| Chicago shooting deaths: Outcry as anti-gun violence mothers shot dead while campaigning Posted: 30 Jul 2019 04:26 PM PDT  Two women who campaigned against Chicago's infamous gun violence, have themselves been shot and killed on a street corner where activists frequently stood to keep watch.The anti-gun violence group Mothers Against Senseless Killings (MASK), confirmed Chantell Grant and Andrea Stoudemire were killed after a blue SUV pulled up to the corner, and someone in the vehicle opened fired into the crowd."People are tired of being afraid. We're sick of being afraid. We live in these communities and then we somehow are penalised and punished for living here. If you're poor, you're poor," said MASK founder Tamar Manasseh."But when women are killed, it's not their fault. It's not because they made bad decisions. It's not they're in the wrong place at the wrong time."Police said the two women were killed on Friday night in South Side neighbourhood of Englewood, where members of the group often stood watch.Mr Grant, 26, was mother to three young children. Ms Stoudemire, 35, had two children. They were among a total of 48 people shot in the city over the weekend, eight of them fatally.Chicago has a reputation for some of the deadliest and most persistent gun violence in the country, though it is not evenly distributed.Most occurs in the South Side, which has had a large African American population and which has long suffered from poverty, partly the result of hosing laws that long discriminated against minority communities.MASK was founded in 2015 and works to "interrupt violence and crime, and teach children to grow up as friends rather than enemies".NNC News said there have been more than 1,190 shooting incidents in the city so far this year, and almost 1,530 shooting victims, according to police.Police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi called the murders "senseless". He added: "We have no evidence to suggest the women were the intended targets."
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| US urges Germany to 'help secure' Strait of Hormuz Posted: 30 Jul 2019 10:08 AM PDT  The United States stepped up diplomatic pressure on Germany Tuesday to join efforts to secure the strategic Strait of Hormuz as tensions mount between Washington and Iran. "We've formally asked Germany to join France and the UK to help secure the Strait of Hormuz and combat Iranian aggression," said US embassy spokeswoman Tamara Sternberg-Greller in a statement.
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| Colorado Teen is Hospitalized After Bison Attack at Theodore Roosevelt National Park Posted: 30 Jul 2019 10:48 AM PDT  A 17-year-old was gouged in his leg when a Bison struck him at a National Park
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| Guatemalan villagers recognize viral photo of mother pleading at U.S. border Posted: 30 Jul 2019 01:08 PM PDT ![Guatemalan villagers recognize viral photo of mother pleading at U.S. border]( "Guatemalan villagers recognize viral photo of mother pleading at U.S. border") Lolinda Amaya cried last week when she saw a viral photograph of a Guatemalan mother imploring Mexico's National Guard to let her enter the United States. It was her niece, Ledy Perez, who had borrowed money weeks earlier and fled her village under cover of night, seeking a better life for her only child. The widely shared photo https://widerimage.reuters.com/story/guatemalan-mother-begs-soldier-to-let-her-enter-us showed her crouched meters away from Mexico's border with the United States, clinging to her young son Anthony Diaz as she looked up at an armed member of the newly formed Mexican military police force.
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| Restaurant Apologizes After Asking Officer To Leave Because He Had A Gun Posted: 30 Jul 2019 12:05 AM PDT  A restaurant in San Antonio, Texas, has apologized after asking a police officer to leave the premises because he was carrying a gun.The officer was asked to leave Fogo de Chao Brazilian Steakhouse Saturday night because he was carrying a gun, KSAT reported. Texas law states that establishments can't deny service to an officer or special investigator who is carrying a weapon on the premises, as long as they are authorized to carry the weapon.The restaurant apologized to the San Antonio Police Department and the officer who was asked to leave, according to a statement."We sincerely apologize to the San Antonio Police Department and the officer in question for the incident that occurred at our restaurant last night," the statement read according to KSTA. "Unfortunately, a member of our team made the wrong call. We are working hard to address and correct this unfortunate lapse in judgement.""We will address the policy internally and make sure our team members are clear. We support, respect and appreciate everything our law enforcement does to keep each and every one of us safe, day in and day out."
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| 79-year-old woman sentenced to jail for feeding stray cats Posted: 30 Jul 2019 08:21 AM PDT  A 79-year-old woman in Ohio has been sentenced to 10 days in jail for feeding stray cats on her back porch.
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| More than 200 reindeer found dead of starvation in the Arctic, scientists say Posted: 30 Jul 2019 11:57 AM PDT  The cause of the reindeer deaths, according to the Norwegian Polar Institute, was starvation induced by altered conditions in the Arctic.
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| Canadian police zero in on location in hunt for teen murder suspects Posted: 28 Jul 2019 07:15 PM PDT  Canadian police announced Sunday they had zeroed in on a small community in Manitoba in their hunt for two fugitive teens suspected in three murders. The suspects, identified as Kam McLeod, 19, and Bryer Schmegelsky, 18, have been on the run for more than a week. Authorities say they believe the two are behind the killings of 23-year-old Australian Lucas Fowler and his 24-year-old American girlfriend, Chynna Deese, as well as of Leonard Dyck, a 64-year-old Canadian.
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| Missouri school shooter Drew Grant killed in car crash 21 years after attack Posted: 30 Jul 2019 12:49 PM PDT  A Missouri man, who, along with an accomplice, shot and killed four studentsand a teacher at an Arkansas middle school 21 years ago, died in a car crashlast Saturday, KAIT reports
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| Death penalty sought for woman accused of killing ex-senator Posted: 30 Jul 2019 05:43 PM PDT  Prosecutors said Tuesday they plan to seek the death penalty against a woman charged in the killing of a former Arkansas lawmaker who investigators say was found dead from multiple stab wounds outside her home. An arrest affidavit for Rebecca Lynn O'Donnell released Tuesday said O'Donnell was caught on video removing security cameras from inside the home of former state Sen. Linda Collins the last day Collins was seen alive. O'Donnell has been charged with capital murder in the death of Collins, who went by Collins-Smith in the Legislature.
