| Ocasio-Cortez throws her support to Bernie Sanders Posted: 19 Oct 2019 11:57 AM PDT  At a rally Saturday in Queens, N.Y., Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez made her endorsement of Sen. Bernie Sanders for president official.
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| Black security guard fired after asking student not to use racial slur Posted: 19 Oct 2019 06:25 AM PDT  A black school security guard has been fired after asking a pupil not to call him the N-word.Marlon Anderson said the teenager, who is also African American, used the racial slur repeatedly to refer to him.
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| Let jihadists return home, French anti-terror magistrate urges Posted: 20 Oct 2019 04:39 AM PDT  The refusal of the French government to take back Islamic State fighters from Syria could fuel a new jihadist recruitment drive in France, threatening public safety, a leading anti-terrorism investigator has told AFP. David De Pas, coordinator of France's 12 anti-terrorism examining magistrates, said that it would be "better to know that these people are in the care of the judiciary" in France "than let them roam free". Turkey's offensive against Kurdish militia in northeast Syria has sparked fears that some of the 12,000 jihadists, including thousands of foreigners, being held in Syrian Kurdish prisons could escape.
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| Researchers find second warship from WWII Battle of Midway Posted: 20 Oct 2019 03:25 PM PDT  A crew of deep-sea explorers and historians looking for lost World War II warships have found a second Japanese aircraft carrier that went down in the historic Battle of Midway. Vulcan Inc. director of undersea operations Rob Kraft said a review of sonar data captured Sunday shows what could be either the Japanese carrier Akagi or the Soryu resting in nearly 18,000 feet (5,490 meters) of water in the Pacific Ocean more than 1,300 miles (2,090 kilometers) northwest of Pearl Harbor. To confirm exactly which ship they've found the crew will deploy the AUV for another eight-hour mission where it will capture high-resolution sonar images of the site.
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| Michigan Farmers Suffered a Massive Apple and Pumpkin Heist, Losing Thousands of Dollars in Produce Posted: 19 Oct 2019 12:13 PM PDT  "This was not a one man job"
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| Republican congressman announces retirement after saying he is open to Trump impeachment Posted: 19 Oct 2019 02:15 PM PDT  * Francis Rooney said he wanted 'do right thing' with his vote * A day later, he says he will step downFrancis Rooney, right, is sworn in in January. Photograph: Susan Walsh/APA day after telling reporters he would consider voting to impeach Donald Trump, the Florida Republican Francis Rooney told Fox News he had decided to retire from Congress.On Friday, Rooney was asked about the political consequences of impeachment, a process the House will probably vote to advance after an inquiry steered by Democratic-controlled committees.He said he wanted "to get the facts and do the right thing because I'll be looking at my children a lot longer than I'm looking to anybody in this building".No House Republicans have yet said they will vote to impeach the president and send the matter to the Senate for trial.Senate Republicans are not expected to defect in numbers great enough to convict Trump and ensure his removal. But it has been reported that majority leader Mitch McConnell is preparing his caucus.In the same Friday conversation, Rooney said: "Whether I run again is a totally different can of worms, OK?"On Saturday he confirmed to Fox News that he would not.Asked if other Republicans felt as he did about impeachment, he said "there are people that talk, that have concerns about a lot of things that have happened – Syria and Mulvaney's comments just the other day are probably going to drive some people to rethink this a little more. I have, I was shocked at those."The president's abrupt decision to withdraw US troops from Syria remains hugely controversial.The acting White House chief of staff, Mick Mulvaney, suggested to reporters on Thursday that there had been a quid pro quo in Trump's treatment of Ukraine, from which he sought political gain, and that the media should "get over it". He later tried to walk the comments back.Rooney told Fox News he "hoped" other Republicans were becoming more likely to think as he did on impeachment.Announcing his retirement, he said: "I've done what I came to do. I want to be the model for term limits."He added: "I thought the idea was you came and did your public service and left, you accomplish what you want to accomplish and you left. And that's what I want to be an example to do."And I'm also tired of the intense partisanship that stops us from solving the big questions that America needs solved."An investor, Republican donor and former US ambassador to the Holy See under George W Bush, Rooney was elected to Congress in 2016.Republican retirement announcements have stacked up since the Democrats took the House in the 2018 midterms. Trump's tempestuous presidency has added to the party's challenges at the polls.According to ballotpedia.org, 14 Republican representatives have said they will bow out in 2020. Many are from districts where Democrats are expected to challenge.Rooney is not. Asked if Republicans were worried about Florida's 19th district, in the south-west of the state, the National Republican Congressional Committee spokesman Chris Pack simply told the Washington Post: "R+13."
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| 8 tornadoes later, Nestor's rains are helping more than hurting parched Southeast, East Posted: 20 Oct 2019 11:56 AM PDT  Nestor, a once feared and fierce tropical storm, was helping more than hurting as it nudged north while spreading rain over a wide swath of the East.
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| Bill Maher Ignores Neil deGrasse Tyson’s Disturbing #MeToo Allegations Posted: 19 Oct 2019 12:24 AM PDT  Photo Illustration by The Daily Beast/Photos Getty & HBONeil deGrasse Tyson, the fun-lovin' astrophysicist and TV personality, has been credibly accused of sexual misconduct by four women—one of whom, Thchiya Amet El Maat, alleged that he drugged and raped her while the two were graduate students at the University of Texas in 1984. Bill Maher, the boundary-pushing comedian, has branded the MeToo movement "scary" and aspects of it "MeCarthyism" whilst downplaying women's accounts of inappropriate touching at the hands of Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden, and the allegations against former congressman Al Franken. On Friday night, Maher welcomed pal Tyson to his long-running HBO program Real Time. Tyson, who's managed to weather any professional ramifications from the sexual-misconduct allegations—keeping his gigs with National Geographic's StarTalk, Fox's Cosmos and Hayden Planetarium—joined Maher and his panel, which included The Daily Beast's politics editor Sam Stein, for an interview toward the end of the program. And sure enough, Maher joked about Tyson's planets tie; let him hawk his new book of published letters to and from his fans; debated the scientific evidence (or lack thereof) supporting the existence of God, as is the outspoken atheist's wont; talked flat-earthers; and acted generally chummy with one another. Bill Maher Fails to Challenge The Federalist Publisher (and Mr. Meghan McCain) Ben DomenechJohn Oliver Thinks Rudy Giuliani Is Totally Screwed: 'Trump Will Abandon Him'What Maher failed to do was even remotely probe the disturbing allegations against Tyson—something that most interviewers of Tyson have failed to properly reckon with during his recent book tour (CBS This Morning sort of did, albeit via a soft line of questioning, asking what he's "learned" since the allegations surfaced.) In addition to soft-pedaling the allegations against Biden, Maher voiced objections to the public outrage surrounding Dr. Christine Blasey Ford's sexual-assault allegation against Trump's Supreme Court nominee (now justice), Brett Kavanaugh. "There are social justice warriors who are crazy enough in this country, I fight with them all the time, who… they lend enough credence to this to make people think, 'Oh, you know what? They're going to go after my high school record. That's fair game now.' And it becomes sort of a privacy thing," offered Maher. Later on, the comedian added, "It does seem like things morphed from 'listen to any woman who says she's been wronged,' which is the right thing to do, to 'automatically believe.' That's what's scary." What's frustrating about Maher's attitude toward MeToo is that he appears to consistently downplay allegations of inappropriate touching or attempted sexual assault levied against certain men of power (usually Democrats), while regularly railing against those said to have been committed by President Trump, who's been accused of varying acts of sexual misconduct by over 22 women. While the attitude shouldn't be to "automatically believe" women, it shouldn't take nearly two dozen accusers—or hating the man's politics—to either. Read more at The Daily Beast.Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast hereGet 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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| Hillary Clinton claims Tulsi Gabbard is being 'groomed' by Russia Posted: 19 Oct 2019 10:26 AM PDT  Hillary Clinton has claimed a Democrat presidential candidate is being "groomed" by the Kremlin to run as an independent in 2020. In an astonishing attack on Tulsi Gabbard, a congresswoman from Hawaii, Mrs Clinton suggested Russia would use her to damage the Democrats' chances of taking the White House. Ms Gabbard, 38, responded by calling Mrs Clinton the "queen of warmongers" and the cause of "rot" in the Democrat party. The bitter row began when Mrs Clinton was being interviewed about the prospect of Russian interference in the upcoming election. She said: "I'm not making any predictions, but I think they've got their eye on somebody who's currently in the Democratic primary, and they're grooming her to be the third-party candidate. "She's the favorite of the Russians. They have a bunch of sites and bots and other ways of supporting her so far." Tulsi Gabbard called Hillary Clinton the "queen of warmongers" Credit: AFP Mrs Clinton did not mention Ms Gabbard by name, but a spokesman later confirmed she had been referring to Ms Gabbard. The spokesman said: "This is not some outlandish claim, this is reality." Ms Gabbard is a military veteran who served in Iraq. She caused controversy after revealing that she had met with Bashar al-Assad on a fact-finding trip to Syria. Responding to Mrs Clinton's allegations she said: "Thank you Hillary Clinton. You, the queen of warmongers, embodiment of corruption, and personification of the rot that has sickened the Democratic Party for so long, have finally come out from behind the curtain." She accused Mrs Clinton of being behind a concerted campaign to derail her candidacy. Ms Gabbard added: "It was always you, through your proxies and powerful allies in the corporate media and war machine, afraid of the threat I pose." The congresswoman urged Mrs Clinton to run again in 2020. She said: "Don't cowardly hide behind your proxies. Join the race directly." During the latest televised Democrat debate in Ohio this week Ms Gabbard condemned suggestions of Russian support for her. She said: "This morning, a CNN commentator said on national television that I'm an asset of Russia. Completely despicable." Mrs Clinton also accused Jill Stein, the Green Party presidential nominee in 2016, of being a "Russian asset". In 2016 Ms Stein received about one per cent of the vote but some Democrats claim that helped Donald Trump win several key states. Ms Stein denied Mrs Clinton's accusations and accused her of "peddling conspiracy theories to justify her failure, instead of reflecting on real reasons the Democrats lost in 2016."
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| Chile protests: At least eight people killed during riots in Santiago Posted: 20 Oct 2019 12:31 PM PDT  At least eight people have been killed in Chile during a second day of protests and rioting in the South American nation.Three people were left dead after a looted building was set ablaze, the governor of Santiago, the country's capital, said.
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| Four killed as police fire on Bangladesh protesters Posted: 20 Oct 2019 08:55 AM PDT  Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Sunday called for calm after at least four people were killed when police fired on thousands of Bangladeshi Muslims protesting Facebook messages that allegedly defamed the Prophet Mohammed. Mob attacks over online posts perceived to be blasphemous have emerged as a major headache for security forces in Bangladesh, where Muslims make up some 90 percent of the country's 168 million people. Some 20,000 Muslims demonstrated at a prayer ground in Borhanuddin town on the country's largest island of Bhola to call for the execution of a young Hindu man charged with inciting religious tension through online messages.
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| Milan seeks US apology for WWII bomb that killed children Posted: 20 Oct 2019 08:40 AM PDT  Milan's mayor appealed Sunday to U.S. authorities to apologize for a World War II bombing raid that killed 184 elementary school children. Mayor Giuseppe Sala made the request following a Mass marking the 75th anniversary of the Gorla massacre, named for the quarter in the city that was struck, the news agency ANSA reported. "I think it's necessary that the American government apologizes, knowing that we are here to forgive," Sala said, adding that he would formalize the request with the U.S. consul in Milan this week.
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| Mitt Romney said everyone in the Senate is 'really nice' except for Bernie Sanders, who 'just kind of scowls' Posted: 20 Oct 2019 05:53 PM PDT  Romney has emerged as one of the few Republican senators willing to take a stand against Trump, but he says most people are really nice.
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| Trump calls Mexico's president to express 'solidarity' Posted: 19 Oct 2019 01:42 PM PDT  Mexico's president, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, said on Saturday that President Trump called him to express his "solidarity" following an attempt to arrest a drug kingpin's son that prompted a wave of violence in the city of Culiacan.
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| Royal Caribbean’s ‘Adventure of the Seas’ requests help from Coast Guard off Jersey Shore Posted: 19 Oct 2019 08:25 AM PDT  The cruise ship is on a 13-day, one-way cruise from Quebec City, Canada to Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
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| Lebanon rocked by vast protests demanding resignation of Hariri government Posted: 20 Oct 2019 11:57 AM PDT  Lebanon was shaken on Sunday by its largest protests in years as young and old turned out en masse to demand the resignation of Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri and his coalition government. It marked the fourth day of protests following a proposal for new taxes, which ignited widespread anger over austerity measures and corruption in a deeply unequal society. The plan - to tax WhatsApp calls and other third-party applications that have long afforded cash-strapped Lebanese a chance to chat for free - was quickly dropped. But the protests have morphed into demands for an overhaul of the entire political system in the crisis-ravaged country. After on Friday laying out a 72-hour deadline for parties to agree to a framework for economic reforms, Mr Hariri held round-the-clock meetings with Lebanon's various political blocs to discuss proposals for the 2020 budget. Late on Sunday Mr Hariri appeared to have bought himself some time with the announcement of a package of reforms including a 50 percent reduction in the salaries of current and former officials. The reforms also include $3.3 billion in contributions from banks to reduce the deficit in the heavily indebted country, and plans to overhaul the crippled electricity sector. But they will not be confirmed until approved by the cabinet on Monday, and it is unclear whether they will go far enough. On Saturday night, the resignation of four ministers from the Christian Lebanese Forces, a party allied with Mr Hariri, underscored the chaos in government. By Sunday evening, with just 24 hours to go before Mr Hariri's deadline, the country's streets were awash in flags and furious Lebanese taking aim at all corners. "Neither Saudi nor Iran will be able to take this protest down," chanted demonstrators in downtown Beirut Sunday night, referencing the regional arch-rivals that have long jostled for control of the tiny Mediterranean country. In the predominantly Shia city of Tyre, in the country's south, there were chants accusing parliamentary speaker Nabih Berri, himself Shia, of corruption. There has also been vocal opposition to Hizbollah and its leader Hassan Nasrallah. "All of them means all of them. Nasrallah is one of them," was heard throughout the protests. While demonstrators called for the government's departure, its actual collapse would likely herald even greater instability and economic disaster – something MPs seem anxious to avoid. Mr Hariri has hinted at resignation if his demands are not met. But there are few obvious alternatives to the current PM. Not only is the post limited to Sunnis by the country's power-sharing system, but it is also unclear who would be willing to take over in such a disastrous economic situation. Mr Hariri formed the current government of national unity in February after nine months of wrangling. He is currently in his third term as leader.
