Author: Sunfire

Mail.com

BEIJING (AP) — China has urged the United States and North Korea to “hit the brakes” on threatening words and work toward a peaceful resolution of their tense standoff created by Pyongyang’s recent missile tests and threats to fire them toward Guam.

The dispute has also raised fears in South Korea, where a conservative political party on Wednesday called for the United States to bring back tactical nuclear weapons to the Korean Peninsula. In a sign of growing concern on the part of Pyongyang’s only major ally, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said in a phone conversation with his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, that the two countries should work together to contain tensions and permit no one to “stir up an incident on their doorstep,” according to a statement posted on the Chinese foreign ministry’s website.   Continue reading “China urges US, North Korea to ‘hit the brakes’ on threats”

RT

The family of Alex Henry, who is serving a 19-year prison sentence for murder despite never touching the weapon used, say they will not stop fighting for justice after an appeal based on his autism was rejected.

In March 2014, Henry, then 20, was convicted of murder under the joint enterprise law after his friend, Cameron Ferguson, then 19, fatally stabbed Taqui Khezihi, 21, in West Ealing, London.

Ferguson pleaded guilty to murder and was jailed for 22 years. Henry was found guilty by association after it was argued he could have “foreseen” the knife could be used to cause death or harm. Henry maintains he did not know Ferguson had a knife.   Continue reading “Autistic man serving life for murder despite never touching weapon has appeal rejected”

Mail.com

FREETOWN, Sierra Leone (AP) — The death toll from massive mudslides in Sierra Leone’s capital was certain to rise Tuesday as bodies washed up on a beach and workers searched for an untold number of people buried in their homes. The Red Cross estimated that 600 people were still missing.

Authorities have said more than 300 people were killed in and around Freetown on Monday following heavy rains. Many were trapped under tons of mud as they slept. The Connaught Hospital mortuary in central Freetown was overwhelmed on Tuesday with more than 300 bodies, many spread on the floor.   Continue reading “At least 600 missing in deadly Sierra Leone mudslides”

Mail.com

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) — The driver charged with killing a woman at a white nationalist rally in Virginia was previously accused of beating his mother and threatening her with a knife, according to police records.

Samantha Bloom, who is disabled and uses a wheelchair, repeatedly called police about her son, James Alex Fields Jr., in 2010 and 2011, telling officers he was on medication to control his temper, transcripts from 911 calls released by the Florence Police Department in Kentucky show.   Continue reading “Mom called police over threatening acts by Virginia driver”

Mail.com

WASHINGTON (AP) — Fallout from President Donald Trump’s reaction to violent, racial clashes in Virginia over the weekend continued in the business community with another resignation from a federal panel of executives that was created to advise him.

Following the departure of chief executives for Merck, Under Armour and Intel, the president of the Alliance for American Manufacturing stepped down Tuesday. Scott Paul, in a tweet, said, “I’m resigning from the Manufacturing Jobs Initiative because it’s the right thing for me to do.”   Continue reading “When the Commander in Chief clashes with chief executives”

RT

China has announced a full ban on imports of coal, iron, and seafood, among other goods from North Korea, thus cutting key export revenues for Pyongyang.

Starting Tuesday, no more exports of North Korean coal, iron, iron ore, lead, lead ore and seafood will be accepted to the country, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce announced on Monday. Goods that have already reached Chinese ports and customs should be released not later than September 5.    Continue reading “Pyongyang’s main economic lifeline falls as China bans key imports from N. Korea”

Mail.com

NEW YORK (AP) — The CEO of the nation’s third largest pharmaceutical company resigned from a manufacturing council that advises President Donald Trump days after racially tinged clashes in Charlottesville, Virginia, citing “a responsibility to take a stand against intolerance and extremism.”

Trump, who is under increasing pressure to explicitly condemn the white supremacist and hate groups involved, lashed out almost immediately Monday at Merck CEO Kenneth Frazier on Twitter, saying that because of the resignation, the pharmaceutical executive “will have more time to LOWER RIPOFF DRUG PRICES!”   Continue reading “Exec resigns from president’s council, and Trump lashes out”

Mail.com

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (AP) — A Massachusetts police department is investigating a Facebook comment by an officer who wrote “Hahahaha love this” in response to a story about a car crashing into counter-protesters at a white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, killing one person and injuring at least 19 others.

Springfield Police Commissioner John Barbieri says he received a complaint about the comment Sunday and opened an internal investigation. Officer Conrad Lariviere wrote in response to the violence: “Hahahaha love this, maybe people shouldn’t block road ways.”  Continue reading “Officer on fatal Charlottesville crash: ‘Hahahaha love this’”

Mail.com

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) — The Latest on violent protesting in Virginia and related developments around the nation (all times local): 10:40 a.m. A judge has denied bond for an Ohio man accused of plowing his car into a crowd at a white nationalist rally.

Judge Robert Downer said during a bond hearing Monday he would appoint a lawyer for James Alex Fields Jr. Fields is charged with second-degree murder and other counts after authorities say he drove into the crowd, fatally injuring one woman and hurting 19 others.  Continue reading “The Latest: Bond denied for suspect in Virginia rally death”

RT

Japanese authorities are investigating the discovery of a suspected unexploded World War II-era bomb at the Fukushima nuclear plant, which went into meltdown in 2011.

The object was discovered by workers at the plant, Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) announced on Thursday.

