Category Archives: US News

Senior US official: Saudi version of Khashoggi murder ‘not credible’

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Comments come as the US secretary of state embarks on a tour of Arab capitals

The US does not believe the official Saudi version of the murder of the Washington Post columnist and dissident Jamal Khashoggi is credible, a senior administration official has said.

The official was speaking to the press before the secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, embarks next week on an tour of eight Arab capitals, seeking to shore up support for US policy, and to reassure allies that the US is not abandoning the region despite Donald Trump’s order for the withdrawal of American troops from Syria.

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Ex-Credit Suisse bankers arrested in $2bn fraud investigation

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Trio arrested in London on US charges as calls grow for debt claim against Mozambique to be dropped

Three former Credit Suisse bankers have been arrested in London on US charges of alleged involvement in a fraud involving $2bn (£1.6bn) in loans to state-owned companies in Mozambique.

Mozambique’s former finance minister, Manuel Chang, and a senior executive from the shipbuilder Privinvest Group, Jean Boustani, have also been arrested in South Africa and New York, respectively, in recent days.

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‘Immoral’: Nancy Pelosi on Trump’s border wall – video

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Nancy Pelosi, the newly elected House speaker, insisted Trump's border wall would not receive funding as the partial US government shutdown hit the two-week mark on Friday. Pelosi described the wall as 'an old way of thinking, it isn't cost effective'

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Half of people who think they have a food allergy do not – study

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US study finds some people needlessly avoid foods while others do not have life-saving medication

The number of adults who think they have a food allergy is almost double the figure who actually have one, research has revealed.

While the study was conducted in the US, experts say a similar situation is also seen in other countries, including the UK. The researchers found that many people with an allergy do not have a prescription for potentially life-saving medication, while others might be avoiding foods unnecessarily.

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‘Congresswomen dance too’: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez hits back with new video

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The youngest US Congresswoman in history posts a video of herself dancing to Edwin Starr’s War outside her office after an attempt to humiliate her on Twitter backfired, instead prompting an outpouring of support. 'I hear the GOP thinks women dancing are scandalous,' she wrote on Twitter 'Wait till they find out Congresswomen dance too!' However, the original video was posted by a Twitter user called AnonymousQ who does not necessarily represent the Republican party 

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Democrats reclaim power as Nancy Pelosi elected House speaker

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House tests new power by passing bills to end the government shutdown, but legislation is unlikely to break impasse

Democrats reclaimed power in the House on Thursday and officially elected Nancy Pelosi to be the next speaker, returning her to a position for which she made history as the first woman elected to the office.

The California Democrat earned 220 votes from a total of 430 members present, while Kevin McCarthy, the Republican leader, won 192.

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‘I love this’: bid to discredit Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez with college dance video backfires

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Effort to embarrass freshly sworn-in Congresswoman fails after footage endears her to wide audience

An attempt to humiliate Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez as she was sworn in as the youngest ever US Congresswoman has backfired impressively, prompting a huge outpouring of support for her.

A 30-second video was posted by a Twitter user called AnonymousQ, showing Ocasio-Cortez dancing on the roof of a building while in college.

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Ex-US marine accused of spying in Russia is British citizen

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Paul Whelan revealed to be dual national after being arrested in Moscow for ‘act of espionage’

The former US marine who is being held in Moscow on charges of spying is a British citizen, it has emerged.

Paul Whelan, who is thought to be facing 20 years in a Russian prison if convicted, was initially thought to be American, but was revealed to be a dual national on Thursday evening. The UK Foreign Office said: “Our staff have requested consular access to a British man detained in Russia after receiving a request for assistance from him.”

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‘L-mageddon’ averted as New York calls off shutdown of subway line

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Fifteen-month shutdown of subway tunnel between Manhattan and Brooklyn canceled after Andrew Cuomo announces new plan

Nearly a quarter million New Yorkers who for years dreaded “L-mageddon”, a planned 15-month shutdown of a key subway tunnel between Manhattan and Brooklyn, got a last-minute reprieve Thursday with a new plan that will allow repairs to go on during nights and weekends and the trains to keep running.

The New York governor, Andrew Cuomo, made the surprise announcement just weeks after convening a panel of top engineering experts to take another look at the L train tunnel beneath the East river to see if there was a way to fix flood damage from 2012’s Superstorm Sandy without doing as much demolition and disrupting so many lives. Turns out there was.

