world news: 2018-07-29

Saturday 4 August 2018

Zimbabwe's Mnangagwa promises probe of post-election killings, urges unity

By MacDonald Dzirutwe and Joe Brock HARARE (Reuters) - President Emmerson Mnangagwa urged Zimbabweans to unite on Friday after he was declared the first elected head of state since Robert Mugabe's removal from power, but the opposition leader insisted he had won and pledged to challenge the result. Sounding a conciliatory note after six people were killed in a post-election crackdown by the military, Mnangagwa vowed to be president for all Zimbabweans and declared his rival Nelson Chamisa would have a vital role to perform in Zimbabwe's future. For a graphic of presidential results, click https://tmsnrt.rs/2LWcHfm The army's clampdown and opposition claims that the vote was rigged revealed the deep fissures in Zimbabwean society that developed during the four-decade rule of Mugabe, when the security forces became a byword for heavy-handedness.

White House refuses to say media is not 'enemy of the people'

CNN's Jim Acosta and White House press secretary Sarah Sanders engage in a heated exchange over the president's characterization of the media.

Man who harassed Yellowstone bison arrested at Glacier park

MAMMOTH HOT SPRINGS, Wyo. (AP) — An Oregon man who was caught on video harassing a bison in Yellowstone National Park was arrested in Glacier National Park in the third disturbance in less than a week at a national park, officials said Friday.

U.S. hopes spat with Turkey over pastor resolved 'in coming days'

By David Brunnstrom and Jack Kim SINGAPORE (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Saturday he hoped Americans detained in Turkey would be released "in coming days", following a meeting with his Turkish counterpart in Singapore which both sides said was constructive. Washington earlier this week imposed sanctions on two Turkish ministers over the case of Andrew Brunson, a U.S. pastor on trial in Turkey for backing terrorism. The United States has also been seeking the release of three locally employed embassy staff detained in Turkey.

Chicago protest against violence disrupts some traffic

CHICAGO (AP) — About 200 demonstrators briefly shutdown Chicago's Lake Shore Drive as they marched through one of the city's more affluent neighborhoods Thursday to draw attention to gun violence in the city's poorer areas.

Here's A Closer Look At Paul Manafort's $15,000 Ostrich Jacket

On Tuesday, while Donald Trump's former campaign chairman Paul Manafort was on

Judge Throws Out Lawsuit By Seth Rich's Parents Against Fox News

A New York judge on Thursday dismissed a lawsuit brought against Fox News by

Mickey Mouse unimpressed as Minnie accepts another man's marriage proposal

Lovestruck fan proposes to Minnie Mouse at Walt Disney World in Orlando -- and Mickey is clearly not impressed.

NASA Announces New Crew For The Return Of Space Flights From American Soil

America, meet your new astronauts.

Pompeo 'optimistic' about ending North Korea's nuclear program

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Saturday the process of ending North Korea's nuclear program would take time but he was optimistic that it would be achieved within a timeline set by the leaders of the two countries.

from Reuters: World News https://ift.tt/2vBG6RN

A Trump Pardon Is Starting To Look Like Paul Manafort's Best Hope

ALEXANDRIA, Va. ― Former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort, his attorneys

The sad last act of Rudy Giuliani

In politics, as in life, your greatest strength always turns out to be your greatest weakness, and Giuliani’s strength was always his relentlessness.

Remains of U.S. soldiers from the Korean War are repatriated

Vice President Mike Pence and the top commander of U.S. forces in Asia, Adm. Phil Davidson, received remains from the Korean War contained in 55 caskets during an emotional and solemn ceremony Wednesday after the caskets arrived by military cargo jets from South Korea. The U.S. military is beginning the painstaking process of analyzing remains from the Korean War now that they are back on American soil after having been handed over by North Korea last week.

Record 'Red Tide' Of Toxic Algae Is Killing Wildlife In Florida

A toxic algae bloom sweeping Florida's southwest coast is being described as

New York's Cuomo rejects NRA claim that 'blacklisting' jeopardizes mission

By Jonathan Stempel NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York Governor Andrew Cuomo on Friday rejected a claim by the National Rifle Association that his efforts to get banks and insurers to stop doing business with the group threatened its ability to advocate for gun rights. In an amended version of a lawsuit it had filed on May 11, the NRA said New York's "blacklisting" had already cost it insurance coverage, and would "imminently" deprive it of basic banking and other financial services "essential to the NRA's corporate existence and its advocacy mission." But in a Friday afternoon filing seeking to dismiss the case, New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood downplayed those concerns.