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| Rand Paul offers to buy Ilhan Omar a ticket to Somalia so she will 'appreciate America more' Posted: 30 Jul 2019 02:53 AM PDT  Republican Senator Rand Paul said he would offer to buy Congresswoman Ilhan Omar a ticket to Somalia so she will "appreciate America more".His remarks echoed Donald Trump's racist statement that the Ms Omar and three other congresswomen of colour should "go back" to the "totally broken and crime infested places from which they came."Mr Paul made the remarks in an interview with Breitbart News at the Turning Point USA conference in Washington last week. Mr Trump's tweets earlier this month about the four congresswomen of colour, known as "the squad" prompted the House of Representatives to pass a resolution condemning his remarks. Three of the congresswomen were born in the United States, while Ms Omar is a naturalised US citizen who was born in Somalia.Mr Paul defended the US president's comments, saying of Ms Omar, "I'm sort of dumbfounded how unappreciative she is of our country". "While I'm not saying we forcibly send her anywhere, I'm willing to contribute to buy her a ticket to go visit Somalia, and I think she could look and maybe learn a little bit about the disaster that is Somalia – that has no capitalism, has no God-given rights guaranteed in a constitution, and has about seven different tribes that have been fighting each other for the last 40 years," Mr Paul said. "And then, maybe after she's visited Somalia for a while, she might come back and appreciate America more."A spokesman for Ms Omar declined to comment on Mr Paul's remarks. Mr Paul's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.On Sunday, after reports of Mr Paul's comments began to circulate widely, Ms Omar retweeted a post by comedian Tom Arnold appearing to make light of a 2017 incident in which the Kentucky Republican was assaulted by a neighbour.The retweet sparked outrage among conservatives, including the president's son, Donald Trump Jr."Congresswoman Ilhan Omar retweeting calls for political violence against @randpaul," Trump Jr said in a tweet. "I'm not surprised, and look forward to the forthcoming silence from the media on the issue."Ms Omar, a freshman and one of two Muslim women in the House, have been among the most vocal critics of Mr Trump's policies and language.In a New York Times op-ed last week, she said the president "has used overtly racist rhetoric to strike fear and division in communities of colour and religious minorities across the country".She also described her journey with her family to the US in the hope of a better life – and said that the chants of "Send her back!" by Trump supporters at a recent rally in response to the president's criticism of her prompted her to "remember the horrors of civil war in Somalia that my family and I escaped"."The ideals at the heart of our founding – equal protection under the law, pluralism, religious liberty - are under attack, and it is up to all of us to defend them," she wrote.In the Breitbart interview, Mr Paul said he has met "a lot of people" in Kentucky who are refugees – "some from Somalia, some from Bosnia" – and "most of them are thankful"."I've met people who have come here from behind the Iron Curtain, that got away from communism," he said. "They're some of the best Americans we have, because they really appreciate how great our country is."Ms Omar, by contrast, is "about as ungrateful as you can get", Mr Paul said."And then I hear Representative Omar say, 'Oh, America's a terrible place! I thought there'd be justice, and there's no justice here,'" Paul said. "It's like, well, she came here and we fed her, we clothed her, she got welfare, she got school, she got healthcare, and then, lo and behold, she has the honour of actually winning a seat in Congress, and she says we're a terrible country?"While Ms Omar has been critical of Mr Trump, she has not described the US as a "terrible country".Washington Post
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| Joint Chiefs nominee denies assault allegations, enlists key support Posted: 30 Jul 2019 08:18 AM PDT  Sen. Martha McSally — a retired Air Force pilot who revealed this year that she was raped by a superior officer — came out with a staunch defense of Air Force Gen. John Hyten.
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| Russia says U.S. may be aiming to quit nuclear test ban treaty Posted: 30 Jul 2019 03:33 AM PDT  The United States may be planning to blame Russian non-compliance as a pretext to pull out of the Comprehensive nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT), a Russian diplomat told the Conference on Disarmament, the world's main arms talks forum, on Tuesday. "It would appear that through propaganda around false claims about Russia's compliance there are attempts to prepare international opinion for a U.S. exit from the CTBT and then to blame Russia again for everything," the Russian diplomat said.
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| The One Thing That Will Decide the 2020 Election Posted: 30 Jul 2019 12:12 AM PDT  Purple states can swing either way and often end up deciding our elections. So, it's worth asking what people in those states think about the issues dominating politics. Heritage Action for America, the sister organization of The Heritage Foundation, recently carried out a wide survey of Americans in five purple states, asking them about immigration, health care, political correctness, and much more. In this episode, our Editor-in-Chief Kate Trinko sits down with Nate Rogers from Heritage Action to unpack it all.Kate Trinko: Joining us today is Nate Rogers, who is a senior adviser for political affairs at Heritage Action for America. Nate, thanks for joining us.The liberal Left continue to push their radical agenda against American values. The good news is there is a solution. Find out more >>Nate Rogers: Thank you.Trinko: Heritage Action just did a series of polls in the United States, sometimes focusing on purple states, sometimes looking nationally, sometimes looking at people of a certain ideological persuasion. They talked about health care, socialism, capitalism, and much more.Nate, what were some of your biggest takeaways?Rogers: This was a really interesting exercise. We entered it not looking to reach any conclusions that we had going in, we wanted to be very open in the polling process.The purple state poll is actually the fourth poll of a series of four, so it was actually the last poll that we conducted.
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| Slain gangster John Dillinger's body to be exhumed from Crown Hill Cemetery in Indiana Posted: 30 Jul 2019 01:19 PM PDT ![Slain gangster John Dillinger's body to be exhumed from Crown Hill Cemetery in Indiana]( "Slain gangster John Dillinger's body to be exhumed from Crown Hill Cemetery in Indiana") No reason was given for the exhumation. But there have been theories that it was not Dillinger who was killed outside a theater, but rather a double.
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| Photos of the 2020 Porsche 911 Carrera and 911 Carrera Cabriolet Posted: 29 Jul 2019 03:01 PM PDT ![Photos of the 2020 Porsche 911 Carrera and 911 Carrera Cabriolet]( "Photos of the 2020 Porsche 911 Carrera and 911 Carrera Cabriolet")
The cheapest version of the 992-gen 911 costs $98,750 and has 379 horsepower. From Car and Driver
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| Ukraine seizes Russian tanker over naval clash: prosecutor Posted: 30 Jul 2019 01:52 PM PDT  A Ukrainian court has ordered the seizure of a Russian tanker stopped last week over its alleged involvement in a Ukrainian-Russian naval clash last year, the country's chief military prosecutor said Tuesday. A court, in the southern city of Odessa, ordered the seizure of the tanker Nika Spirit on Monday, according to documents posted by Anatoliy Matios on social media. The Russian owner of the seized tanker, the Altomar Shipping company, told Russian news agency Interfax that its management was "in contact with Ukrainian authorities" to solve a "range of issues related to the vessel".
