ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (AP) — An Egypt team official has confirmed goalkeeper Mohamed Elshenawy declined to receive a player of the match trophy at the World Cup for religious reasons.
The trophy, an artistic red goblet, is sponsored by Budweiser. Islam prohibits the consumption of alcohol.
Egypt team director Ihab Leheta told The Associated Press on Sunday that Elshenawy said a “few words” and posed for photos in a brief ceremony, but didn’t take the goblet.
The Trump administration’s move to separate immigrant parents from their children on the U.S.-Mexico border has grabbed attention around the world, drawn scorn from human-rights organizations and overtaken the immigration debate in Congress.
It’s also a situation that has been brewing since the week President Donald Trump took office, when he issued his first order signaling a tougher approach to asylum-seekers. Since then, the administration has been steadily eroding protections for immigrant children and families.
Continue reading US immigrant protection erosion began with Trump inaugural at STL.News.
Citibank agrees to a $100 million settlement agreement with 42 Attorneys General for fraudulent conduct involving U.S. Dollar (USD) LIBOR
Friday, June 15, 2018, 42 Attorneys General offices announced a settlement with Citibank for fraudulent conduct involving U.S. (USD) LIBOR.
LIBOR is a benchmark interest rate that affects financial instruments valued at approximately $350 trillions in derivatives, according to Wikipedia, having a widespread impact of worldwide financial markets as well as consumers.
State Attorneys General alleged Citibank misrepresented the integrity of the benchmark (LIBOR) to governments, not-for-profit, private and institutional traders by failing to disclose that:
SALT LAKE CITY, UT – Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes Friday announced a $100 million settlement with Citibank for fraudulent conduct involving U.S. Dollar (USD) LIBOR, which is a benchmark interest rate that affects financial instruments worth trillions of dollars and has a widespread impact on global markets and consumers. The investigation was conducted by a working group of 42 state Attorneys General offices, led by New York.
According to Assistant Attorney General Eddie Vasquez,
“Although LIBOR rates are calculated in London, they affect the interest rates that Utah consumers pay for many credit cards and variable rate mortgages, so keeping the LIBOR rate setting system honest is very important to our citizens.”
The Attorneys General alleged that Citibank misrepresented the integrity of the LIBOR benchmark to state and local governmental, not-for-profit, private, and institutional trading counterparties by concealing, misrepresenting, and failing to disclose that: (a) Citibank, at times, made USD LIBOR submissions to avoid negative publicity and protect the reputation of the bank; (b) Citibank’s USD LIBOR submitters, on occasion, asked Citibank personnel in other units of the bank to avoid offering higher rates than Citibank’s USD LIBOR submissions; and (c) Citibank expressed belief that other banks, at times, made USD LIBOR submissions that were inconsistent with their borrowing rates and contributed to inaccurate LIBORs.
ROSTOV-ON-DON, Russia (AP) — Brazil joined the list of big teams struggling to win their opening matches at the World Cup in Russia.
The five-time champions were held to a 1-1 draw by Switzerland on Sunday, a few hours after four-time champion Germany was beaten by Mexico 1-0.
Philippe Coutinho gave Brazil the lead in the 20th minute with a volley that bounced in off the right post. Steven Zuber then headed in the equalizer in the 50th.
COLUMBUS, OH – Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine, along with 41 other attorneys general, today announced a $100 million settlement with Citibank for fraudulent conduct involving the London interbank offered rate, or Libor, a key interest rate with widespread impact on global markets.
Most of the settlement funds — about $95 million — will be used to reimburse government and not-for-profit organizations that were affected by the conduct and had Libor-linked swaps and other financial contracts with Citibank.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump’s lawyer Rudy Giuliani said Sunday the president might pardon his jailed, onetime campaign chairman and others ensnared in the Russia investigation once special counsel Robert Mueller’s work wraps up, if he believed they were treated “unfairly.”
Until then, consideration of clemency is unnecessary, Giuliani said, as the White House presses to bring the yearlong investigation to an end.
Giuliani denied that Trump was trying to send a message to Paul Manafort, who was the 2016 chairman for nearly five months, or others to refrain from cooperating with prosecutors.
ATLANTA (AP) — The Atlanta Braves’ bid for a combined no-hitter has ended as reliever Shane Carle allowed a single to San Diego’s Cory Spangenberg with one out in the seventh inning.
Starter Julio Teheran was removed after allowing no hits through six innings. He struck out a season-high 11, walked three and threw 95 pitches Sunday.