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| High-profile cases turn spotlight on domestic violence in Russia Posted: 18 Oct 2019 07:34 PM PDT  Natalia Tunikova's partner pushed her towards the open balcony in their high-rise Moscow flat, before punching her to the floor. A Moscow court later ruled that her use of force in self-defence was not justified. Cases like Tunikova's are ever more widely reported in Russia, leading to a public outcry in a country that has no specific law on domestic violence and where feminist movements like #MeToo had little impact.
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| Kenya’s Treasury Chief Is Confident Rate Caps Will Be Scrapped Posted: 19 Oct 2019 01:52 PM PDT ![Kenya's Treasury Chief Is Confident Rate Caps Will Be Scrapped]( "Kenya's Treasury Chief Is Confident Rate Caps Will Be Scrapped") (Bloomberg) -- Kenya's interest-rate caps will be scrapped because lawmakers won't be able to raise enough support in parliament to oppose the president, acting Treasury Secretary Ukur Yatani said.President Uhuru Kenyatta has rejected a bill that seeks to retain caps on interest rates that commercial banks can charge on loans. Parliament must now either amend the bill to reflect Kenyatta's wishes or vote to push it through.The widely circulated Daily Nation newspaper has reported that lawmakers will oppose Kenyatta's move to remove the limits. But Yatani said they will not be able raise the mandatory two-thirds majority of votes to shoot down the president's memorandumThe president "wants this removed," he said. "I'm confident that it's going to go through parliament."Lawmakers in 2016 approved the Banking Act, which limits the amount lenders can charge on loans to 4 percentage points above the central bank rate. While it was intended to improve lending terms for consumers, it has instead made institutions more selective in who they provide money to, cut into banks' profit margins and sent people to borrow from unregulated micro-lenders at higher rates.The Nairobi High Court annulled the law in March but suspended enforcement of the ruling for a year so lawmakers could review the legislation. A parliamentarian then proposed changes that clarify the extent to which banks can price loans."We are now removing our interest caps," Yatani said. "So that we can free up resources, lending to the private sector, which have actually been seriously constrained."To contact the reporter on this story: Rene Vollgraaff in Johannesburg at rvollgraaff@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Benjamin Harvey at bharvey11@bloomberg.net, Sarah McGregorFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| School apologizes after photo showing students with cardboard boxes over their heads during exam goes viral Posted: 20 Oct 2019 09:41 AM PDT  An school in India has issued an apology after a bizarre image of students wearing cardboard boxes on their heads went viral. The images were taken during a chemistry exam at Bhagat Pre-University College in the town of Haveri.
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| Mick Mulvaney seeks Trump damage control over impeachment and more Posted: 20 Oct 2019 10:55 AM PDT  * Chief of staff defends Doral G7 fiasco and own Ukraine remarks * Nancy Pelosi visits Jordan to discuss Turkey Syria incursionMick Mulvaney in his news conference at the White House on Thursday. Photograph: Michael Reynolds/EPASenior Trump administration officials were on Sunday scrambling to defend the president from escalating domestic and foreign policy scandals, ranging from impeachment proceedings in Washington to the US troop withdrawal in northern Syria.Acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney was forced to row back comments he made earlier in the week acknowledging the administration withheld military aid to Ukraine in order to elicit assistance investigating Donald Trump's political opponents.In a White House briefing on Thursday, Mulvaney listed "three issues" tied to the decision to withhold almost $400m in aid. These included "whether [Ukrainian officials] were cooperating in an ongoing investigation with our Department of Justice" related to the origins of the inquiry into Russian interference in 2016 election, which Mulvaney linked to an unfounded conspiracy theory which says Ukraine was involved in the theft of emails from Democratic servers.Asked if that was tantamount to a quid pro quo, Mulvaney said: "We do that all the time with foreign policy."Speaking to Fox News Sunday, Mulvaney claimed his words had been misreported, stating he had not acknowledged a quid pro quo.> That's what people are saying that I said, but I didn't say that> > Mick Mulvaney"That's what people are saying that I said, but I didn't say that," he said.But he had clearly changed his line, now stating there were only "two reasons" aid was withheld: "rampant corruption in Ukraine" and "whether or not other nations, specifically European nations, were helping with foreign aid to the Ukraine".The existence of a quid pro quo between Trump and Ukraine is at the centre of an impeachment inquiry led by Democrats in the House of Representatives.The committees involved are also investigating Trump's request that the Ukrainain government commence an investigation into Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden. The president made the request during a 25 July phone call with his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenskiy.Mulvaney has denied that the Biden request was tied to the decision to withhold aid.The acting chief of staff is under the spotlight in the impeachment inquiry after testimony from a state department official, George Kent, placed him at the centre of efforts to create a separate diplomatic channel to Ukraine staffed by Trump loyalists including outgoing energy secretary Rick Perry and Trump's personal attorney Rudy Giuliani.Democrats are weighing up whether to summon Mulvaney, according to reports.Reports also emerged on Sunday that Mulvaney was facing ejection from his post before the impeachment inquiry began. CNN reported that Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner and other advisers began screening for new candidates last month.Mulvaney, a former South Carolina congressman, is the third White House chief of staff under Trump although he retains the "acting" prefix. He said on Sunday he had not considered tendering his resignation this week."I'm very happy working there. Did I have the perfect press conference? No." He said.The Ukraine scandal is only one of a number in which the administration is currently embroiled.On Saturday evening Trump was forced into an embarrassing climbdown, announcing his golf resort in Doral, Florida would no longer host the G7 summit next year following bi-partisan criticism of the decision.