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| Jeffrey Epstein served with fresh court documents alleging rape of 15-year-old girl Posted: 30 Jul 2019 01:07 PM PDT  Disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein found out he was facing further legal peril last week, the day before he was found unconscious in his cell with neck injuries. Epstein, 66, was presented with court documents relating to accusations made by Jennifer Araoz, who claimed he raped her when she was 15. Miss Araoz, now 32, made her accusations on July 10 – shortly after Epstein was arrested by police on charges filed by New York prosecutors. She claimed that, in the autumn of 2002, when she had been visiting his New York home for a year, he raped her after she gave him a massage. Last week, on July 22, Qin Zhang, deputy sheriff, handed Epstein the documents in his cell in the Manhattan Correctional Center, where he is awaiting trial. Jeffrey Epstein awaiting his bail decision on July 15. The judge ultimately denied bail. Miss Araoz's documents sought to depose Epstein, to learn the identity of the young woman who allegedly recruited her outside the Talent Unlimited High School and took part in his "grooming" of her "to be sexually assaulted by Epstein." Miss Araoz has described the woman as a brunette in her 20s. Daniel Kaiser, Miss Araoz's lawyer, said that Epstein or his lawyer will have to appear before a judge on August 27, to fight her wish to have him deposed and produce all evidence. Miss Araoz plans to sue both Epstein and the recruiter, Mr Kaiser said, but has to wait until August 14 under terms of the state Child Victims Act. The law, which Andrew Cuomo, governor of New York state, signed in February, lifted a statute of limitations that barred victims of childhood sexual abuse from suing their attackers more than three years after turning 18. The new law allows for criminal charges against sexual abusers of children to be filed until their victims turn 28 for felony cases. Jeffrey Epstein, 66, is facing up to 45 years in prison on charges of sex trafficking of minors It also allows for civil charges to be brought against their abusers - and institutions that enabled them - until they turn 55. Finally, it enacted a one-year, one-off period of grace, allowing all victims to seek civil action, regardless of how long ago the abuse occurred. That period begins on August 14. The day after the court papers were served, Epstein - who's being held without bail on conspiracy and child sex trafficking charges - was found nearly unconscious on the floor of his cell, law enforcement sources have said. Based on the appearance of the marks on his neck, investigators suspect he was choked by someone else, The New York Post reported, and they questioned his cellmate, a former policeman awaiting a death penalty trial in four drug-related killings.
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| How to Tell If a Trump Supporter Is Racist Posted: 30 Jul 2019 03:30 AM PDT  Every non-liberal leftist -- that is, nearly every Democrat running for president, New York Times and Washington Post columnist, CNN and MSNBC host, and your left-wing brother-in-law -- labels every Trump supporter and, of course, President Donald Trump, a "racist."And they don't stop there. Leftists don't only label the half of the country that supports the president "racist," they label all whites and America itself "racist." If your son or daughter attends or recently attended an American university, it is close to certain he or she was repeatedly told that America and all whites are racist. According to the Left, whites are divided between those who admit they are racist and those who don't admit it.Every conservative and many liberals know this is a big lie. The great question is: Do leftists believe it? It is impossible to know. But this we do know: If you repeat something often enough, and if your weltanschauung (worldview) and that which gives your life meaning are dependent upon believing something, you will eventually believe it.So here is a way to show it is a lie.Ask any white conservative, including one who supports Trump, the following three questions:1) Do you have more in common with, and are you personally more comfortable in the company of, a white leftist or a black conservative?2) Would you rather have nine white leftists or nine black conservatives on the U.S. Supreme Court?3) Would you rather your child marry a black Christian conservative or a white non-Christian liberal?A white racist would prefer the whites in each case.I have asked these questions of thousands of Trump supporters at lectures and on my radio show. Not once has a white Trump-supporting conservative said he or she would be more comfortable in the presence of a white leftist than a black conservative, or would prefer an all-white liberal Supreme Court to an all-black conservative Supreme Court. Not once has a white Christian conservative said he or she would prefer their child marry a white non-Christian liberal to a black Christian conservative.If you're an honest leftist, this should present a powerful challenge to your belief that all white conservatives are racist.But it won't. Leftists have too much at stake to confront the truth about conservatives. Everything the Left has ever believed has depended upon lying about opponents. From the day Stalin labeled Trotsky -- who served as the head of the Red Army and who, along with Lenin, founded the Bolshevik Party -- a "fascist," leftists have lied about their opponents.Some liberals lie, and some conservatives lie, but the truth is both a liberal and conservative value. It has never been a left-wing value. Any leftist who would commit himself to the truth would cease being a leftist. He would either become an anti-Left liberal or an anti-Left conservative."America is racist." "Whites are racist." "Trump supporters are racist." These are all big lies.So, then, given how important it is to leftists to maintain the lie of conservative racism -- along with xenophobia, misogyny, transphobia, and Islamophobia -- how would they rebut conservatives' answers to these questions?Presumably, they would argue that every conservative who responds to these questions as I described is lying.But these questions are important -- no matter how much leftists ignore or dismiss them -- because they perform an important service for conservatives.I know this from Jewish history. There was so much Jew-hatred in the medieval Christian world that Jews sometimes wondered if there was any truth to the attacks on them. When a whole society denigrates a group, members of the denigrated group start wondering whether any of the attacks on them have any truth. But when the charge of blood libel -- that Jews killed Christian children to use their blood to bake matzos for Passover -- arose, it liberated Jews from taking any of the anti-Semites' attacks seriously. Every Jew knew the blood libel was a lie -- Jews never consumed animal blood, let alone human blood.Every conservative knows his responses to these three questions are heartfelt and true, so these questions can help conservatives come to see the Left's charge of conservative racism as medieval Jews came to see the anti-Semites' blood-libel charge: as a lie.© 2019 Creators.com
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| North Carolina ballot fraud investigation yields new charges Posted: 30 Jul 2019 02:38 PM PDT  A ballot fraud investigation produced new felony charges Tuesday against the political operative at the center of a disputed North Carolina congressional election that's being rerun. Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman said in a news release that Leslie McCrae Dowless was indicted on new charges related to the 2018 general election including perjury, obstruction of justice and absentee ballot possession.
