Category Archives: US News

Marjorie Taylor Greene accused of lying in hearing in Capitol attack case

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Lawyers for groups challenging Republican say text Greene sent to Meadows, released by House panel, shows she lied in testimony

Lawyers for voters seeking to bar the far-right Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene from Congress over her support for the January 6 insurrection have accused her of lying in a hearing in the case.

In a filing Friday, lawyers for groups challenging Greene said a text from the Georgia congresswoman to then White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, released by the House committee investigating January 6, shows she lied in testimony.

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Colorado inmate becomes first person in US to test positive for bird flu

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Infection comes amid worst outbreak of the virus in seven years but CDC says health risk to general public remains low

An inmate in Colorado has become the first human in the US to test positive for the H5N1 strain of bird flu, amid the worst outbreak of the virus in seven years and a cull of millions of poultry in dozens of states.

The unnamed prisoner contracted the infection during a work release assignment at a farm in Montrose county where workers were euthanising an infected flock, the Colorado department of public health and environment said.

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Homes ‘completely blown away’ as tornado rips through Kansas

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Thousands are without power after a suspected twister tore through parts of the state on Friday evening

A suspected tornado that barrelled through parts of Kansas damaged multiple buildings, injured several people and left more than 6,500 people without power, officials said.

Officials said the suspected twister moved though parts of south-east Wichita and Andover on Friday evening. Andover fire chief, Chad Russell, said during a news conference on Saturday morning that 50 to 100 buildings were damaged in Sedgwick County, though it was not immediately known how many buildings were damaged in Andover.

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Plan for direct UK rule of British Virgin Islands opposed by acting premier

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UK dispatches minister after ex-leader charged with drug offences and inquiry finds serious governance issues

The Foreign Office is risking a political backlash on the British Virgin Islands if it goes ahead with plans recommended by an independent commission of inquiry to impose a form of direct rule on the islands from London after allegations of maladministration and corruption.

Natalio Wheatley, the acting BVI premier elevated to the office after the former premier Andrew Fahie, 51, was arrested on drug running charges in Miami on Thursday, said he opposed the plan for direct rule for two years, with the British appointed governor taking charge and being advised by a council of local politicians.

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Theatres need more plus-sized black actors, says Broadway and West End star

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Marisha Wallace wants to inspire young girls and call out lack of diversity as she takes on role in Oklahoma!

A professional career in theatre was not always on the cards for Marisha Wallace. The Broadway and West End star, who was born and raised on a pig farm in North Carolina, rarely saw people that looked like her on stage.

As she takes on the coveted role of Ado Annie in the revival of Oklahoma! at London’s Young Vic theatre, Wallace is on a singular mission to call out the lack of plus-sized black actors on stage and to inspire young girls just like her.

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Los Angeles mortuary owner left bodies to rot in ‘sad and shocking’ case

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Mark B Allen faces 22 counts of misdemeanor for mistreating remains of 11 people, including infants

A Los Angeles funeral home owner illegally left the remains of 11 people, including infants, in stages of decay and mummification and faces more than a decade in jail, prosecutors said Friday.

Authorities opened an investigation into the Mark B Allen Mortuary and Cremations Services Inc., after receiving complaints from families. The mortuary, owned by Mark B Allen, is now closed and phone numbers listed for the business were disconnected.

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Judge denies Ghislaine Maxwell’s motion to overturn sex trafficking conviction

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US judge rules on socialite’s conviction for role in helping Jeffrey Epstein traffic teenage girls

A US judge on Friday denied a motion by Ghislaine Maxwell to overturn her December 2021 conviction on sex trafficking charges for her role in helping the late financier Jeffrey Epstein sexually abuse teenage girls.

More details soon …

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Trump claims he doesn’t have documents New York attorney general is seeking – as it happened

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Nancy Pelosi says the House will vote to pass Joe Biden’s $33bn request for aid for Ukraine “as soon as possible.”

Speaking at her weekly press briefing on Friday morning, the House speaker framed the administration’s request as one of a number of “emergencies” Congress needed to address urgently.

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Trump mocked for fearing protesters would throw ‘dangerous’ fruit at him

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Late-night talkshow hosts juice former president’s testimony to attorneys representing a group of protesters suing over 2015 rally

Donald Trump has been mocked for fearing protesters would throw “dangerous” fruit at him, with late-night talkshow host Trevor Noah calling it “one of the most crazy defenses I’ve ever heard”.

The revelation came during the former president’s testimony to attorneys representing a group of protesters suing over their violent removal from a Trump campaign rally in 2015.

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Judge denies Trump’s request to end contempt order and $10,000-a-day fine

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New York judge said there was no evidence Trump had conducted a thorough search for the records sought by attorney general

A New York judge on Friday denied a request from Donald Trump’s lawyer to end a contempt-of-court finding against the former US president and kept in place $10,000-a-day fine over his failure to comply with a subpoena issued by the state attorney general investigating the business practices of Trump’s family company, the Trump Organization.

Justice Arthur Engoron in New York state court in Manhattan said he was not satisfied with an affidavit provided by Trump and said there was no evidence Trump had conducted a thorough search for the records sought by New York’s attorney general, Letitia James.

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British-born Islamic State member receives life sentence in US trial

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Alexanda Kotey of the so-called ‘Beatles’ terror cell given a life sentence for each of the eight counts he pleaded guilty to

A member of an Islamic State group that beheaded western hostages in Iraq and Syria, nicknamed “the Beatles” for their British accents, has been sentenced to life in prison in the US.

Alexanda Kotey, 38, originally from Paddington, London, stood motionless as Judge Thomas Selby Ellis delivered his verdict at a district court in Alexandria, Virginia, while members of his victims’ families watched.

