy reeling, it was a stinging slap in the president's hometown just a year after he was re-elected with sweeping new powers.Polls can't be published within the last 10 days before the vote but earlier surveys suggested that Imamoglu, a former Istanbul district leader, was in the lead. Erdogan has said he'd accept the results of the vote.Days before the election, Imamoglu received critical support from a prominent Kurdish politician who's been in prison since 2016 on terrorism-related charges he denies. Selahattin Demirtas, the former HDP leader, called on voters to support Imamoglu instead of voting for "revenge, hatred or grudges" in Turkey's acutely polarized political climate.Turkey Orders Istanbul Vote Rerun After Erdogan Rejects DefeatDefeat in the nation's commercial hub, home to about a fifth of Turkey's more than 82 million people, would strip Erdogan's party of a major source of patronage and handouts. By some estimates, the city absorbs a quarter of all public investment and accounts for a third of the country's $748 billion economy.'Correct Decision'"I believe the voters will make the correct decision for Istanbul," Erdogan said after casting his vote on Sunday.After the board's decision in May, the lira weakened the most in emerging markets and stocks were battered as investors fretted over what they saw as the erosion of the rule of law. Although unemployment has stabilized, the economy remains in distress.Erdogan's party had already lost the capital, Ankara, and some other big cities in the March balloting as inflation, unemployment and a plunge in the lira took their toll. But he refused to concede defeat in Istanbul, crying voter fraud, and Turkey's top election board concurred.Turkey Nailbiter Is Market's Worst Nightmare, No Matter Who WinsIn a last-ditch effort to tar Imamoglu, Erdogan alleged on Tuesday that he was backed by enemy forces: the U.S.-based preacher the president accuses of mounting a failed 2016 coup attempt against him, and a party Erdogan sees as the political wing of the autonomy-seeking Kurdish PKK group Turkey's been battling since the 1980s.Erdogan also called for prosecuting Imamoglu for allegedly insulting a provincial governor. The Turkish leader himself lost his seat as the mayor of Istanbul after he was imprisoned for four months in 1999 for reciting an Islamic poem deemed a threat to Turkey's secular order."Like how my mayoralty was nullified, so could his be canceled if he's sentenced" long enough, Erdogan said.An Imamoglu win could touch off an early presidential vote to prevent his gaining political traction, said Murat Gezici, head of the Gezici polling company.It could "create political havoc within the ruling AK party, possibly leading to the formation of new political parties and bringing about early elections later this year or early next," Gezici said.\--With assistance from Cagan Koc and Taylan Bilgic.To contact the reporters on this story: Selcan Hacaoglu in Ankara at shacaoglu@bloomberg.net;Firat Kozok in Ankara at fkozok@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Onur Ant at oant@bloomberg.net, Paul Abelsky, Nicholas LarkinFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Court tosses black man's murder conviction over racial bias Posted: 21 Jun 2019 01:44 PM PDT  The Supreme Court on Friday threw out the murder conviction and death sentence for a black man in Mississippi because of a prosecutor's efforts to keep African Americans off the jury. The removal of black prospective jurors deprived inmate Curtis Flowers of a fair trial, the court said in a 7-2 decision written by Justice Brett Kavanaugh. The long record of Flowers' trials stretching back more than 20 years shows District Attorney Doug Evans' "relentless, determined effort to rid the jury of black individuals," with the goal of an all-white jury, Kavanaugh wrote.