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| Hong Kong Train Disruptions Show Protests Becoming Daily Affair Posted: 30 Jul 2019 06:05 AM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- Fresh train disruptions by Hong Kong protesters Tuesday show how unrest once confined to weekend marches through downtown streets is spreading across the Asian financial hub and affecting daily life.Train services were slowed on the centrally located Island Line and the Kwun Tong Line across Victoria Harbor after black-clad protesters blocked doors and requested emergency assistance during the morning rush. There was yelling and confusion as commuters found themselves stuck in large crowds on subway platforms for the second time in less than a week.Although rail operator MTR Corp. said trains were resuming their normal schedules as of 11:30 a.m., such problems are expected to spread as protesters try to keep their grievances in the headlines and force a response by the city's China-appointed government. The incident follows a weekend of rallies that saw a peaceful sit-in at Asia's busiest international airport and sometimes rowdy mass protests that prompted police to fire tear gas in residential areas.The movement has proved surprisingly resilient more than eight weeks after as many as 1 million people took to the streets to oppose Chief Executive Carrie Lam's now-suspended proposal to allow extraditions to mainland China. Authorities in Beijing have so far maintained their support for Lam, who has rejected demands that she resign, formally withdraw the bill and appoint an independent inquiry into the police's use of force.Lam's approval rating slipped another 2 percentage points over the past month to a record low 21%, according to a survey released Tuesday by the Hong Kong Public Opinion Research Institute, formerly the HKU Public Opinion Programme. The share of people satisfied with the local government's performance remained at an all-time 18%, unchanged from the previous survey.Authorities were set to charge 44 out of 49 people arrested during Sunday's clashes with police with rioting, the South China Morning Post reported Tuesday, citing an unidentified police source. The violence had erupted as officers fired volleys of tear gas at demonstrators in Sai Ying Pun, a residential and business area where the Chinese government's liaison office is located. The people were expected to be brought to court on Wednesday, the newspaper said.China warned Monday that political unrest in the former British colony had gone "far beyond" peaceful protest, underscoring concern of more direct intervention. The demonstrations ultimately stem from anxiety that China has been eroding the rights and freedoms promised to Hong Kong before the end of colonial rule in 1997.Read more about the protests' latest impact on Hong Kong stocksDuring Tuesday's protests, services at the Lam Tin, Yau Tong and Tiu Keng Leng stations were suspended. At Tin Hau station on the Island Line, dozens of passengers were queuing up for refunds as train services were suspended.MTR Corp. shares added 0.1% as of 2.47 p.m. in Hong Kong trading, erasing earlier losses."We understand some people want to express their view but we regret that their actions affected train services and other passengers," Alan Cheng, MTR's chief of operating, told reporters. He said platform safety devices had been activated 76 times during the morning, while train emergency buttons were triggered another 47.Protesters argue that they've been driven to guerrilla tactics because the former British colony's unelected government is ignoring historic protests and the police are withholding protest permits and increasing their use of force. Since last month, different groups in the largely leaderless movement have surrounded police headquarters, mobbed government buildings and ransacked the city's legislature."Every confrontation between the protesters and the police has exacerbated their mutual hostility," Hong Kong political commentator Joseph Cheng told Bloomberg Television in an interview on Tuesday. "It is difficult that there are no solutions in sight, no reconciliation process going on and it has become a test of wills."While such tactics risk alienating the general public and causing further damage to the economy, the movement has also received support from the business community. The American Chamber of Commerce's Hong Kong chapter on Monday urged an "internationally credible" independent inquiry into all aspects of the protest movement, saying action was needed to preserve the city's strength as a global financial center.Earlier: AmCham Urges Hong Kong Action to Quell Growing Business ConcernsThe city's otherwise model railway system has born the brunt of several recent incidents, including shocking mob attacks last week on protesters and other train passengers at a railway station in the northern suburb of Yuen Long. Protesters subsequently decided to disrupt train services to highlight the slow police response to the incident.The rail operator on Monday pledged a review of its safety procedures, a move the South China Morning Post newspaper said was prompted by strike threats and internal anger over criticism of a female train driver related to the Yuen Long incident. Last week, MTR chairman Rex Auyeung Pak-kuen endorsed calls for an inquiry into police action."Hong Kongers only want police to do their jobs fearlessly in an unbiased manner and not serve their bosses in Beijing," Max Chung, the organizer of the Yuen Long march, said Tuesday night after being released on bail. Chung had been arrested for inciting others to participate in an unlawful assembly, the city's Now TV reported Sunday.(Updates with Max Chung comment in final paragraph.)\--With assistance from Sheryl Tian Tong Lee, Fion Li, Dominic Lau, Sofia Horta e Costa and Colin Keatinge.To contact the reporters on this story: Iain Marlow in Hong Kong at imarlow1@bloomberg.net;Simon Fuller in Hong Kong at sfuller37@bloomberg.net;Natalie Lung in Hong Kong at flung6@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Brendan Scott at bscott66@bloomberg.net, Karen LeighFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| 'India Ashamed': Outrage grows over ruling party lawmaker accused of rape Posted: 30 Jul 2019 03:52 AM PDT  Protesters stepped up demands on Tuesday for India's ruling party to sack a state lawmaker accused by a young woman of raping her, holding several demonstrations just days after the accuser was critically injured in a highway collision. Opposition groups say Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is protecting Kuldeep Singh Sengar, a legislator from the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, whom the woman accused of the rape in 2017. "Why do we give people like Kuldeep Sengar the strength and protection of political power and abandon their victims to battle for their lives alone?" Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, a leader of the main opposition Congress party, asked on Twitter.
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| Jared Kushner owns Baltimore apartments ‘infested’ with rodents, mould and maggots Posted: 29 Jul 2019 03:18 AM PDT  Donald Trump characterised Elijah Cummings' Baltimore-based congressional district as a "rodent infested mess" where "no human" would want to live, in a now-viral tweetstorm on Saturday.His criticism rang with a particular irony in Baltimore County, where the president's son-in-law Jared Kushner owns more than a dozen apartment complexes that have been cited with hundreds of code violations and, critics say, provide sub-standard housing to lower income tenants.In an interview on Saturday, Baltimore County Executive John Olszewski Jr condemned Mr Trump's comments as "an attack on basic decency"."It is certainly ironic that the president's own son-in-law was complicit in contributing to some of the neglect that the president purports to be so concerned about," Mr Olszewski, a Democrat, added.Kushner Companies, which started operating in Maryland in 2013, has owned almost 9,000 rental units across 17 complexes, many of them in Baltimore County, the Baltimore Sun reported earlier this year.The properties generate at least $90m (£72m) in revenue annually. Mr Kushner stepped down as CEO of the company in 2017, when he became a senior White House advisor.A company spokesperson did not address questions on Sunday about whether the group agreed with Mr Trump's characterisation of the area, but wrote: "Kushner Companies is proud to own thousands of apartments in the Baltimore area."In 2017, Baltimore County officials revealed that apartments owned by Kushner Cos were responsible for more than 200 code violations, all accrued in the span of the calendar year.Repairs were made only after the county threatened fines, local officials said, and even after warnings, violations on nine properties were not addressed, resulting in monetary sanctions.In an investigation by the New York Times and Pro Publica published earlier that year, tenants of Kushner Cos properties reported mouse infestations, mould problems and maggots.A private investigator who looked into Mr Kusher's property management company, Westminster Management, described them as "slumlords".Christine Taylor, a spokeswoman for the Kushner Cos, asserted at the time that the group was in compliance with all state and local laws.Then-Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenetz said that was "a stretch of truth"."We expect all landlords to comply with the code requirements that protect the health and safety of their tenants, even if the landlord's father-in-law is president of the United States," added Mr Kamenetz, who died in 2018.Shannon Darrow, a programme manager at the tenant advocacy group Fair Housing Action Centre of Maryland, said on Sunday that she was "appalled" by Mr Trump's comments about Mr Cummings's district, which includes about half of Baltimore City, and most of the majority black sections of Baltimore County.She added that she found Mr Trump's attacks ironic given the legacy of Mr Kushner's properties in the district."Basically, [Mr Kushner] has been creating a race to the bottom in terms of poorly maintained properties," she said. "He's been very, very deeply implicated."In the past two years, Kushner Cos and its affiliated entities have been sued multiple times by Baltimore-area residents who allege that the company has charged them excessive fees and used the threat of eviction to pressure them into paying up.From 2013 to 2017, corporate entities associated with Kushner Cos' apartments requested the civil arrest of 105 former tenants – the highest number among all property managers in Maryland during that period, the Baltimore Sun reported."It's been our recent experience that working families have been preyed on at the benefit of Mr Kushner and his company," Mr Olszewski said.A group of tenants recently attempted to file a class-action lawsuit alleging unlawful rental practices by the company. But their request was denied by a Baltimore Circuit Court judge.Washington Post
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| EXCLUSIVE: New look at 3 suspects in violent, daylight attack of 2 seniors in San Francisco's Chinatown Posted: 30 Jul 2019 12:12 PM PDT  RECOGNIZE THESE MEN? ABC7 News has exclusively obtained surveillance photos and video showing three young men who San Francisco police investigators believe violently attacked two senior citizens in broad daylight in Chinatown.