> At the end of the day he [Trump] still considers himself to be in the hospitality business> > Mick MulvaneyIn an attempt to defend the move, Mulvaney said: "At the end of the day he [Trump] still considers himself to be in the hospitality business."The administration is also reeling from bipartisan criticism of its decision to withdraw troops from northern Syria.On Sunday, secretary of state Mike Pompeo sought to defend a fragile and brief ceasefire brokered with Turkey, which he described as "the outcome that President Trump sent us to achieve".The US and Turkey reached an agreement on Thursday to halt Turkish operations against Kurdish forces for five days to allow military and civilians to evacuate an area of land around the border about 20 miles deep, before the territory is claimed by Turkey.An American soldier mounts the US flag on a vehicle near the town of Tel Tamr in northern Syria. Photograph: Baderkhan Ahmad/APBoth sides have accused the other of violating the agreement. Republicans and Democrats in Washington argue the deal has undermined US interests in the region and delivered a significant victory to Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.Pompeo, also at the centre of the Ukraine scandal, distanced himself from such criticisms during an interview with ABC's This Week, when asked if the Turkish government had been handed everything it had asked for."I was there. It sure didn't feel that way when we were negotiating," Pompeo said. "It was a hard-fought negotiation. It began before the vice-president and I even arrived in Ankara."Trump chimed in on Twitter, quoting his defense secretary on how "the ceasefire is holding up very nicely". In his first version of the tweet, the president typed Mark Esper's name as Mark Esperanto.Later on Sunday he returned to the subject of impeachment, tweeting that the Ukraine whistleblower was a "fraud, just like the Russia Hoax".> ....fiction to Congress and the American People? I demand his deposition. He is a fraud, just like the Russia Hoax was, and the Ukraine Hoax is now. When do the Do Nothing Democrats pay a price for what they are doing to our Country, & when do the Republicans finally fight back?> > — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 20, 2019Over the weekend, Democratic House speaker Nancy Pelosi led a bipartisan delegation to Jordan to discuss the fallout of Trump's troop withdrawal."Our bipartisan delegation is visiting Jordan at a critical time for the security and stability of the region," Pelosi's office said in a statement released on Saturday."With the deepening crisis in Syria after Turkey's incursion, our delegation has engaged in vital discussions about the impact to regional stability, increased flow of refugees, and the dangerous opening that has been provided to Isis, Iran and Russia."Despite the chaos over US Syria policy, one of Trump's most ardent supporters in the Senate seemed to have abandoned his previously stringent criticism.Speaking to Fox News, Lindsey Graham said he was "increasingly optimistic that we can have some historic solutions in Syria that have eluded us for years if we play our cards right".
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| FACT: Cuba Hosted Russian Spy Planes to Use Against America Posted: 19 Oct 2019 12:00 PM PDT  A forgotten tale of the cold war.
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| How Buttigieg's 'beta city' approach as mayor highlights his differences with Biden, Warren and Sanders Posted: 20 Oct 2019 05:54 AM PDT  Pete Buttigieg says the "beta city" approach he took in South Bend shows why he'd take a different approach to the White House compared with the top contenders.
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| Burmese fishermen 'faint' after mistaking $20 million of floating crystal meth for natural deodorant Posted: 20 Oct 2019 07:57 AM PDT  Sacks of crystal meth scooped from the sea by Burmese fishermen who mistook it for a deodorant substance had a street value of $20 million (£15.4m), an official said on Sunday, in a country believed to be the world's largest methamphetamine producer. The accidental drug haul off Burma's coastal Ayeyarwady region occurred when fishermen spotted a total of 23 sacks floating in the Andaman Sea on Wednesday. Each one contained plastic-wrapped bags labelled as Chinese green tea - packaging commonly used by Southeast Asian crime gangs to smuggle crystal meth to far-flung destinations including Japan, South Korea and Australia. Locals were mystified by the crystallised substance in the sacks, Zaw Win, a local official of the National League for Democracy party who assisted the fishermen and police, told AFP. At first, they assumed it was a natural deodorant chemical known as potassium alum, which is widely used in Burma. "So they burned it, and some of them almost fainted," he said. They informed the police, who on Thursday combed a beach and found an additional two sacks of the same substance - bringing the total to 691 kilogrammes (1,500 pounds) which would be worth about $20.2 million (£15.6m), Zaw Win said. "In my entire life and my parents' lifetime, we have never seen drugs floating in the ocean before," he said. The massive haul was sent on Sunday to Pyapon district police, who declined to comment on it. Burma's multi-billion-dollar drug industry is centred in eastern Shan state, whose poppy-covered hills are ideal cover for illicit production labs. Made-in-Burma crystal meth - better known as ice - is smuggled out of the country to more lucrative markets using routes carved out by narco gangs through Laos, Thailand and Cambodia. A study by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime says that Southeast Asia's crime groups are netting more than $60 billion a year - a conservative estimate, according to experts - thanks to a sophisticated smuggling and money-laundering operation. In March, Burma authorities seized more than 1,700 kilogrammes of crystal meth worth nearly $29 million, which police said at the time was their biggest drug haul this year.
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| Thousands protest against Haiti's president Posted: 20 Oct 2019 05:44 PM PDT  "Jovenel is incapable and incompetent, he must pack his bags because Haiti must live," said one of the protesters, Jean Ronald. Anger mounted in late August due to a national fuel shortage, and protests turned violent.
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| UPDATE 1-Bangladesh to move Rohingya to flood-prone island next month Posted: 20 Oct 2019 06:08 AM PDT ![UPDATE 1-Bangladesh to move Rohingya to flood-prone island next month]( "UPDATE 1-Bangladesh to move Rohingya to flood-prone island next month") Bangladesh will start relocating Rohingya Muslims to a flood-prone island off its coast next month as several thousand refugees have agreed to move, a government official said on Sunday. Dhaka wants to move 100,000 refugees to Bhasan Char – a Bay of Bengal island hours by boat from the mainland – to ease overcrowding in its camps at Cox's Bazar, home to more than 1 million Rohingya Muslims who have fled neighbouring Myanmar. "We want to start relocation by early next month," Mahbub Alam Talukder, the Relief and Repatriation Commission chief based in Cox's Bazar, told Reuters, adding that "the refugees will be shifted in phases".
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| Detroit-area men who sent millions to Yemen spared prison Posted: 20 Oct 2019 08:22 AM PDT  A group of Detroit-area men opened bank accounts to move millions of dollars to Yemen, their war-torn native country. One by one, U.S. District Judge Avern Cohn declined to send them to prison, despite guidelines that call for a few years or more behind bars. The Detroit area is believed to have the highest U.S. population of Yemenis, a demographic that has risen amid war in Yemen that has killed tens of thousands of people and left millions more with food and health care shortages.
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| Trump misspells his defence secretary’s name in rambling rant about securing oil in Syria Posted: 20 Oct 2019 06:22 AM PDT  Donald Trump has misspelled his defence secretary's name while discussing his controversial decision to withdraw US troops from northern Syria.The US president tried to quote Mark Esper in a tweet, but instead he referred to him as "Mark Esperanto".