According to Japanese news agency Jiji Press, the suspected device is 85cm (33in) in length and about 15cm (6in) wide.   Continue reading “‘Unexploded WWII bomb’ found at Fukushima disaster site”

Mail.com

WASHINGTON (AP) — Actions by the Trump administration are triggering double-digit premium increases on individual health insurance policies purchased by many people, according to a nonpartisan study. The analysis released Thursday by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that mixed signals from President Donald Trump have created uncertainty “far outside the norm” and led insurers to seek higher premium increases for 2018 than would otherwise have been the case.

Republicans in Congress have not delivered on their promise to repeal and replace the Obama-era Affordable Care Act. Trump is insisting that lawmakers try again and that the health overhaul is collapsing. At the same time, he’s threatened to stop billions of dollars in payments to insurers. Some Republicans are considering fallback measures to stabilize markets.   Continue reading “Study says Trump moves trigger health premium jumps for 2018”

RT

At least six French soldiers were injured, three of them seriously, when they were hit by a vehicle in a Paris suburb, the French armed forces said. The suspect was arrested hours after the incident on a motorway in northern France.   Continue reading “Vehicle rams into French soldiers in Paris suburb, 6 injured”

Mail.com

WASHINGTON (AP) — FBI agents have searched one of the homes of President Donald Trump’s former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, whose past foreign political work has been swept into the investigations into Russian interference in the 2016 election. A Manafort spokesman confirmed the search Wednesday.

Manafort spokesman Jason Maloni said in a statement that FBI agents had obtained a warrant and searched one of Manafort’s homes, but he would not say when the search occurred. The Washington Post, which first reported the raid, said agents working Special Counsel Robert Mueller conducted the search the morning of July 26 at Manafort’s home in Alexandria, Va.  Continue reading “FBI agents searched former Trump campaign chair’s home”

Mail.com

WASHINGTON (AP) — A British company hired to train Afghan intelligence officers billed the U.S. government for high-end cars, including Porsches and an Aston Martin, and paid the “significant others” of the firm’s top executives six-figure salaries even though there’s no proof they did any work, according to details of a Pentagon audit made public Wednesday.

Sen. Clarie McCaskill, D-Mo., said New Century Consulting also spent $42,000 on automatic weapons, using cash to get around a prohibition in the contract on purchasing the firearms, and showered other personnel with hefty pay and bonuses they hadn’t earned. Overall, the military contractor “left taxpayers on the hook for over $50 million in questionable costs,” McCaskill said in a statement.  Continue reading “Pentagon: British firm billed US over $50M for iffy expenses”

Mail.com

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A man charged in the shooting death of a western Missouri police officer has been arrested after an alert driver provided a tip that the fugitive was wandering within miles of where the killing took place, a law enforcement official said.

The driver reported seeing Ian McCarthy walking along a state highway near Bucksaw Marina, just east of Clinton, and he was arrested without incident late Tuesday, Sgt. Bill Lowe of the Missouri Highway Patrol said at a news conference later that night.  Continue reading “Tip leads to arrest of suspect in Missouri officer’s death”

RT

US President Donald Trump has complained of “voter fraud” time and again, prompting critics to accuse him of paranoia. However, 11 California counties have more registered voters than eligible voters, according to a new report.

The discrepancies were found by Judicial Watch, a conservative foundation which says it fights for accountability and integrity in law, politics, and government.

The watchdog analyzed data from the US Census Bureau’s American Community Survey and the most recent California total active and total inactive voter registration records.   Continue reading “11 California counties have more registered voters than eligible ones – report”

Mail.com

AVINGER, Texas (AP) — A third Boy Scout has died from injuries suffered when a sailboat struck an overhanging power line on a lake east of Dallas, an official with Texas Parks & Wildlife said. The 11-year-old Scout died Monday at a hospital in Shreveport, Louisiana, Texas Parks & Wildlife spokesman Steve Lightfoot said.

The boy was sailing in a catamaran Saturday with two older boys, one 17 and the other 16, when it struck the power line at Lake O’The Pines near Avinger, 150 miles (241 kilometers) from Dallas. Daniel Anderson, chief operating officer for the East Texas Boy Scouts of America, said a Scout leader reached the boat within minutes but the two older boys were already dead. The oldest teen was found in the boat while the other two fell into the water.  Continue reading “3rd Boy Scout dies after sailboat strikes power line on lake”

Mail.com

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — Six inmates snatched keys from three correctional officers at a maximum security prison in Arkansas on Monday and held the officers in an area of the facility for about three hours, the second major disturbance to occur at the penitentiary in less than a month.

The Arkansas Department of Correction said the inmates overpowered the officers and took the keys during recreation call at the Maximum Security Unit in Tucker, 30 miles (48 kilometers) southeast of Little Rock. The three officers were later released with scrapes, bruises and other minor injuries, while an inmate who was not involved in the initial disturbance was taken to a hospital. Shortly after the last officer was released, corrections department spokesman Solomon Graves said the inmates surrendered and the prison began returning to normal operations.   Continue reading “Arkansas inmates snatch keys, take control of part of prison”

Mail.com

WASHINGTON (AP) — Shuttling across the country aboard Air Force Two, Vice President Mike Pence has been a loyal messenger for President Donald Trump. At the same time, he has been carving out his own political identity as the steady understudy to a mercurial president.

The Republican vice president has raised more than $1 million in recent months for his political committee, headlined GOP events in such key states as Iowa and Ohio, and hosted Republican VIPs for dinner at his formal residence in Washington. Pence is also preparing to take his fourth overseas trip in the last six months, a schedule that has removed him from the Trump White House’s daily palace intrigue and the special counsel’s investigation into the Trump administration’s ties with Russia.   Continue reading “On behalf of Trump, Pence carves his own political ID”