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| 'Again and again and again': California Gov. Gavin Newsom blasts Republicans' inaction, calls for gun reform Posted: 30 Jul 2019 04:46 PM PDT  California Gov. Gavin Newsom delivered an impassioned condemnation of the shooting and criticized Republican lawmakers for inaction on gun control.
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| Deported from Turkey, Syrians return to unfamiliar country Posted: 30 Jul 2019 03:03 AM PDT  Bab al-Hawa Border Crossing (Syria) (AFP) - Still reeling from his sudden deportation from Turkey with just the clothes on his back, Mohammad Hassan stood in the arrivals hall at a border crossing in northern Syria unsure what to do next. "I left Syria seven years ago," said the 22-year-old. During Hassan's years of exile, Syria's landscape changed dramatically.
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| Russia declares state of emergency as wildfires rage across area size of Belgium Posted: 30 Jul 2019 10:04 AM PDT  Russia on Monday declared a state of emergency in two regions of Siberia as wildfires rage across 12,000 square miles of countryside. Terrified residents in the Krasnoyarsk and Irkutsk regions called on the state to act as flames engulfed an area the size of Belgium. There are few inhabited zones in the path of the inferno but smoke has blanketed major cities in Siberia and the Far East, making it hard to breathe and posing health risks for the population. Over 720,000 people have signed a petition on Change.Org calling for a state of emergency to be declared across the whole of Siberia in order to draw more forces and state funding to battle the wildfires that have erupted in the past month. Residents of the affected areas have been posting photos of burning forests and smog-covered cities and villages. Local authorities have however cited at 2015 decree by the Ministry of Natural Resources that allows them not to extinguish wildfires if they do not pose a direct threat to settlements. Fire-fighting can also be avoided if the cost of the operation is higher than the estimated damage. The governor of Krasnoyarsk, Alexander Uss, defended the government's reluctance to put out the fires by comparing them to winter blizzards. He said that it can be "pointless and sometimes even harmful" to try and extinguish flames in unpopulated areas. More than 11 million hectares have already been affected by wildfires this season, Greenpeace Russia said in a statement on Friday, adding that blazes continue to spread around hundreds of thousands of hectares every day. The environmental group warned that it was no longer a regional problem and more measures should be taken. It is not immediately clear if a state of emergency in some of the affected areas will help contain the wildfires. European scientists earlier raised concerns over unprecedented fires that started sooner than usual in the Arctic this summer season releasing huge amounts of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. The fires have been caused by record high temperatures combined with lightning and strong winds.
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| Ilhan Omar shares tweet mocking Rand Paul's attack: 'No wonder he ripped his toupee off' Posted: 30 Jul 2019 06:54 AM PDT  The tweet, which Omar subsequently retweeted, referenced one of Paul's neighbors, Rene Boucher, assaulting the senator while he was mowing his lawn.
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| Pakistani army plane crashes into homes, killing 19 Posted: 30 Jul 2019 07:18 AM PDT  A Pakistani military plane crashed into a residential area before dawn on Tuesday, killing at least 19 people, most of them in their homes on the outskirts of the city of Rawalpindi, officials said. Fires, damaged houses and debris were visible in Mora Kalu village near Rawalpindi after daybreak. Victims' relatives were seen wailing and crying as rescuers loaded charred bodies into ambulances.
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| 11 Things We Can't Wait to Order from the New IKEA Catalog Posted: 30 Jul 2019 10:27 AM PDT |
| Sinn Fein says Brexit threat means Dublin should prepare for Irish unification Posted: 30 Jul 2019 07:34 AM PDT  Northern Ireland's largest nationalist party on Tuesday called on the Irish government to prepare for the unification of the British region with EU-member Ireland, saying "bullish" Boris Johnson's Brexit posed a threat. Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald told supporters in Belfast that Johnson was "not my prime minister".