Teheran was activated from the 10-day disabled list on Saturday. He had been out since June 5 with a sore right thumb.
Continue reading ATLANTA | Braves no-hit bid ends in 7th after Teheran pulled vs Padres at STL.News.
Carson City, NV – Friday, Nevada Attorney General Adam Paul Laxalt announced a multi-state settlement with Citibank, N.A., for fraudulent and anti-competitive conduct involving the manipulation of the London Interbank Offered Rate, or LIBOR. LIBOR is an interest rate that has a widespread impact on global markets and consumers, including being used as a basis in financial contracts such as swaps and as a benchmark rate for mortgages. 42 state Attorneys General offices including Nevada participated in a multi-state working group to reach this settlement.
McALLEN, Texas (AP) — Hundreds of children are waiting away from their parents inside a Border Patrol holding facility in South Texas, with groups of 20 or more children to a single cage. There are bottles of water, bags of chips, and large foil sheets intended to serve as blankets.
The U.S. Border Patrol on Sunday allowed reporters to briefly visit the facility where the agency is holding children and adults after arresting them at the border.
MOSCOW (AP) — Defending World Cup champions have been finding it hard to get out of the group stage lately, and Germany is proving no exception.
The 2014 champions, ranked No. 1 in the world, were exposed defensively and surprisingly beaten by Mexico 1-0 on Sunday, putting its hopes of advancement in doubt.
Well, not everyone is in doubt.
“We will make it,” Germany coach Joachim Loew said. “There’s no reason to fall apart because you lose one game.”
Hirving Lozano scored the lone goal in the 35th minute, picking up Javier Hernandez’s pass inside the penalty area and beating Mesut Ozil before shooting past Germany goalkeeper Manuel Neuer from 10 yards.
Continue reading MOSCOW | Mexico beats defending champion Germany 1-0 at World Cup at STL.News.
LANSING, MI – Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette Friday announced a $100 million-dollar settlement with Citibank for fraudulent conduct involving the manipulation of U.S. Dollar (USD) LIBOR, of which Michigan will receive $3 Million. LIBOR, or London Interbank Offered Rate, is a benchmark interest rate that affects financial instruments worth trillions of dollars and has a widespread impact on global markets and consumers.
“Trust in our financial institutions is key to ensuring our economy continues moving forward,” said Schuette.
HOUSTON (AP) — Texas Sen. Ted Cruz has triumphed over late night TV host Jimmy Kimmel in their much-hyped charity basketball game that Kimmel dubbed the Blobfish Basketball Classic.
With each basket worth a single point, Cruz topped Kimmel 11-9 in a two-hour one-on-one match they agreed to abbreviate Saturday at Texas Southern University after neither appeared capable of reaching 15 points and winning by two.
The Houston Chronicle described the matchup as “a slow-motion car-crash of half-court basketball.” Speaking for both men, Kimmel said: “We apologize to the game of basketball.”
The game was born of a joke from Kimmel, who has said the Republican senator resembled the ocean bottom-dwelling blobfish.
Continue reading HOUSTON | TV host Jimmy Kimmel beat by Sen. Ted Cruz in charity game at STL.News.
HOUSTON (AP) — Texas Sen. Ted Cruz has triumphed over late night TV host Jimmy Kimmel in their much-hyped charity basketball game that Kimmel dubbed the Blobfish Basketball Classic.
With each basket worth a single point, Cruz topped Kimmel 11-9 in a two-hour one-on-one match they agreed to abbreviate Saturday at Texas Southern University after neither appeared capable of reaching 15 points and winning by two.
The Houston Chronicle described the matchup as “a slow-motion car-crash of half-court basketball.” Speaking for both men, Kimmel said: “We apologize to the game of basketball.”
The game was born of a joke from Kimmel, who has said the Republican senator resembled the ocean bottom-dwelling blobfish.
Continue reading HOUSTON | Born of blobfish joke, Cruz edges Kimmel in basketball game at STL.News.
TOPEKA, KS – Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt issued the following statement on the shootings Friday of two Wyandotte County Sheriff’s Office deputies:
“Today’s terrible events in Kansas City bitterly remind us once again of the dangers and sacrifices faced every day by law enforcement officers throughout our state and nation. The prayers of all of Kansas lift up the deputy killed today, the deputy still fighting for life, their families and friends, and their fellow men and women in law enforcement who keep our communities safe each and every day.”
