Defense attorneys and prosecutors clashed on Tuesday over statements by Baltimore police officers charged in the death of a black man who died from an injury in police custody, an incident that triggered protests and rioting. Defense attorneys contended in the Baltimore City Circuit Court pretrial hearing that statements officers made to internal police department investigators probing the death of Freddie Gray are not admissible since they had not been
A coalition of Muslim groups can pursue a civil rights lawsuit that accuses New York City police of conducting secret surveillance of Muslims in New Jersey without suspicion of criminal activity, a U.S. appeals court ruled on Tuesday. The 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia reversed a lower court’s decision to throw out the case, finding the plaintiffs had legal standing to assert claims that the counter-terrorism program
The American Civil Liberties Union sued two psychologists who devised the CIA’s Bush-era interrogation program on Tuesday, saying they encouraged the agency “to adopt torture as official policy” and made millions of dollars in the process. James Mitchell and Bruce Jessen, two former military psychologists, “designed the torture methods and performed illegal human experimentation on CIA prisoners to test and refine the program,” the ACLU said in a statement. The
He may be an outsider, but that doesn’t mean he’s a stranger to the debate stage.
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Hillary Rodham Clinton went to Donald Trump’s doorstep Monday to mock the Republican presidential front-runner on the eve of the first Democratic presidential debate.
(Reuters) – Now readers of Playboy, the glossy men’s magazine known for its nude fold-outs, can honestly say they are buying the magazine for its articles. Playboy will no longer publish nude photographs of women, the New York Times reported on Monday in an article quoting Scott Flanders, the company’s chief executive. Founder and editor-in-chief Hugh Hefner, 89, who in his trademark silk pajamas has embodied the Playboy lifestyle, agreed
DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Insurgents fired two shells at the Russian embassy in the Syrian capital on Tuesday as hundreds of pro-government supporters gathered outside the compound to thank Moscow for its military intervention.
Jason Rezaian has been detained for more than a year on charges including espionage.
President Barack Obama is fairly certain of one thing when it comes to next year’s election: Donald Trump won’t succeed him in the White House. The billionaire businessman, the frontrunner in the race to become the Republican party’s White House nominee, has raised hackles with his controversial comments on immigration, gun control and women, among other issues. “I don’t think he’ll end up being president of the United States,” Obama
Zimbabwe will not charge American dentist Walter Palmer for killing its most prized lion in July because he had obtained legal authority to conduct the hunt, a cabinet minister said on Monday. Palmer, a lifelong big-game hunter from Minnesota, stoked a global controversy when he killed Cecil, a rare black-maned lion, with a bow and arrow outside Hwange National Park in Western Zimbabwe.
The Washington Post on Monday denounced the espionage conviction of the newspaper’s American-born Tehran correspondent as an “outrageous injustice” and urged Iran’s leaders to overturn it. Jason Rezaian, who was arrested in July 2014, had 20 days to appeal the verdict, the Iranian news service ISNA cited a judiciary spokesman as saying. Washington Post Executive Editor Martin Baron said the paper, Rezaian’s family and his lawyer in Iran were pursuing
A white Cleveland police officer was justified in fatally shooting a black 12-year-old boy holding a pellet gun moments after pulling up beside him, according to two outside reviews conducted at the request of the prosecutor investigating the death.
A former investigator for the House of Representatives Select Committee on Benghazi is accusing the Republican-led panel of targeting Democrat Hillary Clinton to scupper her presidential bid, the New York Times and CNN reported on Saturday. “These are explosive allegations,” Clinton campaign spokesman Brian Fallon said in a statement.