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| Top Defector Tells of Spying, Stealing and Mutiny in Venezuela Posted: 29 Jul 2019 02:00 AM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- Days after being named chief of Venezuela's feared Sebin intelligence agency last fall, General Manuel Ricardo Cristopher Figuera was called in by President Nicolas Maduro and asked where the enemy was."I don't understand the question, sir," Figuera says he responded."I want a report every two hours of what the political opposition is doing," Maduro replied, listing some of the 30 politicians whose whereabouts and activities were to be surveilled. Reports, he said, needed to be sent not only to him but to his wife, Cilia Flores, and to Vice President Delcy Rodriguez. The monitoring involved spreadsheets with photos, mobile phone taps and round-the-clock shifts of on-the-ground four-agent teams observing movements and meetings.Figuera, the most significant Venezuelan defector of the past two decades, is in the U.S. offering details of Maduro's increasingly authoritarian rule and the schemes by which he, his family and associates embezzle the proceeds of oil, gold and other national treasures as the once-wealthy nation of 30 million descends into chaos and starvation.Over five hours of interviews with Bloomberg in a Miami hotel and a nearby sports bar, Figuera, a burly 55-year-old trained in Cuba and Belarus, contended that the Venezuelan intelligence services have infiltrated Colombia's security apparatus. With that penetration, early this year the Venezuelans tracked the movements of a key defector, Colonel Oswaldo Garcia Palomo, who was captured, tortured and interrogated after sneaking across the Colombian border to help organize a rebellion."A member of the Colombian intelligence service was in touch with one of ours and gave Palomo a telephone," he said. "With that telephone they followed him." Figuera contended that Palomo's torture took place not at his Sebin agency but at the DGCIM, military counterintelligence. Figuera said Palomo, who's still in Sebin prison, is a friend whose mistreatment horrified him.The Colombian presidency said in reply to written questions that it is looking into the matter. The defense ministry didn't respond to written requests for comment.Much of Figuera's narrative surrounds his claim that the abuse, corruption and authoritarianism he encountered after he took up his top position shocked him. This has been met with skepticism by leaders of the opposition who note that Figuera spent a decade as deputy head of DGCIM before taking over Sebin and that he certainly seemed fully integrated into the most brutal elements of the security apparatus before defecting.Figuera addressed this, saying: "I share responsibility for Maduro's stay in power, like any official who's been part of this criminal enterprise. But if someone has evidence against me, I have no fear to face justice."Figuera's status in the U.S. is temporary. Removed from a list of sanctioned Venezuelan officials upon defecting, he's been granted a permit to stay but not to be a resident. His wife, Barbara Reinefeld, who attended the second part of the interview, has a longer-term visa because she has a sister and a son living in the U.S. The couple are staying with family in Miami as they try to figure out what's next, although Figuera says he wants only to return to his homeland as soon as possible, adding that he believes Maduro can't last out the year. A senior U.S. official said that if Figuera wants to stay, he'll have to apply for residency or asylum.April BetrayalOn April 30, when Juan Guaido, recognized as Venezuela's interim president by the U.S. and more than 50 countries, went to a military base to drive Maduro from power, Figuera was part of the plot. He and Guaido believed other top officials were with them, including the president of the Supreme Court and the defense minister. But they didn't show -- it remains unclear whether they hesitated at the last minute or only feigned interest -- leaving Figuera alone among senior officials to openly declare a shift in loyalty. He hasn't spoken to either Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez or Supreme Court President Maikel Moreno since his departure and says he longs to look each in the eyes and challenge him over his betrayal.Shortly after the failed attempt, he escaped to Colombia. In June, after fearing for his life there, Figuera flew to the U.S. where he spent days briefing U.S. officials.Guaido and his aides, who have named officials in Caracas as well as ambassadors and advisers in Washington and elsewhere to serve as a rival government to Maduro's, seem unsure what to do with Figuera. Some have accompanied him to briefings and interviews but he hasn't been integrated into the group.Carlos Vecchio, the Guaido ambassador to Washington, said in an interview that Figuera's role is to provide evidence against Maduro. The interim government isn't offering him any support in the US.Figuera was until three months ago one of Maduro's most trusted lieutenants, attending key meetings and helping him consolidate power. In March of last year, he said in the interview, Maduro sent him to the Dominican Republic to meet an official of the Central Intelligence Agency to negotiate an end to the U.S. economic embargo, suspend sanctions and open a channel of communication. The Americans had different ideas. They wanted Maduro to step down, release an American from prison and permit new elections. The effort went nowhere.Illicit GainsFiguera said that up close, he realized that the president is seeking personal enrichment and totalitarian control. He said the president's 29-year-old son, Nicolas Maduro Guerra, has created a gold trading monopoly involving businessmen Eduardo Rivas and Alex Saab. When Figuera tried to launch an investigation into the gold trade, Vice President Rodriguez told him to back off, he said. Saab, a Colombian citizen, was indicted July 25 on U.S. money laundering charges, accused of funneling hundreds of millions of dollars to overseas accounts. Figuera also named Industry Minister Tareck el Aissami as the coordinator of international gold sales. Aissami was sanctioned by the U.S. in 2017.Maduro Guerra declined to comment in an email response; Rodriguez didn't respond to a request for comment, nor did the Information Ministry.In recent months, Figuera began discussing with select colleagues how to edge Maduro out of power. They talked about setting up a South African-style reconciliation commission and a reformed political order. A number of top officials took part in the planning, he said, but declined to name them out of concern for their safety. Figuera said he is also part of an effort to document Maduro's misdeeds and present the evidence to international tribunals of justice.He said the Cuban protective force around Maduro has increased markedly in recent weeks to some 200 agents from around 20. The U.S. and much of the West have sought to isolate Maduro, especially after his re-election last year in a race widely condemned as rigged and illegitimate, and get him replaced by Guaido. But Cuba, Russia, China, Turkey and Iran remain allies helping the regime stay in power, Figuera said.He dismissed the recent negotiations between the government and opposition in Norway, now in Barbados, as useless unless Maduro agrees to step down. Otherwise, he said, the president will try to use the talks to buy time and reduce sanctions, which are hurting."What's going on in Venezuela?" he said when asked to sum things up. "Well, it's being destroyed."\--With assistance from Fabiola Zerpa and Matthew Bristow.To contact the reporters on this story: Jose Enrique Arrioja in New York at jarrioja@bloomberg.net;Ethan Bronner in New York at ebronner@bloomberg.netTo contact the editor responsible for this story: Daniel Cancel at dcancel@bloomberg.netFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| The 1 Thing the U.S. Marines Could Teach U.S. Navy SEALs Posted: 29 Jul 2019 04:25 AM PDT  Two services. Two incidents involving service members accused of serious misconduct. Two vastly different approaches to openness and transparency.When U.S. Special Operations Command announced on Wednesday that a SEAL platoon was being sent home early from Iraq because their commander has lost confidence in them, U.S. military officials did not mention that one of the SEALs had been accused of sexually assaulting a female service member. That was first revealed by New York Times reporter David Phillips about 24 hours later.San Diego-based attorney Jeremiah Sullivan confirmed to Task & Purpose that he represents a member of Foxtrot Platoon SEAL Team 7 who is being investigated for sexual assault but has not been charged.In contrast: The Marine Corps issued a detailed news release on Thursday about 16 Marines at Camp Pendleton, California, who were arrested on allegations of taking part in human smuggling. 1st Marine Division spokeswoman Maj. Kendra Motz also immediately knocked down a false rumor that the division had held a bogus awards ceremony so that NCIS could nab the Marines.Bravo Zulu to the Marines for providing timely and accurate information. They understand that hiding bad news does not make it go away and let the facts come out in drips and drabs undermine your credibility.
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| Authorities have arrested a woman they call the 'Pink Lady Bandit' in connection with 4 bank robberies across the East Coast in 6 days Posted: 30 Jul 2019 09:01 AM PDT  Authorities have arrested Circe Baez, 35, accusing her of robbing four banks in six days, occasionally while carrying a "distinctive" pink handbag.