UPDATE – June 16, 2018 – “The second Wyandotte County Sheriff’s Office deputy shot yesterday has died.
Ottawa County jury found Robert Willard Colson guilty of first degree murder of Matthew Miles Schoshke
MINNEAPOLIS, KS – A Maine man who was arrested in California has been convicted of first degree murder and related crimes in Kansas, Attorney General Derek Schmidt said.
An Ottawa County jury Friday found Robert Willard Colson, 35, of Bucksport, Maine, guilty of one count of first degree murder, two counts of felony theft and one count of burglary.
MOSCOW (AP) — The Latest on Sunday at the World Cup (all times local):
9:30 p.m.
Germany didn’t play the way it usually plays. Coach Joachim Loew isn’t sure why.
MOSCOW, Mexico’s skillful, World Cup champion, No German team , offered a guarantee, the group stage, daunting enough, captain Marcelo
Stymied by Mexico’s skillful forwards and speedy counterattacks, the defending World Cup champion played a sloppy first half, failed to take its chances and ultimately conceded a goal that held up in Mexico’s 1-0 victory.
Continue reading MOSCOW | The Latest: Coach Loew concedes Germany looked nervous at STL.News.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Rudy Giuliani says President Donald Trump has no plans to issue pardons now in the Russia investigation but could choose to do so once the special counsel’s work is finished.
The president’s attorney tells CNN’s “State of the Union” that issuing a pardon now is not necessary and could cloud what Giuliani believes is a “very clear picture of an extremely unfair investigation with no criminality involved in it of any kind.”
Giuliani says Trump retains his right to pardon and could do so after special counsel Robert Mueller’s report is complete, if people were treated “unfairly.”
His comments come after onetime Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort was sent to jail last week after a federal judge revoked his house arrest over allegations of witness tampering in the Russia investigation.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is falsely crediting his Singapore summit with the destruction of missile launch sites in North Korea. No such action has been announced by the North Koreans.
Trump tweeted Sunday in response to criticisms last week from Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York, the Senate Democratic leader, that the summit was all show, no substance, or as the Democrat put it in Senate remarks, “what the Texans call all cattle, no hat.” He meant all hat, no cattle.
Continue reading WASHINGTON | AP FACT CHECK: Trump misrepresents North Korea’s actions at STL.News.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A top White House adviser on Sunday distanced the Trump administration from responsibility for separating migrant children from their parents at the U.S.-Mexico border, even though the administration put in place and could easily end a policy that has led to a spike in cases of split and distraught families.
President Donald Trump has tried to blame Democrats, who hold no levers of power in the government today, for a situation that has sparked fury and a national debate over the moral implications of his hard-line approach to immigration enforcement.
MOSCOW (AP) — The suspect in a taxi crash near Red Square that injured two Mexican soccer fans and six other pedestrians as Russia hosts the World Cup told interrogators he fell asleep at the wheel, Moscow city police said Sunday.
The police released a video of an interrogation session with a man the Moscow force identified as the taxi driver. In the recording, he says he briefly dozed off and accidentally hit the gas.
Continue reading MOSCOW | Police: Taxi driver who hit 8 Moscow pedestrians fell asleep at STL.News.
BENGHAZI, Libya (AP) — Libya’s National Oil Corporation says an armed group opposed to Libya’s self-styled national army has attacked key oil port terminals “significantly” damaging at least one storage tank.
Saturday’s statement by the company called on the group commanded by Ibrahim Jadhran to withdraw to prevent an “environmental disaster” and further damage to infrastructure.
NOC says the oil ports of Ras Lanuf and Es Sidr have been under attack since Thursday forcing it to announce a “force majeure” on crude oil loadings and evacuate its employees from the areas.
MOSCOW (AP) — Germany became the third defending champion in the last 16 years to lose its opening match at the World Cup, falling to Mexico 1-0 Sunday.
Hirving Lozano scored the lone goal in the 35th minute, picking up Javier Hernandez’s pass inside the penalty area and beating Mesut Ozil before shooting past Manuel Neuer from 10 yards.
“I don’t know if it’s the biggest victory in (Mexico’s) history, but one of the biggest for sure,” Lozano said.
Continue reading MOSCOW | Mexico beats defending champion Germany 1-0 at World Cup at STL.News.
PSARADES, Greece (AP) — The foreign ministers of Greece and Macedonia endorsed an agreement to resolve a long fight over the Macedonia name Sunday during a signing ceremony filled with history and symbolism.