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| Priscilla to unleash flooding rainfall across southwest Mexico early this week Posted: 20 Oct 2019 03:18 AM PDT  A new tropical system will bring a heightened risk of flash flooding and mudslides to southwestern Mexico through Monday.The new tropical threat formed about 105 miles (169 km) south of Manzanillo, Mexico, early Sunday morning, and was upgraded to a tropical storm just a few hours later.As of 4 p.m. CDT Sunday, Priscilla had made landfall east of Manzanillo, Mexico, and had weakened into a tropical depression. The system was moving north at 9 mph (15 km/h) with maximum sustained winds of 35 mph (55 km/h). This satellite image shows newly formed Tropical Depression 19 off the southwestern coast of Mexico early Sunday morning. (NOAA/GOES-EAST) The storm will dissipate over the next 24-36 hours while tracking inland over southwestern Mexico."The system will quickly weaken and dissipate Sunday night," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Rob Miller said.No matter the status of Priscilla, heavy rainfall is expected to be the main impact from the system. AccuWeather meteorologists expect widespread rainfall totals of 3-6 inches (76-152 mm), with an AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 10 inches (254 mm).Portions of Nayarit, Jalisco, Colima and Michoacan are expected to bear the brunt of this rainfall."This rain will lead to the risk for dangerous flooding and mudslides across the region," Miller said.The area's steep terrain will heighten the risk of fast-moving, potentially life-threatening debris flows.This system is designated a less than 1 on the AccuWeather RealImpact™ Scale for Hurricanes. The AccuWeather RealImpact™ Scale for Hurricanes ranges from values of less than 1 to 5.Elsewhere in the East Pacific basin, there are no other immediate tropical threats this week. Download the free AccuWeather app to see the latest forecast and advisories for your region. Keep checking back for updates on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
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| Worst Baku Clashes in Years Followed by Claims of Critic's Abuse Posted: 20 Oct 2019 06:26 AM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- The political fallout of rare anti-government demonstrations is spreading in Azerbaijan, with the European Union issuing a warning and an opposition leader saying he was beaten up by riot police following his arrest on Saturday.An unathorized rally by hundreds of protesters demanding freedom of assembly, which has effectively been denied since the start of 2019, ended in the worst violence the Azeri capital has seen in years. Ali Karimli, leader of the Popular Front of Azerbaijan Party, was detained with scores of his supporters as they defied a ban to demonstrate in central Baku."Six to seven police officers handcuffed me, throwing me onto the floor and kicking me," Karimli said in a video statement on his Facebook page. With bruises visible on his head, face and neck, Karimli said he was beaten so severely that at some point he lost consciousness.While Azerbaijan ranks among the world's most corrupt and repressive governments, arrests or torture of leaders of opposition parties are rare in the energy-rich former Soviet republic.With parliamentary elections looming next year, demonstrators gathered on Saturday despite a heavy security presence, demanding the resignation of the country's longtime President Ilham Aliyev. Karimli and other leaders of the secular opposition are using social media to galvanize public support for a peaceful shift to democracy.Authorities had offered demonstrators a remote location on the outskirts of the city to conduct the rally.Europe's WarningThe EU's executive arm called for an investigation into reports of excessive and unprovoked force, urging the Azeri government to release the detained opposition protesters."Freedom of assembly is a fundamental human right and we expect Azerbaijan to ensure that it can be fully exercised, in line with the country's international obligations," European Commission spokeswoman Maja Kocijancic said in a statement.After being detained and dragged into a police car, Karimli was eventually taken to hospital where he received stitches to his forehead and his body was screened for injuries. He was later released home.The Interior Ministry's press service didn't answer calls for comment. Sahlab Bagirov, commander of the riot police, on Saturday rejected claims police used excessive force.In a statement late Saturday, the Interior Ministry said 60 people were detained for attending the demonstration. Of those, 42 were "warned" and released. The remaining 18 will stand trial.To contact the editors responsible for this story: Torrey Clark at tclark8@bloomberg.net, Paul Abelsky, Angela CullenFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Lost hiker rescued in Oregon snowstorm: 'I wouldn’t have survived another night' Posted: 19 Oct 2019 06:27 PM PDT  Lost in a fierce snowstorm on the Pacific Crest Trail in Oregon, hiker Robb Campbell made a desperate call for help.
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| EXCLUSIVE-N.Ireland's Orange Order discourages protests over Brexit deal Posted: 20 Oct 2019 12:43 PM PDT ![EXCLUSIVE-N.Ireland's Orange Order discourages protests over Brexit deal]( "EXCLUSIVE-N.Ireland's Orange Order discourages protests over Brexit deal") The head of Northern Ireland's influential Orange Order said on Sunday unionists in the province should avoid staging violent protests over British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's Brexit deal despite feeling that they had been let down. The deal struck with EU leaders last week has been met by fierce opposition from pro-British politicians in the region, including Johnson's Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) allies, who say it weakens Northern Ireland's place in the United Kingdom. "There is a feeling people need to do something but I would be encouraging people that it isn't a case for street protest at this time," Orange Order Grand Secretary Mervyn Gibson told Reuters in a telephone interview.
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| Service canceled for Texas woman shot at home by officer Posted: 19 Oct 2019 08:22 AM PDT  A service for a woman shot in her home by a Fort Worth police officer that had been scheduled for Saturday was canceled amid a family dispute over funeral arrangements. Atatiana Jefferson's funeral had been set to be held at Potter's House Church in Dallas. Church representative Mara Silverio said the service hasn't been rescheduled, but that no events would be held for her Saturday.
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| William Barr's speech on religious freedom alarms liberal Catholics Posted: 20 Oct 2019 08:05 AM PDT  Prominent liberal Catholics have warned that the U.S. attorney general's devout Catholic faith threatens the separation of church and state, after William Barr delivered a speech on religious freedom in which he warned that "militant secularists" were behind a "campaign to destroy the traditional moral order."