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| Sony’s making a silent, wearable air conditioner that will launch next year Posted: 29 Jul 2019 08:05 PM PDT  Global temperatures have been rising to new all-time highs this year, a fact that no one who's suffered through the heatwave that's blanketed the US in recent weeks probably needs to be reminded of. Which makes a new product Sony is working on particularly enticing: The consumer electronics giant, no joke, launched a successful crowdfunding campaign to raise funds for what would be an actual wearable air conditioner that slips on the back of a shirt and promises to keep you cool.Sony is calling the device the Reon Pocket, and it's touting the ability for the app-controlled device to lower the temperature on your back from 97F to 73F. The app would be controlled via Bluetooth, and Sony is reportedly pricing this at a very affordable US equivalent to $117.There are, to be sure, a couple of pretty big downsides. One is battery life. The device, which Sony plans to launch first in Japan, would have a battery that lasts less than two hours. Even worse than that -- if you're hoping for relief from the current hot weather, the Reon Pocket won't help you out anytime soon, as it's not coming until 2020.The release date we're hearing right now is March 2020, which will certainly be great if you're planning to, you know, attend the Tokyo 2020 summer Olympics.All that said, this device definitely sounds promising, and we can envision so many people this could benefit. Imagine, for example, having a cooling device on your back that's working to make sure you still look polished on a hot day that helps you avoid sweating like crazy when you're in a suit and headed to a business meeting.As we mentioned above, Sony successfully crowdfunded the product through the company's First Flight program which tries to gin up demand for products to give them a better chance at viability.
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| 'A lot of yelling': President Donald Trump had a contentious meeting with airline CEOs, report says Posted: 30 Jul 2019 08:57 AM PDT  President Donald Trump reportedly met with U.S. airline CEOs who were looking for support in their complaints against foreign airlines.
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| Gang database made up mostly of young black, Latino men Posted: 30 Jul 2019 10:21 AM PDT  Boston police are tracking nearly 5,000 people — almost all of them young black and Latino men — through a secretive gang database, newly released data from the department shows. Black people comprise about 25% of all Boston residents, Latinos about 20% and white people more than 50%. The racial disparity is "stark and troublesome," said Adriana Lafaille, a lawyer for the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts, which, along with other civil rights groups, sued the department in state court in November to shed light into who is listed on the database and how the information is used.
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| Heeeere's Joe Biden: Today's Toon Posted: 30 Jul 2019 12:24 PM PDT  Want to keep up with USA TODAY's editorial cartoons? Bookmark this page. We'll update it frequently.
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| Nicaragua grants citizenship to embattled ex-Salvadoran president Posted: 30 Jul 2019 11:55 AM PDT  Former Salvadoran president Mauricio Funes has been granted Nicaraguan citizenship, according to a decree published on Tuesday in the Nicaraguan government registry, likely hobbling El Salvador's efforts to bring him home to face charges of embezzlement and money laundering. Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele, who began his term in June, vowed to bring Funes back to the country within his first 90 days in office. Funes, who governed El Salvador between 2009 and 2014, is accused of embezzlement and money laundering involving $351 million, Salvadoran prosecutors have said.
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| Hong Kong protesters clash with police as 44 activists charged with rioting Posted: 30 Jul 2019 05:11 PM PDT  Hundreds of people surrounded a police station in Hong Kong on Tuesday chanting "free the martyrs" after 44 activists were charged with rioting following weekend clashes between protesters and police defending China's representative office. It was the first time the rioting charge has been used during protests which erupted over an extradition bill that would have allowed people in Hong Kong to be sent to mainland China for trial. Another man was charged with possession of an offensive weapon. Police fired tear gas and rubber bullets on Sunday as they sought to defend China's main representative office from protesters who set up road blocks and hurled bricks and sticks. What started three months ago as rallies against the extradition bill, has evolved into a wider backlash against the city's government and its political masters in Beijing. The near daily protests have disrupted business, piled pressure on the city's government and stretched its police force, which some have accused of using excessive force. A police officer points a gun towards anti-extradition bill protesters who surrounded a police station where detained protesters are being held during clashes in Hong Kong Credit: Reuters Hundreds of protesters gathered at the Kwai Chung police station where some of the activists were to be freed on bail. Clashes broke out between the protesters and police. One officer brandished a gun to ward off the crowd. Rioting carries a maximum ten year jail term in Hong Kong. Activists say they have done nothing wrong and are only seeking justice. In the driving rain, many chanted "Liberate Hong Kong," and "Revolution of our time". Besides calling for the extradition bill to be scrapped, rather than its suspension so far, protesters have also demanded the resignation of city leader Carrie Lam, an independent inquiry into the police's handling of the crisis and the unconditional release of all those arrested. Some of the activists are due to appear in court on Wednesday. Earlier in the day, protesters blocked train services during the morning rush hour. "We don't know how long we are going to stay here, we don't have a leader, as you can see this is a mass movement now," said Sharon, a 21-year-old masked protester who declined to give her full name. "It's not our intention to inconvenience people, but we have to make the authorities understand why we protest. We will continue with this as long as needed." Activists blocked train doors, playing havoc with services Credit: RITCHIE B TONGO/EPA By mid-morning, commuters were crammed into stations across the city, waiting to board trains that were delayed, with no service on some lines. Hong Kong, which returned from British to Chinese rule in 1997, is embroiled in its worst political crisis for decades as the increasingly violent protests pose one of the gravest populist challenges to Communist Party rulers in Beijing. China on Monday reiterated its support for Hong Kong's embattled leader Carrie Lam and its police and urged Hong Kong's people to oppose violence. Lam's popularity has dropped to a record low, according to a survey by the independent Public Opinion Research Institute released on Tuesday. The survey, conducted between July 17 and July 19, showed Lam scored a rating of 30.1, down from 33.4 at the beginning of the month. Her approval rate stands at 21%, while her disapproval rate is 70%. Over the last few years, many people in Hong Kong have become concerned about the whittling away of the city's freedoms, guaranteed under a "one country, two systems" formula established when it returned to China in 1997. China denies interfering and has said the protests are an "undisguised challenge" to the formula under which the city is ruled, and risked damaging its economy.