Inside Bannon's next campaign: Keep the House to save Trump

Former Donald Trump campaign chief Steve Bannon is set to roll out a new political nonprofit aimed at rallying the president’s political base with the message that if Democrats capture control of the House in this fall’s midterms, “they’re going to impeach him,” says a Bannon associate.

Bermuda Triangle Mystery Solved? Scientists Think They've Figured It Out

Scientists believe they've solved the mystery of the Bermuda Triangle ― and

Smith College Employee Called Police On Black Student Eating Lunch

A Smith College employee called the police on a black student who was eating

Turkey vows retaliation in crisis with US over pastor

Turkey was on Thursday drawing up retaliatory measures after Washington slapped sanctions on two Turkish ministers in the one of the biggest crises between the two NATO allies in recent years. Tensions have soared over Turkey's detention on terror charges of American pastor Andrew Brunson, who was first held in October 2016 and was moved to house arrest last week. White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders told journalists both ministers had "played leading roles in the arrest and detention of Pastor Brunson", who led a Protestant church in the Aegean city of Izmir.

Reported sighting of missing Iowa student

Police are following up on a report of Mollie Tibbetts being spotted at a truck stop in Missouri.

California wildfires entering ‘uncharted territory,’ Governor Jerry Brown warns

The wildfires ravaging California are plunging the state into “uncharted territory”, governor Jerry Brown has said. Mr Brown – like other officials before him – warned on Wednesday that that situation could be the “new normal” for the state. Every year is teaching the fire authorities new lessons," the governor said at a press conference, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

Israel warns Iran of military response if it closed key Red Sea strait

Israel would deploy its military if Iran were to try to block the Bab al-Mandeb strait that links the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday. Last week, Saudi Arabia said it was suspending oil shipments through the strait, on the main sea route from the Middle East to Europe, after Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis attacked two ships in the waterway. Saudi Arabia and Iran are in a three-year-old proxy war in Yemen, which lies on the eastern side of Bab al-Mandeb.

Sarah Huckabee Sanders Refuses To Say Press Isn't 'The Enemy Of The People'

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders on Thursday refused to say

BusinessWeek Had The Best Joke About Apple Becoming A Trillion Dollar Company

On the heels of Apple's market value hitting the $1 trillion mark,

Man Accused of Locking Girlfriend's Children in Closets, Forcing Them to Eat Shoes

A Missouri man is behind bars, accused of horrific child abuse. The victims are three of his girlfriend's children who were allegedly beaten, starved, locked in closets and made to eat shoes.

Zimbabwe president calls for unity as opposition cries foul

Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa has called for unity in the wake of allegations his election victory was tainted by fraud, hailing the vote as a fresh start for the country after the repressive rule of Robert Mugabe. As defeated opposition leader Nelson Chamisa decried the official results as a sham, Mnangagwa, a former Mugabe ally, defended the vote. "With the eyes of the world on us we delivered a free, fair and credible election," Mnangagwa told reporters on Friday.

Back to rubble, some 'lost everything' in California fire

REDDING, Calif. (AP) — Carol Smith and her family walked into their hillside neighborhood Thursday to find her home reduced to mangled metal and piles of bricks after a massive Northern California wildfire leveled more than 1,000 homes.

Accountant of ex-Trump aide Manafort testifies she helped falsify documents

By Sarah N. Lynch, Nathan Layne and Karen Freifeld ALEXANDRIA, Va. (Reuters) - An accountant for U.S. President Donald Trump's one-time campaign chairman Paul Manafort admitted in trial testimony on Friday that she helped backdate documents and falsify financial records at Manafort and his business partner's request to reduce his tax burden and help him qualify for loans. Cynthia Laporta, who prepared Manafort's tax returns starting in 2014, told a jury in federal court in Alexandria, Virginia, that she was testifying under an immunity agreement with the government to avoid being prosecuted as Manafort was charged with bank fraud and tax fraud. "Correct," answered Laporta, explaining that she went along with accounting maneuvers suggested by Manafort and his longtime business associate Rick Gates because she did not want to create problems for her firm or lose a top client.

Portland's Patriot Prayer Rally Could Be Most Violent Since Charlottesville, Activists Say

Armed, proto-fascist gangs are set to rally in Portland, Oregon, this weekend,

U.S. Secretary of State Pompeo, North Korea minister Ri shake hands

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho shook hands and exchanged words and smiles at a Southeast Asian security forum on Saturday in Singapore.