Month: October 2017

Is it time to say arrivederci to Christopher Columbus? A movement to abolish Columbus Day and replace it with Indigenous Peoples Day has gained momentum in some parts of the U.S., with Los Angeles in August becoming the biggest city yet to decide to stop honoring the Italian explorer and instead recognize victims of colonialism.   Austin, Texas, followed suit Thursday. It joined cities including San Francisco, Seattle and Denver, which had previously booted Columbus in favor of Indigenous Peoples Day.   But the gesture to recognize indigenous people rather than the man who opened the Americas to European domination …

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Then French President Nicolas Sarkozy declared March 19, 2012, the date an Islamic militant killed a Jewish rabbi and three children in Toulouse, “a day of national tragedy.” The gunman, Mohammed Merah, a French petty criminal of Algerian descent, had targeted French soldiers a week earlier in two attacks, one at a shopping center. On March 19 it was the turn of the Ozar Hatorah Jewish day school. Dismounting a motorbike, the 23-year-old Merah unleashed a fusillade toward the schoolyard, killing first the rabbi as he shielded his two young sons, who were shot also, and then chasing a fleeing …

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A Sarajevo court Monday acquitted a former commander of the Bosnian Army in Srebrenica of war crimes during the Balkan wars of 1990s. Naser Oric, 50, was found not guilty of killing three Bosnian Serb prisoners of war in 1992. The court also acquitted an Oric subordinate, former Bosnian Army soldier Sabahudin Muhic of the killings that took place in Srebrenica area. The prosecution had alleged that Oric and killed the Serb captives in the villages of Zalazje, Lolici and Kunjerac. However, the presiding judge Saban Maksumic said the prosecution was not able to prove beyond reasonable doubt that Oric …

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British Prime Minister Theresa May says she is “resilient” despite a difficult speech at the Conservative Party conference and growing threats to her leadership. She told the Sunday Times she would not hide from a challenge as she fights off a rebellion from some legislators unhappy with her leadership. “The truth is my feelings can be hurt, like everyone else, but I am pretty resilient,” she said. Former Prime Minister John Major urged Conservative Party members to support May and scolded those who have plotted against her. “I urge all Conservative [lawmakers] to reflect very carefully on what is at …

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London police have released a 47-year-old man they had detained on suspicion of dangerous driving after his car veered off the pavement Saturday outside the city’s Natural History Museum. Eleven people were hurt in the incident and nine were hospitalized. Officials said none of the injuries was life-threatening. Initially, the crash was thought to be a terrorist attack, but police later said, “The incident is a road traffic investigation and not a terrorist-related incident.” Police said the man was released “under investigation” and did not reveal his identity. Britain is on its second-highest security alert level after five deadly attacks …

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As Germany moves to implement sanctions against North Korea’s nuclear weapons program, its efforts seem to be at odds with a private business in Berlin. Poised to tighten financial screws on a regime that is making steady progress toward a nuclear-tipped missile that can threaten the U.S. mainland, the U.N. Security Council passed a resolution in November 2016, which for the first time included a prohibition on using any property that North Korea owns or leases for purposes other than diplomatic activities. Five months after its passage, Germany stated in an implementation report submitted to the U.N. that it had begun …

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Catalonians are rallying in Barcelona to protest the Catalan government’s push for secession from Spain. Police say 350,000 demonstrators attended, while organizers say more than 900,000 people joined in. “We have perhaps been silent too long,” one protester told the French news agency on Sunday. Last week, Catalonians voted overwhelmingly for independence.  In that poll, deemed illegal by Madrid, 90 percent voted to break with Spain, but the turnout was well under half of the electorate. Opinion polls have consistently suggested more Catalans favor remaining in Spain than declaring independence. Organizers say the slogan for Sunday’s rally is “Enough, let’s …

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The new U.S. ambassador to Russia said Saturday that restoring Ukrainian sovereignty and bringing North Korea to the negotiating table would be central issues as he works to improve U.S.-Russian relations. Former Utah Governor Jon Huntsman Jr. said trust is at a low point as many Americans believe Russia wants to undermine U.S. democracy amid investigations into Russian election meddling. “It is no longer a partisan issue at the political level, either,” he said. Huntsman takes over at a precarious time between the two countries. He said he wants to improve relations, but the first step is returning Ukrainian control …

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Saudi Arabian King Salman bin Abdulaziz’s groundbreaking visit to Russia this week saw billions of dollars signed in investment deals in energy and defense that will deepen ties between Moscow and Riyadh, despite their confrontational past. But analysts say self-interests and Middle East alliances will hamper the forming of a deeper partnership. During this first trip to Russia by a Saudi king, the two sides agreed on billions of dollars in projects involving space exploration, nuclear energy and oil, including a $1 billion fund on energy cooperation and a $1 billion fund on high-tech investment. Even the king’s 1,500-strong entourage, …

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Supporters of Russian opposition leader Aleksei Navalny staged nationwide protests on Saturday to coincide with Russian President Vladimir Putin’s 65th birthday, with police making scores of arrests. Rallies and pickets were held in dozens of Russian cities, including Moscow, Vladivostok, Khabarovsk, Ulan-Ude, Chita and Stavropol, with protesters demanding that Navalny be allowed to participate in the country’s March 2018 presidential election. The Moscow-based OVD-Info, a group that monitors politically motivated arrests, said there had been at least 271 people arrested at protests in 26 cities as of 9 p.m. No harsh crackdown There was no harsh crackdown by police as …

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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has announced the start of Turkish military operation into Syria’s Idlib province. “There is a serious operation in Idlib at the moment, and this will continue,” Erdogan announced in a speech Saturday to his party members. The military offensive is aimed at ending the jihadist control of the Idlib area. Much of Idlib is controlled by the jihadist Tahrir al-Sham alliance, which is made up of large elements of a former al-Qaida affiliate that changed its name last year from the al-Nusra Front. “We have to help our brothers who arrived in Idlib after fleeing …

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