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| Hardest Part of Dems’ Impeachment Bid? ‘Too Many Crimes’ to Stay Focused Posted: 20 Oct 2019 01:56 AM PDT  Photo Illustration by Elizabeth Brockway/The Daily BeastWith a slew of depositions of key figures in the impeachment inquiry lined up for next week, House Democrats aren't anywhere near done compiling evidence of President Trump's misconduct—and yet in the span of just a few hours this past week they got enough to make staying focused their biggest obstacle. In a remarkable appearance at the White House briefing room podium on Thursday, acting Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney admitted that President Trump held up nearly $400 million in security aid to Ukraine as leverage for them to investigate his political rivals—complicating repeated GOP defenses that there was "no quid pro quo" and surprising Democrats who have insisted that the question of quid pro quo is not central to their impeachment of Trump.Mick Mulvaney Admits Trump's Quid Pro Quo on Ukraine: 'Get Over It'Mulvaney also announced that the administration would host the G7 conference of world leaders at Trump's golf club in Florida—a brazen move to promote the president's business interests that flared up simmering sentiment among Democrats that they have not focused enough on how Trump has enriched himself through the presidency, something many of them already view as impeachable conduct.As all this unfolded, many of the lawmakers involved with the impeachment inquiry were sitting, phones locked away in boxes, in a secure facility below the Capitol for a deposition from Ambassador Gordon Sondland. They left the room that evening literally several news cycles behind—and exasperated at the difficulty of keeping up with it all as they try to keep their eyes on the ball. "I think we're being constantly invited to change the subject," remarked Rep. Jared Huffman (D-CA), a vocal impeachment proponent, who was not locked away on Thursday but was exhausted by the news all the same. "And constantly tempted to focus on the outrage du jour."It has been accepted for some time that Democrats would have a challenge in maintaining the narrow focus they want for their impeachment inquiry—in particular, Trump's July 25 phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky—given the broad concerns within the caucus about the president's conduct and his ability to spark fresh controversy daily. But as the grab-bag of grounds for investigating Trumpworld grows at a faster pace than Democrats can keep up with, their cautiously plotted inquiry is being stretched in more directions than ever before. And that could open up new spaces for debate and disagreement within the caucus over how the probe should proceed—namely, whether impeachment should be expanded to accommodate any accumulating evidence of wrongdoing, or if other grounds for impeachment should be set aside in order to preserve what has so far been a successful investigation. The news that is most testing Democrats on this front is Trump's G7 gambit, which revived the discussion of the Constitution's emoluments clause that prohibits the president from taking any kind of gift or benefit from a foreigner.Many House Democrats have long believed that Trump has violated the clause due to the steady stream of foreign business at his D.C. hotel and now the steering of a high-profile international conference to his Florida resort. To date, only a small handful of lawmakers have been arguing that this should be a central focus in their impeachment probe—but the brazenness of Trump's move could change that as the issue is thrust into the spotlight. A top House progressive, Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), told The Daily Beast on Friday that there is a case to be made to write an article of impeachment based on the emoluments issue. "We have to see how strong we can make it," she said. "Obviously, these things are being done in public so it makes it easy."And Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), who was among the first lawmakers to advocate for impeachment on the grounds of emoluments, said Friday there's "more than enough" material out there now to write such an article.Hardly any Democrats shrug off the issue of the president's profiting off his properties, but there's a genuine split over whether impeachment is the proper way to respond to it. Rep. Tom Malinowski (D-N.J.) pointed to language in House-passed spending bills that prohibits the administration from spending federal funds at Trump properties, which would make it impossible to host a G7 summit at his Doral hotel."Impeachment is a last resort," said Malinowski on Friday. "We have the power of the purse, and we can use the power of the purse. There's no reason to make it a part of an impeachment inquiry."Ultimately, Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Democratic leadership will decide whether or not emoluments are included as part of an impeachment inquiry when the House Judiciary Committee draws up the final articles of impeachment, which is expected to come at some point this fall. But the success so far that Democrats have seen in securing revealing witness testimony already had Democrats wondering how much more they actually need in order to make a persuasive impeachment case to the American people. Mulvaney's admission on Thursday that there was quid pro quo—and that it's not a big deal anyway—only supercharged that sentiment, leaving some itchy trigger fingers within the caucus. And yet there's still a long line of depositions scheduled for next week, including testimony from Bill Taylor, the top U.S. diplomat to Ukraine who is believed to have witnessed at least part of Trump's pressure campaign firsthand. "Maybe we don't have to hear from as many witnesses, because we're starting to get a lot of confessions," said Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) when asked about Mulvaney's remarks as he left the Sondland deposition on Thursday. "I think we just try to stay focused and be purposeful, because in 118 days, people start voting in the election."There isn't a whole lot of disagreement with that sentiment among House Democrats. But it does have some of them wondering if they couldn't be doing more, from pushing the emoluments to further probing the complex web of foreign connections woven by Trump and his personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, which some members around the caucus are anxious to start unraveling."I think we have the bandwidth to pursue accountability for Giuliani's kind of mafia-like affairs… for the corruption and the emoluments, for the whole suite of misconduct that we're dealing with," said Huffman. "But some of it is just inherently time-consuming. And I think that's the frustration. I believe all of it rises to the level of impeachable. In a different in a better political climate, we would include all of it, and we probably would have impeached this guy by now." But, Huffman added, he doesn't "second-guess" leadership's strategy and the results it has yielded so far. Even among Democrats who view a broad range of impeachable conduct on the part of the president, the overwhelming desire to not screw up their inquiry may win the day. "It doesn't matter if you impeach the president on one article or 10," a Democratic aide told The Daily Beast. "You can only remove him from office once. The problem of having too many crimes to choose from is not a terrible problem to have." 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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| Boeing Pilot Complained of 'Egregious' Issue With 737 Max in 2016 Posted: 19 Oct 2019 01:30 AM PDT  For months, Boeing has said it had no idea that a new automated system in the 737 Max jet, which played a role in two fatal crashes, was unsafe.But on Friday, the company gave lawmakers a transcript revealing that a top pilot working on the plane had raised concerns about the system in messages to a colleague in 2016, more than two years before the Max was grounded because of the accidents, which left 346 people dead.In the messages, the pilot, Mark Forkner, who played a central role in the development of the plane, complained that the system, known as MCAS, was acting unpredictably in a flight simulator: "It's running rampant."The messages are from November 2016, months before the Max was certified by the Federal Aviation Administration. "Granted, I suck at flying, but even this was egregious," he said sardonically to a colleague, according to a transcript of the exchange reviewed Friday by The New York Times.The Max crisis has consumed Boeing, and the revelation of the messages from Forkner come at a particularly sensitive time. The company's chief executive, Dennis Muilenburg, is scheduled to testify before two congressional committees, on Oct. 29 and Oct. 30, the first time a Boeing executive has appeared at a hearing related to the crashes. Boeing's stock lost 7% of its value Friday, adding to the financial fallout.The existence of the messages strike at Boeing's defense that it had done nothing wrong regarding the Max because regulators had cleared the plane to fly, and potentially increases the company's legal exposure as it faces civil and criminal investigations and multiple lawsuits related to both crashes. Facing competition from Airbus, Boeing worked to produce the Max as quickly as possible, striving to minimize costly training for pilots. Last week, a task force of 10 international regulators released a report that found that Boeing had not fully explained MCAS to the FAA."This is more evidence that Boeing misled pilots, government regulators and other aviation experts about the safety of the 737 Max," Jon Weaks, president of the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association, said in a statement Friday.Boeing has maintained that the Max was certified in accordance with all appropriate regulations, suggesting that there was no sign that MCAS was unsafe.That contention was central to the company's rationale in not grounding the Max after the crash of Lion Air Flight 610 last October, and in waiting days to recommend grounding the plane after the second crash, of Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 in March.It was only after data suggested that MCAS played a role in the second crash that Boeing and the FAA decided to ground the Max.Forkner was the chief technical pilot for the Max and was in charge of communicating with the FAA group that determined how pilots would be trained before flying it. He helped Boeing convince international regulators that the Max was safe to fly.In the messages, he said that during tests in 2016, the simulator showed the plane making unexpected movements through a process called trimming."The plane is trimming itself like craxy," he wrote to Patrik Gustavsson, a fellow 737 technical pilot at Boeing. "I'm like WHAT?"Forkner went on to say that he had lied to the FAA."I basically lied to the regulators (unknowingly)," Forkner says in the messages, although it was not clear what he was specifically referring to.Lawmakers, regulators and pilots responded with swift condemnation Friday."This is the smoking gun," Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., said in an interview. "This is no longer just a regulatory failure and a culture failure. It's starting to look like criminal misconduct."Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., said he expected answers from Boeing's chief executive and board of directors."They must be held accountable if Boeing was deceptive or misleading in failing to report safety concerns," Blumenthal said in an interview. "What these reports indicate is that Boeing's own employees lied and concealed the truth."The FAA administrator, Stephen Dickson, sent Muilenburg a letter Friday morning demanding that the company account for why it had not provided the messages to the agency earlier."I expect your explanation immediately regarding the content of this document and Boeing's delay in disclosing the document to its safety regulator," Dickson wrote.A Boeing spokesman, Gordon Johndroe, said the company was "voluntarily cooperating" with the congressional investigation and provided the messages to lawmakers as part of that process. He noted that the company gave the messages to the Department of Justice, which is conducting a criminal investigation into Boeing, earlier this year.A Boeing spokesman said the company did not give the messages to the FAA earlier because of the ongoing criminal investigation.The Max has been grounded for more than seven months, and airlines do not expect to fly it again this year. The FAA and Boeing have repeatedly pushed back the expected date of the plane's return to service as regulators and the company uncover new problems with the plane.The crisis has already cost Boeing more than $8 billion. It has disrupted expansion plans for airlines around the world, which have had to cancel thousands of flights and lost hundreds of millions of dollars in sales.The Times, which was the first to disclose Forkner's involvement in the plane, previously reported that he had failed to tell the FAA that the original version of MCAS was being overhauled, leaving regulators with the impression that the system was relatively benign and would be used only in rare cases.Eight months before the messages were exchanged, Forkner had asked the FAA if it would be OK to remove mention of MCAS from the pilot's manual. The FAA, which at the time believed the system would activate only in rare cases and wasn't dangerous, approved Forkner's request.Another exchange, in a batch of emails among Forkner, Boeing colleagues and FAA officials, was also reviewed by The Times on Friday. In one email from November 2016, Forkner wrote that he was "jedi-mind tricking regulators into accepting the training that I got accepted by FAA."A lawyer for Forkner downplayed the importance of the messages, suggesting Forkner was talking about issues with the simulator."If you read the whole chat, it is obvious that there was no 'lie' and the simulator program was not operating properly," the lawyer, David Gerger, said in a statement. "Based on what he was told, Mark thought the plane was safe, and the simulator would be fixed."Flight simulators replicate real cockpits and are used to test planes during development. They can sometimes behave unpredictably, depending on their configuration.Forkner, who is now a pilot for Southwest Airlines, and Gustavsson did not respond to requests for comment.Boeing provided the transcript to lawmakers on Capitol Hill on Friday morning, in advance of the hearings this month at which Muilenburg will testify about the crashes for the first time. Reuters was first to report on the existence of the transcript.DeFazio, who as chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee is overseeing the investigation into the crashes, said he had reviewed other internal Boeing documents and emails that suggested employees were under pressure to produce planes as fast as possible and avoid additional pilot training."Boeing cannot say this is about one person," DeFazio said. "This is about a cultural failure at Boeing under pressure from Wall Street to just get this thing out there and make sure that you don't open the door to further pilot training."This article originally appeared in The New York Times.(C) 2019 The New York Times Company
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| Deadly protests in Guinea as Russia calls for change of rules to keep despot in power Posted: 19 Oct 2019 07:54 AM PDT  When police shot dead nine pro-democracy protesters in Guinea this week, Western embassies quietly shared their misgivings with the country's president, Alpha Conde. International human rights groups were more unequivocal. François Patuel of Amnesty International denounced "a shameful attempt by Guinean authorities to stifle dissent by any means necessary". But one major power seemed unperturbed. Mr Conde's ruthless response to protests against his apparent efforts to cling to power not only suited Russia, it seems probable that they were tacitly endorsed by the Kremlin. On Wednesday, Vladimir Putin, Russia's president, will host leaders from 35 African states at a summit in the Black Sea resort of Sochi as he seeks to consolidate Moscow's growing influence in the world's poorest continent. Russia may lack the heft of its rivals, able neither to match the West in aid nor China in terms of infrastructure financing, but it does have other resources with which to woo African leaders, particularly those of a more authoritarian bent. Vladimir Putin is looking to expand Russian influence Not only has Russia sold arms to 18 African states over the past decade, its mercenaries have fanned out across the continent to offer protection and other services to receptive governments. "Political technologists" have also allegedly mounted disinformation campaigns in several recent African elections. In return, Russia has won concessions to mine minerals and secured backing from African delegates at the United Nations. Russia's blossoming relationship with Mr Conde is an example of just how successful its muscular Africa policy can be. Guineans are meant to elect a new president next year. Having served two five-year terms, Mr Conde is constitutionally barred from standing again, but has made it increasingly clear that he is not yet ready to surrender the presidency. At least four people have been killed in Guinea's capital after police fired tear gas and bullets Monday to disperse thousands of opposition supporters Credit: AP To do so, Guinea will need an entirely new constitution, plans for which have already been advanced by Mr Conde's ruling party. The opposition has accused the president of seeking to ease its path by stacking the constitutional court, taming the electoral commission and delaying parliamentary elections by more than a year to protect his narrow legislative majority. Russia has openly given its cover to Mr Conde's efforts. In an extraordinary intervention, brazen even by the Kremlin's standards, Russia's ambassador, made a televised address on New Year's Eve backing a constitutional change. Alexander Bregadze told Guineans they would be mad to allow the "legendary" Mr Conde to step down, saying: "Do you know many countries in Africa that do better? Do you know many presidents in Africa who do better?" "It's constitutions that adapt to reality, not reality that adapts to constitutions." Such naked campaigning from a diplomat is unusual. But Russia has a vital relationship to nurture. Guinea holds the world's largest reserves of bauxite, the ore that is refined and smelted to produce aluminium. The Russian firm Rusal, the world's largest aluminium producer outside Russia, sources more than a quarter of its bauxite from Guinea. Guinea's importance to Russia grew immeasurably last year after the United States imposed sanctions on Rusal and its co-owner, the oligarch and close Putin ally Oleg Deripaska. Sanctions have since been lifted on Rusal but not on Mr Deripaska. Young people block the road as they protest against a possible third term of President Alpha Conde on October 16, 2019, in Conakry Credit: AFP The significance of the relationship was underscored when Mr Bregadze stepped down as ambassador in May to head Rusal's operations in Guinea. Other Russian firms also have mineral interests in Guinea. Tellingly, Yevgeny Prigozhin, a shadowy Kremlin associate linked to mercenary and mining outfits in Africa, is understood to have set up operations in Guinea. Mr Putin has wooed President Conde, too, twice inviting him to Moscow for talks. Guinea's opposition has denounced what it says is Russian interference. Protesters last week made their feelings clear by blockading a Rusal-owned railway line used to transport bauxite. Their anger is likely to achieve little. Emboldened by Russian backing, Mr Conde has only cracked down harder. Last week, nine senior opposition figures were charged with insurrection. They face five years in prison. Given everything it has invested in Mr Conde, Russia cannot risk the opposition coming to power. When Mr Putin meets his guest in Sochi, he is likely to encourage him to persist with repression.