The Greek village of Psarades, located on the shores of Great Prespa Lake, was picked for the occasion since the borders of Greece and Macedonia meet in the water.
The two countries’ prime ministers, Greece’s Alexis Tsipras and Macedonia’s Zoran Zaev, were there to see the deal they reached Tuesday get signed by their foreign ministers, Nikos Kotzias and Nikola Dimitrov, respectively.
DES MOINES, IA – Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller announced a $100 million multistate settlement Friday with Citibank for fraudulent conduct involving U.S. Dollar LIBOR, which is a benchmark interest rate that affects financial instruments worth trillions of dollars and has a widespread impact on global markets and consumers. The investigation was conducted by a bipartisan working group of 42 state attorneys general offices.
The actions by Citibank caused LIBOR, or the London Interbank Offered Rate, to fall, which harmed investors who had purchased credit derivatives called interest-rate swaps.
The Trump administration’s move to separate immigrant parents from their children on the U.S.-Mexico border has grabbed attention around the world, drawn scorn from human-rights organizations and overtaken the immigration debate in Congress.
It’s also a situation that has been brewing since the week President Donald Trump took office, when he issued his first order signaling a tougher approach to asylum-seekers. Since then, the administration has been steadily eroding protections for immigrant children and families.
Continue reading Erosion of immigrant protections began with Trump inaugural at STL.News.
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — Two gunmen opened fire at an all-night arts and music festival early Sunday morning, sending people running over each other in the scramble to safety, authorities said. One suspect was killed and 22 people were injured.
Of 17 people treated for gunshot wounds, four of them, including a 13-year-old boy, remain in critical condition late Sunday morning, said Mercer County Prosecutor Angelo Onofri.
The shots rang out around 2:45 a.m.
Continue reading TRENTON, N.J | Gunfire erupts at New Jersey arts festival; 22 wounded at STL.News.
TALLAHASSEE, FL – Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi Friday announced a multistate settlement with Citibank. Based upon the business they conducted with Citibank, Florida governmental entities and nonprofits will receive approximately five million dollars from the settlement, which resolves allegations of unlawful conduct involving the U.S. Dollar LIBOR. The LIBOR is a benchmark interest rate that affects financial instruments worth trillions of dollars and has a widespread impact on global markets and consumers financial transactions.
BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Hundreds of citizen scientists have begun buzzing through locations across the Pacific Northeast seeking a better understanding about nearly 30 bumblebee species.
Bumblebees, experts say, are important pollinators for both wild and agricultural plants, but some species have disappeared from places where they were once common, possibly because of the same factors that have been killing honeybees.
“It’s really important for us as humans to study these species systems for animals that are the little guys that make the world go around,” said Ann Potter of the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, one of the entities in three states — Oregon and Idaho are the others — participating in the three-year Pacific Northwest Bumble Bee Atlas project.
ST. MARTIN, Miss. (AP) — One of the founding members of the rock band 3 Doors Down is back in jail after guns and drugs were seen in his Mississippi home.
Jackson County Sheriff Mike Ezell, in a news release, said 46-year-old Todd Harrell, the band’s original bass player, was arrested Friday at his St. Martin home. It’s unknown if he has an attorney.
Authorities say they were responding to an alarm and when they arrived, Harrell’s wife told deputies they argued and it turned physical.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Chris Cornell’s daughter has released a recording of a duet with her late father as part of an emotional tribute to the late rocker on Father’s Day.
Toni Cornell released the duet of Prince’s “Nothing Compares 2 U” on Sunday along with a note thanking her dad for his support of her.
“You gave me courage when I didn’t have any. You believed in me when I didn’t.
Continue reading LOS ANGELES | Cornell’s daughter pays tribute to late rocker with duet at STL.News.
HARTFORD, CT – Under a multistate settlement agreement, Citibank N.A. (Citi) will pay $95,000,000 in restitution to government and nonprofit entities for its manipulation of a benchmark interest rate in the lead up to and early days of the 2008 financial crisis, Attorney General George Jepsen announced Friday.
Citi has agreed to pay a total of $100 million to resolve the 42-state multistate investigation. The state attorneys general alleged that Citi manipulated the London Interbank Offer Rate, also known as LIBOR, and misrepresented the integrity of LIBOR at various times in 2008 and 2009.
SOCHI, Russia (AP) — Panama coach Hernan Dario Gomez isn’t in the business of sugarcoating the truth before his team makes history by playing in its first World Cup.