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| Take A Cruise In This Olive Green 1977 Toyota FJ40 Posted: 21 Jun 2019 10:16 AM PDT  Take the top off, while you're at it. This 1977 Toyota FJ40 runs and drives like new, despite having 100,044 original miles on the dash. For sale by Vintage Cruisers, this 'Jeep' is the perfect vehicle to go anywhere and do anything regardless of the season. It's a 4x4 dream and dates all the way back to 1960, when it was first introduced.This Toyota utility vehicle was in production from 1960 to 1983, and all the way up to 2001 in Brazil! Importation to the United States started in 1963 and, within just two years, the FJ40 Land Cruiser became the best-selling Toyota in America. Cosmetically, the FJ ultimately remained the same until it ceased production in 1983. However, it did see a gradual progression of trim tweaks and functional improvements throughout the years. It went from a bare-bones rock climber to a relatively modern SUV that was 30 years ahead of its time.This 1977 Toyota FJ40 is a beautifully restored two-door hardtop convertible body in a unique Olive Green exterior paint. That's right, this bad boy is ready for its next owner and for some new summertime adventures. From Arizona, this Land Cruiser contains a rust-free steel body with a fresh paint job and new interior Marine-grade upholstery. The undercarriage has been completely stripped and PPG undercoated for a rust-proof finish. The cabin also features upgraded waterproof floors, full factory bucket seats with headrests, a padded dashboard, and new A/C and heater unit.It's powered by a big 4.2-liter 2F motor mated to a four-speed manual transmission with three-speed transfer case gears. This FJ40 includes updated turn signals, power disc brakes, and a roll bar. It also has HD suspension, shackles, and urethane bushings. The front bumper sports a custom rectangular front bezel that certainly sets it apart. It matches the new factory white wagon wheels wrapped in 33-inch BFGoodrich tires.The disc brakes, 2F motor, and drive trans have been recently serviced. This Toyota FJ40 contains all new belts, hoses, and fluids. It's ready for daily use and then some. Read more.. Take The Whole Family Off-Road In This Custom Toyota FJ45 Troopy Restomod FJ45 Pickup Is The Model That Made Toyota
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| Vizio’s best compact soundbar is back down to $79 Posted: 21 Jun 2019 10:46 AM PDT ![Vizio's best compact soundbar is back down to $79]( "Vizio's best compact soundbar is back down to $79") Sound bars can be surprisingly expensive, especially if you want something that delivers impressive sound quality in a compact package. Thankfully, VIZIO changed that when it released the VIZIO SB2920-C6 29-Inch 2.0 Channel Sound Bar. This excellent sound bar provides a huge audio upgrade to any TV, and it's wonderfully compact so it can fit just about anywhere. On top of that, it's on sale right now on Amazon for just $78.99!Here are the highlights from the product page: * 95 dB of room-filling, crystal clear sound with less than 1% total harmonic distortion. Sound Bar Frequency: 70 Hz - 19 KHz * Built-in Bluetooth lets you lose the wires and listen to your music with a tap of a finger * Easy upgrade that boosts sound with a powerful punch * Premium audio with DTS Studio SoundTM, DTS Tru Volume TM and DTS TruSurroundTM * Easy Setup - Connect the Sound Bar to your TV using one of the included cables. Refer user manual for troubleshooting steps.
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| Boko Haram jihadist attack kills 8 in Chad: sources Posted: 23 Jun 2019 06:10 AM PDT  N'Djamena (AFP) - Seven Chadian soldiers and a local guard were killed in a Boko Haram jihadist ambush in Lake Chad, the latest in a surge of attacks in the region, security sources said on Sunday. Boko Haram militants have been waging a decade-long insurgency in northwest Nigeria, but the conflict has spilled into Lake Chad where Nigeria borders Niger, Chad and Cameroon. Security sources said the seven Chadian soldiers and the guard were killed in an ambush on Friday in Mbomouga in Chad's Ngouboua area, and another 13 people were wounded.
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| Why You Should Skip Target-Date Funds in Your Portfolio Posted: 21 Jun 2019 01:07 PM PDT ![Why You Should Skip Target-Date Funds in Your Portfolio]( "Why You Should Skip Target-Date Funds in Your Portfolio") While there's no such thing as a perfect retirement investment, some experts might argue that target funds come close. "Target-date funds have become popular because they offer an all in one solution," says Denny Baish, a senior investment analyst and portfolio manager at Fort Pitt Capital Group in Pittsburgh. Baish says these funds are common in retirement plans for participants who don't want to bother, don't have the time or simply don't know how to build out a proper allocation.