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| Medicare for All: Here's What Unions Think About It Posted: 30 Jul 2019 06:18 AM PDT  History tells us that the support of organized labor is critical to any major health care reform in the United States.Unions represent 1 in 10 U.S. workers, making it one of the largest institutions nationwide. So what does that mean for "Medicare for All," a policy that moves everyone into one public plan with no premiums or deductibles?Everyone agrees universal health care coverage is the goal, but not everyone agrees Medicare for All is the only or best way to get there — an interesting distinction.The largest union for registered nurses, National Nurses United (NNU) — with its more than 150,000 members nationwide — has been leading the campaign for Medicare for All, and praised legislation put forward by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA). Going door-to-door, unionized nurses have been selling Medicare for All to the public."There is widespread and unprecedented support from unions for Medicare for All. In fact, unions representing a majority of union workers in the United States — over 9 million workers — have endorsed these bills," a representative from NNU said in a statement to ThinkProgress. "We are at historic levels of labor support for this legislation, a fact of which we are extremely proud."
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| Lighthizer Says Vietnam Must Cut Its Trade Surplus With U.S. Posted: 29 Jul 2019 08:04 PM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- Terms of Trade is a daily newsletter that untangles a world embroiled in trade wars. Sign up here. Vietnam must take steps to cut its trade surplus with the U.S., Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said in comments released Monday, as the Trump administration ramps up pressure on the Southeast Asian country.The U.S. has a growing trade shortfall with Vietnam, and the government "has been clear with Vietnam that it has to take action to reduce the unsustainable trade deficit," Lighthizer said in written responses to the U.S. Senate Finance Committee. Measures Vietnam should take include "expanding its imports of goods from the United States and by resolving market access restrictions related to goods, services, agricultural products, and intellectual property," he said.Vietnam increasingly is being targeted by the Trump administration over a swelling trade surplus with the U.S., one of its biggest trade markets. Vietnam's annual trade surplus with the U.S. has exceeded $20 billion since 2014 and reached $40 billion last year, the highest in records going back to 1990, according to U.S. Census Bureau data. For the first five months of the year, the surplus is already 43% higher than a year ago at $21.6 billion.In May, the U.S. Treasury added Vietnam to a watchlist of countries being monitored for possible currency manipulation. President Donald Trump described Vietnam as "almost the single-worst abuser of everybody" when asked in June if he wanted to impose tariffs on the nation.Lighthizer also criticized Vietnam for a "host of unfair trade barriers" U.S. businesses face in Vietnam.Vietnam's Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Lighthizer, who was answering a question from Senator Mark Warner (D-Va.), testified before the committee June 18. Answers to additional questions from committee members were submitted in writing Monday.Warner asked if Lighthizer agreed with Trump that Vietnam has taken more advantage of the U.S. than China."I'm concerned that the administration is pursuing an ad hoc trade strategy that has the effect of isolating regional partners," Warner said.(Updates with Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 6th paragraph.)\--With assistance from Jenny Leonard.To contact the reporters on this story: John Boudreau in Hanoi at jboudreau3@bloomberg.net;Michelle Jamrisko in Singapore at mjamrisko@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Nasreen Seria at nseria@bloomberg.net, Michael S. ArnoldFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Ex-Tehran mayor sentenced to death over wife's murder Posted: 29 Jul 2019 05:03 PM PDT  Former Tehran mayor Mohammad Ali Najafi was sentenced to death after being convicted of murdering his wife, the judiciary said Tuesday, after a high-profile case that received extensive media coverage. A prominent reformist, Najafi was found guilty of shooting dead his second wife Mitra Ostad at their home in the capital on May 28, said Iran's judiciary spokesman Gholamhossein Esmaili. According to Iranian media reports, her body was found in a bathtub after Najafi, 67, turned himself in and confessed to killing her.
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| Mom of Twin Babies Who Died in Hot Car Says She`s `Completely Devastated,` Still Loves Her Husband Posted: 29 Jul 2019 04:03 PM PDT  The mother of one-year-old twins who died after their father left them in a car parked in the Bronx is defending her husband in a new statement.
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| Twitter Suspends Conspiracy Account After Trump Retweet Posted: 30 Jul 2019 03:06 PM PDT  Photo Illustration by The Daily Beast/GettyTwitter has suspended a conspiracy-peddling account amplified by President Donald Trump, The Daily Beast has confirmed. Trump retweeted the account, which used the display name "LYNN THOMAS" and the handle @LYNNTHO06607841, on Tuesday afternoon. By early Tuesday evening, the account had been suspended. A source familiar with the matter told The Daily Beast that the account was suspended for violating the Twitter rule that bars users from using multiple accounts to artificially amplify or disrupt conversations. The Tweet that Trump retweeted include a bold graphic saying, "DEMOCRATS ARE THE TRUE ENEMIES OF AMERICA!" Its emoji-laden text read, "DEMOCRATS ARE THE ONLY ONES INTERFERING IN OUR ELECTIONS. WHY DO YOU THINK THEY SO STRONGLY OPPOSE VOTER ID?"TwitterBefore the suspension, the account enthusiastically pushed Qanon conspiracy memes and bizarre theories about prominent Democrats murdering children to harvest their pineal glands. One such meme targeted Bill and Hillary Clinton, claiming they "torture and sacrifice children" to get at "a drug that can only be found inside the human skull." That was posted last Thursday—five days before the current president graced the account with a retweet. Twitter has long wrestled with how to enforce its rules in the Trump era. Trump spent the weekend lambasting Rep. Elijah Cummings, who is African American, and his congressional district, which is 53 percent black. The tweets–including a missive saying "no human being would want to live there"–drew widespread condemnation as racist and horrible. But though Twitter recently announced it will affix warning labels to tweets from public figures that violate its rules, it didn't use that option on Trump's tweets about Cummings. The president has long shown a penchant for retweeting eye-popping material. In December 2017, he retweeted a picture of a blood-spattered CNN logo. Earlier that year, he retweeted a picture of a train killing a person labeled "CNN." He has also increasingly taken to retweeting dozens of accounts, as he did in March and again in May of this year. 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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| Strengthening Tropical Storm Erick forecast to approach Hawaii by week's end Posted: 29 Jul 2019 01:39 PM PDT  Tropical Storm Erick is gaining strength in the eastern Pacific Ocean and is forecast to approach Hawaii by the weekend, forecasters announced Monday.
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| UPDATE 1-South Korea seeks $350 mln trade sanctions against U.S. Posted: 30 Jul 2019 08:07 AM PDT ![UPDATE 1-South Korea seeks $350 mln trade sanctions against U.S.]( "UPDATE 1-South Korea seeks $350 mln trade sanctions against U.S.") South Korea is seeking an annual $350 million in trade sanctions against the United States in an Obama-era dispute over tariffs on steel pipes, it said in a World Trade Organization (WTO) filing published on Tuesday. South Korea went to the WTO in 2014 to challenge U.S. tariffs levied on oil country tubular goods (OCTG), a type of steel piping used in the energy industry. Washington said its tariffs aimed to stop South Korea exporting the product at unfairly cheap prices.
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