The Central American team has trouble scoring and his players will need to have a good day to have any chance against Belgium on Monday, he said.
Blunt and honest, Gomez didn’t even hide his starting lineup, the normal way of doing things for coaches these days.
Continue reading SOCHI, Russia | Panama coach blunt and honest before World Cup debut at STL.News.
MOSCOW (AP) — When a taxi driver suddenly rammed into pedestrians near Red Square, despite intense security measures around Russian cities for the World Cup, fans and other visitors asked themselves: Are we safe?
Moscow authorities insist Saturday’s taxi crash was an accident, after the driver apparently fell asleep . And car accidents can happen just about anywhere.
Vehicles can also be used as weapons, though. Cities from New York to Barcelona can attest to that.
Continue reading MOSCOW | Russia’s World Cup headache: Keeping it safe, keeping it fun at STL.News.
MOSCOW (AP) — The Latest on Sunday at the World Cup (all times local):
6:55 p.m.
Mexican fans have chanted a homophobic slur at Germany goalkeeper Manuel Neuer during the World Cup game in Moscow.
FIFA has repeatedly fined the Mexican football federation over the chant. It rang out at Moscow’s Luzhniki stadium in the 24th minute of Mexico’s game against Germany on Sunday with the score at 0-0.
Fans in Mexico use the chant to insult opposing goalkeepers as they take a goal kick.
Continue reading MOSCOW | The Latest: Lozano gives Mexico 1-0 halftime lead v Germany at STL.News.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A top White House adviser is distancing the Trump administration from responsibility for a jump in the number of migrant children being separated from their parents by American authorities at the U.S.-Mexico border.
Kellyanne Conway tells NBC’s “Meet the Press” that “nobody likes” pulling apart families.
Nearly 2,000 children were separated from their families over a six-week period in April and May after Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced a new “zero-tolerance” policy that refers all cases of illegal entry for criminal prosecution.
Continue reading WASHINGTON | Conway says ‘nobody likes’ family separation policy at STL.News.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Disney and Pixar’s “Incredibles 2” has broken the record for the best animated opening of all time and the biggest for a PG-rated film. Disney estimates Sunday that the film has earned $180 million in its first weekend in theaters.
The previous animation record-holder was another Pixar sequel, “Finding Dory,” which had a $135 million launch in 2016. It was Disney’s live-action “Beauty and the Beast” that held the record for a PG debut.
BERLIN (AP) — Almost 80 years after the first “Kindertransport” evacuations of Jewish children to safety in Britain, 42 people set off Sunday on a memorial bike ride that will retrace their journey from Berlin to London.
The cyclists set off from Berlin’s Friedrichstrasse station, where a statue commemorates the 10,000 mostly Jewish children who made it to Britain from Nazi Germany and elsewhere in Europe starting in late 1938.
Organized by the British-based World Jewish Relief group, the ride retraces the route of the trains.
Continue reading BERLIN | Cyclists retrace Jewish child refugees’ journey to Britain at STL.News.
RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) — The family of a female Palestinian lawmaker who has been held without charge for nearly a year says that Israel has extended her detention by four months.
Khalida Jarrar was scheduled to be released on June 30. But her husband, Ghassan, said Sunday that her lawyer was informed of the extension by Israeli authorities.
Jarrar is being held under “administrative detention,” an Israeli policy that permits holding people for months at a time without charges.
VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis is pressing for negotiations involving the sides in the Yemen conflict so the humanitarian crisis doesn’t worsen.
In public remarks Sunday, Francis said he was following “with worry the dramatic fate of the people of Yemen, already so exhausted from years of conflict.”
He appealed to the international community so that “no effort be spared to urgently bring to the negotiating table the sides in conflict and to avoid a worsening of the already tragic humanitarian situation.”
In Yemen, witnesses have reported that a Saudi-led coalition has carried out airstrikes on the airport in Yemen’s rebel-held port city of Hodeida.
LONDON (AP) — The British legislator who singlehandedly blocked a proposal to make taking “upskirting” photos illegal says he favors the proposed law but stopped it because of the way it was introduced in Parliament.
Conservative Party lawmaker Christopher Chope ended his silence on the matter Sunday, telling the Bournemouth Daily Echo he stopped the bill because of his long opposition to bills proposed by backbench lawmakers rather than the government.
He objected when the bill was put forward in Parliament Friday, ending the debate and angering Prime Minister Theresa May and others who want upskirting to be made a criminal offense.