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| Middle East Chaos: All the Hell That Was the Iran-Iraq War Posted: 22 Jun 2019 12:00 PM PDT  The world awoke to ominous news on September 22, 1980. Iraqi despot Saddam Hussein had launched a massive armored and air attack across the Iraq-Iran border. Believing that his Islamic fundamentalist neighbor to the east had been weakened by the ongoing revolutionary turmoil that in February 1979 had toppled the Shah, Hussein was confident that his forces would win a lightning victory and restore long-disputed territory to Iraqi control. Such a victory, not incidentally, would put Hussein at the forefront of a resurgent Middle Eastern pan-Arabism.Among the causes of the war—the ruthless ambition of Saddam Hussein; ongoing disputes over control of the strategic Shatt al-Arab waterway, a shipping lane formed by the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers that created the southern borders of both countries; the struggle for dominance in the Persian Gulf region—the overriding issue was a centuries-old dispute regarding sovereignty over oil-rich Khuzestan Province in southwestern Iran. Khuzestan was the ancient home of the empire of Elam, an independent, non-Semitic, non-Indo-European-speaking kingdom whose territory spanned almost all of present-day southwestern Iran. Khuzestan had been attacked and occupied many times by various Arab kingdoms of Mesopotamia, the precursors of modern-day Iraq.A Centuries-Old Rivalry
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| The Latest: Refinery fire controlled but still burning Posted: 21 Jun 2019 02:09 PM PDT  A fire at a refinery complex in Philadelphia is controlled and contained but still burning more than 12 hours after it started. Deputy Fire Commissioner Craig Murphy says the blaze at Philadelphia Energy Solutions started in a tank that holds a mix of propane and butane. Murphy says five employees had minor injuries and were treated at the scene.
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| Interested in TSA PreCheck? It might soon be cheaper and easier to sign up Posted: 23 Jun 2019 08:19 AM PDT ![Interested in TSA PreCheck? It might soon be cheaper and easier to sign up]( "Interested in TSA PreCheck? It might soon be cheaper and easier to sign up") TSA, trying to boost enrollment in the expedited security program, is studying options including a shorter, cheaper membership and mobile enrollment.
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| How Trump’s lies could lead to ‘catastrophic war’ with Iran, according to national security experts Posted: 21 Jun 2019 10:27 AM PDT  The morning after Donald Trump called off a retaliatory strike on Iran for shooting down an unmanned US drone, rumours circulated claiming the president was watching Fox News' Tucker Carlson when he abruptly made the decision to stop the military action in its tracks.Those unverified claims turned out to be false — Mr Carlson's show began at 8pm, shortly after the president halted the strike — but the fact that they were believed by so many who shared them across social media spoke to an issue increasingly concerning US officials.Multiple nuclear and national security experts told The Independent the day after Mr Trump called off the strikes that, while the president may have temporarily eased tensions with Iran, his misleading information about the country's nuclear deal is "misguided," "counterproductive" and could lead to broader international conflict. The president has frequently received information that "is not fact based" and "has no resemblance to what is actually happening in the world," in a pattern that "has led to both unsteady and unreliable actions … to the detriment of American security," according to Jon Wolfsthal, former senior director for arms control and nonproliferation at the National Security Council under Barack Obama.The former official said Mr Trump has denied the facts about the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, an agreement reached in 2015 commonly known as the Iran Nuclear Deal, which ended sanctions against the country in exchange for restrictions towards its nuclear programme."The president continues to lie about what the [Iran Nuclear Deal] did and how the US engaged Iran under President Obama," Mr Wolfsthal told The Independent on Friday. "It is clear he does not understand what the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action did, does or what he wants to achieve with respect to Iran. In fact, it is not clear to any one what American goals are for Iran under President Trump."Mr Trump unleashed a series of angry tweets on Friday morning, describing the nuclear deal as "desperate" and "terrible" while claiming his predecessor's administration gave Iran "150 Billion Dollars [£118bn] plus 1.8 Billion Dollars [£1.4bn] in CASH!" "On Monday they shot down an unmanned drone flying in International Waters," he continued. "We were cocked & loaded to retaliate last night on 3 different sights when I asked, how many will die. 150 people, sir, was the answer from a General. 