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Elon Musk sells $8.5bn-worth of Tesla shares after Twitter deal

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Carmaker’s shares fell this week over concerns CEO would offload stock to help fund takeover of platform

Elon Musk has sold $8.5bn (£6.8bn) worth of shares in Tesla as the world’s richest man raises cash after reaching a deal to buy Twitter.

The Tesla chief executive has committed $21bn of his own money to the funding package for acquiring the social media platform, which he agreed to buy for $44bn on Monday. Since then Musk has sold 9.6m Tesla shares, or about 5.6% of his stake in the business, according to filings with the US financial regulator.

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‘Head coach wants to play’: the US drug sting that led to BVI premier’s arrest

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Andrew Fahie is due in court on drug charges in Miami after arrest following months-long undercover operation

In mid-October, as Sir Gary Hickinbottom’s commission of inquiry into the government of the British Virgin Islands, led by the premier, Andrew Fahie, was taking laborious public oral evidence for a 44th day, a US Drug Enforcement Administration informant was, according to court papers, meeting some self-proclaimed Lebanese Hezbollah operatives on the BVI island of Tortola to discuss how to shift cocaine through the territory en route to Puerto Rico, Miami and New York.

Hickinbottom was taking mind-numbingly dull evidence on how to apply for BVI citizenship, and whether the process was open to manipulation.

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Panic at Israeli airport as US family packs unexploded bombshell for flight home

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Passengers scramble in Ben Gurion’s departure hall after tourists show ‘souvenir’ collected in Golan Heights

An American family set off a bomb scare at Israel’s main airport when they showed security inspectors an unexploded shell that they found while visiting the Golan Heights and had packed for their return trip, authorities said.

Video circulated on social media showed panicked passengers scattering at Ben Gurion Airport’s departure hall near Tel Aviv on Thursday.

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Loud boom and streaking fireball stirs panic in three US states

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The bolide, which disintegrated in Louisiana, was also reportedly spotted in Arkansas and Mississippi

A loud boom prefaced a streaking fireball spotted in three Southern states, scientists confirmed Thursday.

More than 30 people in Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi reported seeing the exceptionally bright meteor in the sky around 8am Wednesday after hearing loud booms in Claiborne county, Mississippi, and surrounding areas, Nasa reported. It was first spotted 54 miles (87 km) above the Mississippi River, near Alcorn, Mississippi, officials said.

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ACLU helped draft article at heart of Depp v Heard case for $3.5m donation, court hears

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American Civil Liberties Union’s general counsel testifies that at least $500,000 came from fund connected to Elon Musk

The ACLU helped Amber Heard draft the Washington Post article accusing Johnny Depp of abuse after the organization was promised a $3.5m donation from her divorce – though at least $500,000 of it eventually came from a fund connected to Tesla founder Elon Musk, jurors in the Depp-Heard defamation trial heard on Thursday.

The American Civil Liberties Union’s general counsel, Terence Dougherty, testified that the organization decided to propose Heard as an ambassador for the group after Heard pledged the sizeable donation over 10 years.

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Apple reports positive results despite shortages and economic fallout

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The tech giant saw nearly $3tn in profits despite challenges created by the Russia-Ukraine war and the global supply chain

Apple on Thursday reported strong quarterly results despite supply shortages, but warned that its growth slowdown is likely to deepen. The company said it’s still struggling to get enough chips to meet demand and is contending with Covid-related shutdowns at factories in China that make iPhones and other products.

Although initial results for the January-March period topped analysts’ projections, the good news was quickly eclipsed when management warned of trouble ahead during a conference call.

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Capitol attack panel set to issue letters to Kevin McCarthy and other key Republicans

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Marjorie Taylor Greene and Lauren Boebert among those poised to receive letters requesting voluntary cooperation, sources say

The House select committee investigating the January 6 attack on the Capitol is expected to issue letters requesting voluntary cooperation from House minority leader Kevin McCarthy and around a dozen other Republican members of Congress, according to two sources familiar with the matter.

The panel intends to issue a letter to McCarthy – the top House Republican – and is considering further letters to Scott Perry, Jim Jordan, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Mo Brooks, Lauren Boebert, Andy Biggs, as well as some Republican senators, the sources said.

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Biden asks Congress for $33bn Ukraine aid package

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President’s request includes over $20bn in military aid, $8.5bn in economic aid to Kyiv and $3bn in humanitarian relief

Joe Biden has called for a giant $33bn package of military and economic aid to Ukraine, more than doubling the level of US assistance to date, in an emphatic rejection of Russian threats of reprisals and escalation.

A few hours after Biden spoke, Kyiv was shaken by two powerful cruise missile strikes, while the UN secretary general, António Guterres, was visiting the Ukraine capital following a meeting with Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin.

More artillery and armored vehicles, as well as anti-tank missiles and anti-aircraft systems.

Help to build up Ukraine’s cyber warfare capabilities.

More intelligence sharing.

Support to increase Ukraine’s ability to produce munitions and strategic minerals.

Assistance in clearing landmines and other explosives and in Ukraine’s defence against chemical, biological and dirty bomb attacks.

A further buildup in the US military presence on Nato’s eastern flank.

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US FDA moves to ban menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars

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Effort to ‘help prevent children from becoming the next generation of smokers’ likely to face stiff opposition from big tobacco

The US Food and Drug Administration on Thursday issued a long-awaited proposal to ban menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars, a major victory for anti-smoking advocates but one that could dent sales at tobacco companies.

The proposal, which comes a year after the agency announced the plan, still needs to be finalized, and could take years to implement as it is likely to face stiff opposition from big tobacco.

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