Continue reading LONDON | UK legislator who blocked ‘upskirting’ law says he favors it at STL.News.
VOLGOGRAD, Russia (AP) — British police says 98 percent of the fans banned from traveling to the World Cup because of hooliganism fears have surrendered their passports.
Football banning orders are in place on 1,312 fans in Britain,
preventing them from traveling abroad for matches over fears they will cause trouble.
Mark Roberts, head of British football policing, says only two percent of fans on banning orders are yet to give up their passports ahead of England’s opening game against Tunisia on Monday.
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — The Latest on the shooting at a New Jersey arts festival (all times local):
9:30 a.m.
The organizers behind the all-night New Jersey arts festival disrupted when gunfire broke out said they are deeply saddened but their dedication to building a better Trenton will never fade.
Two suspects opened fire around 2:45 a.m. during the crowded Art All Night Trenton festival that showcases local art, music and food.
CHICAGO (AP) — Not long after her father went missing during the Korean War, Carol Elkin spotted then-Gen. Dwight Eisenhower in downtown Chicago and did what any kid might do when coming face to face with the nation’s most famous soldier: She asked him to bring her dad home.
On Tuesday, the now 76-year-old Elkin will be at Arlington National Cemetery to bury the remains of Army Maj. Stephen Uurtamo, nearly seven decades after he was taken prisoner by the Chinese and died.
Continue reading CHICAGO | Chicago soldier killed in Korea finally being laid to rest at STL.News.
SOUTHAMPTON, N.Y. (AP) — The Latest on the US Open (all times local):
9:30 a.m.
Happy Father’s Day, Vic Parziale.
Now get to work.
The retired Brockton, Massachusetts firefighter will be spending the day at the U.S. Open, carrying the bag for his son, Matt, in the final round. Matt Parziale earned a spot in the tournament by winning the Mid-Amateur, and then became the first mid-am to make the cut in 15 years.
ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (AP) — Amid price hikes and growing discontent with the government back home, fans of Egypt’s national team are counting on Mohamed Salah to ease their pain both on the field and off.
Salah, a 26-year-old Liverpool striker who was the player of the year in the Premier League, was forced to sit out Egypt’s opening match at the World Cup — a 1-0 loss to Uruguay — because of injury.
MOSCOW (AP) — The Latest on Sunday at the World Cup (all times local):
4:55 p.m.
Aleksandar Kolarov’s curling free kick in the 56th minute has helped Serbia to a 1-0 win over Costa Rica in its World Cup opener.
Serbia, which missed out on the 2014 World Cup, had the early advantage in a tough group in Russia that includes five-time champion Brazil and Switzerland, who were set to play later Sunday in Rostov-on-Don.
Continue reading MOSCOW | The Latest: Serbia holds off Costa Rica 1-0 at World Cup at STL.News.
JERUSALEM (AP) — The Israeli military said its aircraft struck a vehicle early Sunday belonging to someone who sent burning kites into Israel from Gaza. Hours later, Israeli aircraft fired warning shots toward Palestinians “who launched arson balloons.”
No one was injured in the strikes, but it marks an escalation in Israel’s response to a phenomenon that has wreaked havoc on agriculture in southern Israel in recent weeks. Burning kites set fields ablaze in more than a dozen locations on a hot, windy, dry Saturday.
Continue reading JERUSALEM | Israel strikes launchers of burning kites from Gaza Strip at STL.News.
LISBON, Portugal (AP) — Portugal’s president and prime minister have attended a Mass in a rural town to mark the anniversary of a wildfire that killed 66 people.
President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa and Prime Minister Antonio Costa joined other government members and scores of local people Sunday at a small church in Pedrogao Grande, which is located about 200 kilometers (120 miles) northeast of Lisbon.
A fire that began near the town of 4,000 people grew into one of Portugal’s biggest blazes of 2017, an unprecedented year for deadly wildfires that brought 116 deaths.
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — Shooting broke out at an all-night art festival in Trenton, New Jersey, early Sunday, sending people stampeding from the scene and leaving one suspect dead and 20 people injured, a local prosecutor said.
Sixteen of the 20 injured were treated for gunshot wounds, Mercer County Prosecutor Angelo Onofri said Sunday morning. Four of those, including a 13-year-old boy, were in critical condition.
He said that two suspects opened fire around 2:45 a.m.
Continue reading TRENTON, N.J | 1 dead, 20 injured in shooting New Jersey arts festival at STL.News.