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‘Transparency will be the order of the day’: Nancy Pelosi elected House speaker – video

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Democrats reclaimed power in the House of Representatives on Thursday and officially elected Nancy Pelosi as the next speaker. Pelosi, who had previously served as speaker from 2007-2011, became the first former speaker to win re-election since Sam Rayburn in 1955

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Donald Trump has a point – the world should start solving its own problems | Simon Jenkins

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For all his antics on the Mexican border, the US president is right to be withdrawing troops from Syria

For a Briton to spend time in the US just now is a blessed relief. Whole days pass, and no talk of Brexit. It is as if a pall has lifted from the art of conversation. But the US has its own deep divide, slashing through the populist body politic. It is Donald Trump and “America first”.

Trump has become a phenomenon. Like Samson in the temple, he seems able to topple the entire edifice of policy. Down crashes America’s government machine for the sake of a wall, world trade is devastated, stock markets plummet, alliances lie in ruins. It is astonishing what one man can do to the world, virtually alone.

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Trump blames shutdown on 2020 election despite claiming he would take responsibility – live

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Donald Trump tweeted an image mocking Senator Elizabeth Warren’s campaign for president.

It features the slogan “Warren: 1/2020th,” an apparent reference to the much-derided DNA test the Massachusetts Democrat took finding she had a small fraction of Native American heritage.

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Sen. Dianne Feinstein says former Vice President Joe Biden is her top pick for a 2020 Democratic presidential candidate.

“I’ve watched him as vice president, I’ve seen him operate, I’ve seen him perform,” the California Democrat told Politico. “He brings a level of experience and seniority which I think is really important.”

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iPhone slump: the rivals taking a bite out of Apple

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As firm’s stock falls over sales warnings, it has competition in bid to be the best smartphone

As Apple’s shares tumble after its cut in forecasts, the company is laying the blame squarely on the economic slowdown in China. But that is only part of the problem.

Never before has Apple faced such fierce competition from a multitude of rivals from around the globe, all vying for a slice of the lucrative premium smartphone market. Matching or exceeding Apple’s iPhone on hardware quality, these phones are arguably more capable, often cheaper and, perhaps crucially for China, made by local firms, not only those from the US and South Korea.

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Saudi prosecutors seek death penalty for Khashoggi suspects

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Eleven suspects attend first court hearing following killing of journalist

A Saudi prosecutor has asked for the death penalty for five of 11 suspects held over the murder of Jamal Khashoggi at the country’s consulate in Istanbul on 2 October, the state news agency SPA reported on Thursday.

The call came during the first court hearing in the Khashoggi case, which has shredded the kingdom’s international reputation and strained its relations with Turkey, the US and many other western governments.

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Apple’s shock profit warning sends Wall Street shares sliding

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Firms with exposure to China hit over fears the Silicon Valley giant’s slowdown could spread

Apple’s shock downgrade has sent shares in European and US-listed companies with exposure to China – from Burberry and the Gucci owner, Kering, to chipmakers and miners – tumbling over fears the slowdown that has hit the Silicon Valley giant is set to spread.

In New York the Dow Industrial Average fell over 2% in morning trading and all the major markets suffered sharp losses as investors reacted to the Apple news, reports of a slowdown in US factory activity and an ongoing government shutdown over the funding of Donald Trump’s proposed border wall with Mexico.

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Teen’s round-the-world yacht Wild Eyes found floating eight years after boat abandoned

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Yacht spotted near Kangaroo Island off South Australian coast after being abandoned by 16-year-old sailor Abby Sunderland in 2010

Eight and a half years after it was abandoned in the middle of the Indian Ocean when 16-year-old solo sailor Abby Sunderland had to be rescued in rough seas, a yellow yacht named Wild Eyes has been found floating upside down off the coast of South Australia.

The 40-foot yacht was encrusted with barnacles, the signature eyes on the hull scratched and faded. Its mast snapped off in the wild weather that forced Sunderland’s rescue midway through her world record attempt to be the youngest solo sailor to circumnavigate the globe in 2010.

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Trump and top lawmakers fail to resolve shutdown after meeting

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Nancy Pelosi said Democrats will still vote on Thursday despite impasse at ‘border security briefing’

Donald Trump and top congressional leaders failed to resolve a partial government shutdown that has stretched well into a second week as the president refused to back off from his demands for billions of dollars for a long-promised wall along the southern US border with Mexico.

Related: Mitt Romney: Trump's biggest failure is a lack of character in leading 'divided' nation

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Parkland commission recommends teachers be allowed to carry guns

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Commission unanimously approved 446-page report containing the proposed policy and other changes to ‘harden’ schools

The commission investigating the high school massacre in Parkland, Florida has included a recommendation in its preliminary report that classroom teachers who volunteer and undergo training should be allowed to carry guns in school.

Related: Parkland parents channel their grief at children's deaths into advocacy

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