10 minutes before the strike I stopped it, not proportionate to shooting down an unmanned drone."> President Obama made a desperate and terrible deal with Iran - Gave them 150 Billion Dollars plus I.8 Billion Dollars in CASH! Iran was in big trouble and he bailed them out. Gave them a free path to Nuclear Weapons, and SOON. Instead of saying thank you, Iran yelled.....> > — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) > > June 21, 2019Officials immediately disputed the president's misleading claims, including Matthew Bunn, a Harvard professor and member of the Department of Energy's Nuclear Energy Advisory Committee, who said "it's crucial to turn down the temperature to avoid a catastrophic war that neither side appears to want.""All of these false or misleading statements have been gone through at some length when Trump first pulled out of the Iran deal," Mr Bunn told The Independent. "The United States did not 'give' Iran any money. Instead, Iranian assets that had been frozen as part of sanctions were released — it was money that belonged to the Iranians. And when all was said and done it was much less than $150bn (£118bn)." Despite many officials refuting the president's claims surrounding the nuclear deal, several who spoke to The Independent said it remains unclear whether or not he was right about the US drone being taken down over international waters, rather than in Iranian air space, as the country has suggested. "I take the US military at their word that this drone did not enter Iranian air space and was shot down in international waters," Mr Wolfsthal said. "I would not be surprised to learn, however, that other US surveillance assets have penetrated Iranian airspace or that Iran does not have all of the equipment needed to keep accurate track of its airspace."Mr Trump appeared to walk back threats of an aggressive military response on Thursday when he suggested a "loose and stupid" Iranian officer may have attacked the drone, adding "it would have made a big, big difference" if the drone had been manned. The theory that Iranian President Hassan Rouhani was not involved in ordering the drone strike was supported in part by Mr Bunn, who said "with tensions this high, things can happen that neither leader directed."Martin Malin, a nonproliferation expert and executive director of the project on managing the atom at the Belfer Centre, told The Independent "the president exercised healthy caution in reversing the order to attack Iran.""Diplomats on both sides are looking for a way out of the crisis," he added. "The focus ought to be on deescalating tensions in the Persian Gulf region, which will inevitably require having not only Iran at the table, but also Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states."> Sanctions on Iran is economic terrorism. We will respond to it by all means necessary. Today's crisis stems from Washington's withdrawal from JCPOA, and obstructing real diplomatic overtures. But this process is reversible. Every tangible constructive step will be met in kind.> > — Hesameddin Ashena (@hesamodin1) > > June 21, 2019"The Trump administration has the leverage to bring about regional discussions that could end the crisis, ensure that the Gulf remains open to shipping, and open the way to broader confidence building in the region," he added."Early Friday morning, Hesameddin Ashena, a top adviser to the Iranian president, tweeted a statement calling sanctions on Iran "economic terrorism." He said the country would respond to sanctions threatened after the US drone strike "by all means necessary," before describing the conflict as "reversible." "Every tangible constructive step will be met in kind," he said. Mr Trump has not laid out a plan to address the burgeoning conflict with Iran, nor has he hinted at what potential military action could occur if the country were to continue targeting US assets. If Americans and their allies continue to lack confidence in the president's assessment of international developments, experts said the result could lead to increased distrust in the administration's response to conflicts like the one that occurred this week.
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| Fellow SEALs say chief shot girl and old man in Iraq Posted: 21 Jun 2019 07:50 PM PDT  Two Navy SEALs testified Friday that their platoon chief gunned down a young girl and an old man in Iraq in 2017 from his sniper's perch, though neither witnessed him pulling the trigger. The SEALs said shots came from the tower where Special Operations Chief Edward Gallagher was posted and they watched through their scopes as the civilians fell to the ground. Dalton Tolbert said he and another sniper were in a neighboring tower in Mosul on June 18, 2017, and had fired warnings shots to scatter civilians by the Tigris River because the Islamic State was operating in the area.
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| Guilt-Free Desserts Your Guests Will Love Posted: 21 Jun 2019 11:12 AM PDT |
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