By Jason Lange and Timothy Gardner WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A group of hard-line conservative Republicans would “look favorably” on Paul Ryan if he ran to be speaker of the House of Representatives, the group’s leader said on Sunday. The approximately 40-member House Freedom Caucus is at the center of turmoil within the Republican Party over who will be the party’s effective leader in the House ahead of the 2016 presidential
An earthquake with a magnitude of 4.5 that struck near the U.S. crude oil hub of Cushing, Oklahoma on Saturday occurred just days after regulators imposed new rules meant to prevent temblors in the area and said more changes were possible. The Oklahoma Corporation Commission (OCC), which regulates the state’s oil and gas industry, ordered companies on Sept. 18 to shut or reduce usage of five saltwater disposal wells around
Two outside experts have concluded a Cleveland police officer’s fatal shooting of a 12-year-old boy who was carrying a toy gun was a reasonable response to a perceived threat, according to reports released by an Ohio prosecutor’s office on Saturday. The independent conclusions submitted to the Cuyahoga County prosecutor’s office come ahead of an expected decision by a grand jury on whether criminal charges are warranted in the November 2014
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Two nearly simultaneous explosions targeted a Turkish peace rally Saturday by Kurdish activists and opposition supporters in Ankara. At least 86 people were killed and nearly 190 wounded in what appeared to be suicide attacks, Turkish officials said.
Urbanization — the expansion of cities — is on the rise. People across the globe are heading into urban areas looking for work, education and health care. Others arrive, fleeing wars and natural disasters. Without the proper planning, the rapid increase in urban areas, especially in developing countries where most growth is happening, can lead to some big problems.
By Alastair Macdonald and Chine Labbé BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Turkey demanded on Thursday that the European Union start easing restrictions next year on Turks traveling to the European Union if it wants full cooperation to stem the flow of Syrian refugees and other migrants from its territory to Europe. As EU leaders held a summit in Brussels dominated by talk of concessions to Turkey in return for Turkish help on
By Alastair Macdonald and Chine Labbé BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Turkey demanded on Thursday that the European Union start easing restrictions next year on Turks traveling to the European Union if it wants full cooperation to stem the flow of Syrian refugees and other migrants from its territory to Europe. As EU leaders held a summit in Brussels dominated by talk of concessions to Turkey in return for Turkish help on
By Jeffrey Heller JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israel bristled on Thursday at U.S. suggestions it may have used excessive force to confront Palestinian stabbings, and also published hospital images it said refuted Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’s allegation a teen suspect had been “executed”. Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon accused Washington of “misreading” the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, saying shooting knife-wielding Palestinians was self-defense. Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan called the U.S. remarks “foolish”.
By Jeffrey Heller JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israel bristled on Thursday at U.S. suggestions it may have used excessive force to confront Palestinian stabbings, and also published hospital images it said refuted Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’s allegation a teen suspect had been “executed”. Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon accused Washington of “misreading” the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, saying shooting knife-wielding Palestinians was self-defense. Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan called the U.S. remarks “foolish”.
By Angeliki Koutantou and Lefteris Papadimas ATHENS (Reuters) – Greece must crack down on undeclared work, create more jobs, merge its pension funds and unify contribution rates to revamp its ailing pension system, a committee set up to find ways to make the system viable said on Thursday. The report had been due to be presented at the labor ministry but was moved to parliament after about 200 people protesting
Hungary will close its border with Croatia to stem the flow of thousands of illegal migrants arriving daily unless European Union leaders agree on a joint task force to halt them on Greek shores, Hungary’s Foreign Minister told Reuters. “We have urged Greece and the European Council to put together a joint European force to protect the external Schengen border,” Peter Szijjarto said in an interview on Thursday. If this
By Angeliki Koutantou and Lefteris Papadimas ATHENS (Reuters) – Greece must crack down on undeclared work, create more jobs, merge its pension funds and unify contribution rates to revamp its ailing pension system, a committee set up to find ways to make the system viable said on Thursday. The report had been due to be presented at the labor ministry but was moved to parliament after about 200 people protesting
Hungary will close its border with Croatia to stem the flow of thousands of illegal migrants arriving daily unless European Union leaders agree on a joint task force to halt them on Greek shores, Hungary’s Foreign Minister told Reuters. “We have urged Greece and the European Council to put together a joint European force to protect the external Schengen border,” Peter Szijjarto said in an interview on Thursday. If this
COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Four centuries after William Shakespeare wrote “something’s rotten in the state of Denmark” in his play “Hamlet,” the small Scandinavian country clearly has gotten its act together.
COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Four centuries after William Shakespeare wrote “something’s rotten in the state of Denmark” in his play “Hamlet,” the small Scandinavian country clearly has gotten its act together.
By Dominic Evans and Tom Perry BEIRUT (Reuters) – Islamic State militants battled rival insurgent groups on Wednesday north of the city of Aleppo, where officials say the Syrian army is preparing an offensive of its own backed by Iranian soldiers and Russian jets. A rebel fighter and a group monitoring the war said Islamic State fighters took control of parts of the towns of Ahras and Tel Jabin, about
By Jeffrey Heller JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israel started setting up roadblocks in Palestinian neighborhoods in East Jerusalem and deploying soldiers across the country on Wednesday to combat a wave of Palestinian knife attacks. In the latest incident, a Palestinian attempted to stab paramilitary police at an entrance to Jerusalem’s walled Old City and was shot dead, an Israeli police spokeswoman said. Palestinian officials condemned the security measures – the most
Iran’s Guardian Council ratified a bill on Wednesday approving the nuclear deal reached by Tehran and six world powers, state news agency IRNA and other agencies said, allowing the government to implement the agreement. Parliament on Tuesday approved the bill with a strong majority, in a victory for President Hassan Rouhani’s government over conservative opponents of the July 14 deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. The Guardian
By Stephanie Nebehay GENEVA (Reuters) – An international panel of experts is ready to investigate the U.S. bombing of a Medecins Sans Frontieres hospital in Afghanistan but awaits a green light from both governments, MSF and the Swiss foreign ministry said on Wednesday. The hour-long air raid on Oct. 3 killed 22 people, including 12 MSF staff, and led to the closure of the Kunduz trauma hospital, depriving tens of
By Samia Nakhoul and Nick Tattersall ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told Reuters on Wednesday some of the suspects in suicide bombings that killed 97 people in Ankara had spent months in Syria and that they could be linked to Islamic State or to Kurdish militants. “We are working on (investigating) two terrorist organizations, Daesh (Islamic State) and PKK, because we have certain evidence regarding the suicide
By Philip Pullella VATICAN CITY (Reuters) – Pope Francis asked for forgiveness on Wednesday for scandals at the Vatican and in Rome, an apparent reference to two cases of priests and gay sex revealed this month during a major meeting of bishops. “Today … in the name of the Church, I ask you for forgiveness for the scandals that have occurred recently either in Rome or in the Vatican,” Francis
Two people were killed and 20 injured when scaffolding for a bridge collapsed over Johannesburg’s main motorway on Wednesday, sending the share price of construction group Murray & Roberts, the contractor behind the project, tumbling. The company’s share price fell more than 7 percent in late trade to 11.15 rand after news of the tragedy broke. “Murray & Roberts can confirm that this afternoon, a support structure that was erected
BERLIN (AP) — German prosecutors say a 20-year-old German citizen has been arrested and his apartment in the Frankfurt area was searched in connection on suspicion that he committed war crimes in Syria.
CAIRO (AP) — Egyptian voters head to the polls Sunday to elect a parliament, the first since the military-led ouster of Islamist President Mohammed Morsi in 2013.
Rafael Nadal needed all his trademark grit and determination on Wednesday when he was taken to a third-set tie-break by towering ace king Ivo Karlovic in a dramatic opening match at the Shanghai Masters. After Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray safely went through, Nadal was in danger of following Roger Federer to the exit when the 6ft 11ins (2.11m) Croatian zipped 24 aces past the 14-time Grand Slam winner. Nadal’s