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| Nestor to sweep along Atlantic Seaboard with heavy rainfall, gusty winds through Sunday Posted: 19 Oct 2019 02:57 AM PDT  While past its peak intensity, Tropical Rainstorm Nestor will track through the mid-Atlantic with rain, wind and rough seas through Sunday.Florida bore the brunt of Nestor's high winds, tornadoes and storm surge as the system made landfall on Saturday.The storm is now swiftly moving northeastward, away from the United States and out to the Atlantic Ocean"Nestor will brush the southern part of the mid-Atlantic region bringing rain, and even some gusty winds to much of the Mid-Atlantic into Sunday evening," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Alex Sosnowski said.While the storm is moving at a quick pace, enough rain is forecast to fall to cause localized flooding issues, especially in low-lying and poor drainage areas. Rain from Nestor was seen spreading into the Northeast late Sunday morning. Widespread rainfall totals of 1-3 inches are forecast from the Carolinas through the Delmarva Peninsula, and could push as far north and west as the Interstate 95 corridor.An AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 6 inches is most likely to occur over the eastern Carolinas and perhaps into southeastern Virginia.Motorists will need to keep in mind that roadways will be extra slick where leaves have fallen and become wet.Into early on Monday, rainfall will also extend up into southern New England as well. By Monday morning, the center of the storm, and the heaviest rainfall, will remain offshore. At this time, AccuWeather meteorologists expect some rain to move past the Interstate-95 cities which could bring some drizzle and rain for much of Pennsylvania and Virginia for a time. Airline delays can occur in these major hubs.While Nestor has lost wind intensity, winds can still pack a punch along the coast, gusting between 40-50 mph.Trees that are sitting in saturated soil can be more susceptible to toppling amid such wind gusts.Should trees fall on power lines, localized power outages will be possible.The wind will churn up rough seas from the Carolinas to the upper mid-Atlantic coast at the end of the weekend.An uptick in wave action will reach southeastern New England by Monday.Cruise interests should also monitor Nestor's track until it pulls away from the Eastern Seaboard. There will be a brief window on Monday in the wake of Nestor and ahead of the non-tropical storm when drier weather will return to the mid-Atlantic and milder air will move into the Northeast.However, the non-tropical storm is likely to bring a period of rain and thunderstorms to the Northeast from Tuesday to Wednesday of next week. This will occur even if what's left of Nestor fails to get pulled northward. Download the free AccuWeather app to see the latest forecast and advisories for your region. Keep checking back for updates on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
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| Firebrand cleric green-lights fresh protests in Iraq Posted: 20 Oct 2019 06:08 AM PDT  Influential Iraqi Shiite leader Moqtada al-Sadr has given his supporters the green light to resume anti-government protests, after the movement was interrupted following a deadly crackdown. Protests shook Iraq for six days from October 1, with young Iraqis denouncing corruption and demanding jobs and services before calling for the downfall of the government. Calls have been made on social media for fresh rallies on Friday, the anniversary of Prime Minister Adel Abdel Mahdi's government taking office.
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| Pound Falls as Johnson’s Brexit Breakthrough Proves Elusive Posted: 20 Oct 2019 04:03 PM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- Want the lowdown on European markets? In your inbox before the open, every day. Sign up here.Sterling fell after U.K. politicians failed to deliver the decisive Brexit vote that had been promised at the weekend.The decline brought to a halt a four-day winning streak that was fueled by speculation Prime Minister Boris Johnson could win parliamentary backing for his divorce deal. But strategists say the drop may prove short-lived."Investors will have to balance the disappointment of a further delay with the increasing likelihood of eventual passage," said Ned Rumpeltin, European head of currency strategy at Toronto-Dominion Bank. "The tail risk of an accidental no-deal crash out has also ratcheted down."Analysts remain bullish even as a verdict on Johnson's new divorce deal was deferred. Instead, lawmakers supported an amendment put forward by former Conservative minister Oliver Letwin which requires the House of Commons to pass all necessary Brexit legislation before holding a formal vote on the Withdrawal Agreement. That meant the prime minister was legally bound to ask the EU for another extension to negotiations.The pound fell as much as 0.8% against the dollar, ending a four-day winning streak. It was down 0.6% at 1.2906 as of 8 a.m. in Tokyo."Sterling is likely to remain somewhat volatile, but supported, because it appears the chances of a hard (no deal) Brexit are very slim," said Joseph Capurso, a senior currency strategist at Commonwealth Bank of Australia.The prime minister is set to introduce the legislation needed for an Oct. 31 exit and it's possible he will garner enough support to push his deal through, according to a Bloomberg analysis. The Times of London reported that the EU may grant a three-month delay if Johnson is unable to secure support for his deal this week."Seems like an anti-climactic open for sterling, with investors potentially comforted by the Article 50 extension that the EU seems willing to grant in the case no deal is agreed," said Valentin Marinov, Credit Agricole's head of Group-of-10 currency research. "Given that another vote on the Johnson deal could come as soon as Tuesday, investors could use any sterling dips as buying opportunity."Marinov is sticking to his view that the pound could reach $1.36 medium term.European Council President Donald Tusk said he would consult EU leaders on how to react to the U.K.'s request for another extension."General sentiment is still positive on Brexit, and this extension could be a small bump in the road," said Sandeep Parekh, an FX strategist at Australia & New Zealand Banking Group. "But I think the next few days will be very important."Still, sterling could move sharply lower if Brussels were to formally reject a later deadline, according to TD's Rumpeltin. It may lurch lower toward $1.2835 and then further to $1.2750 "if the sense from the EU was one of growing rancor and impatience," he said.But Rumpeltin's central view is one where the EU would grant an extension.And that more bullish slant for the pound is reflected in the views of other strategists too."The weekend's events, if anything, further reduce the risk of disorderly exit," said Adam Cole, Royal Bank of Canada's chief currency strategist. A knee-jerk negative sterling reaction may be a buying opportunity, he said.(Updates with pound extending decline, comment from strategist.)\--With assistance from Michael G. Wilson.To contact the reporters on this story: Anooja Debnath in London at adebnath@bloomberg.net;Ruth Carson in Singapore at rliew6@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Paul Dobson at pdobson2@bloomberg.net, Brett Miller, Shikhar BalwaniFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| The Latest: City plans to remove plane from site Saturday Posted: 18 Oct 2019 10:03 PM PDT  The state Department of Transportation determined the runway was not damaged by the crash, the city said in a news release. A Ravn Air Group flight brought in investigators from the state transportation department and the NTSB, the city said. It then returned the Cordova High School swim team to Anchorage.
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