'Partition is not over': Pakistani Hindus

For decades, Jogdas dreamed of moving to India to escape the persecution he suffered as a Hindu in Muslim Pakistan. But the reality of life over the border is a far cry from those dreams.<br /> Seventy years after partition unleashed the largest mass migration in human history, Hindus are still moving from Pakistan to India, where tens of thousands languish in makeshift camps near the border with no legal right to work.<br /> <br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-aD1QSMCXCqo/WX8MjJ1ESrI/AAAAAAAACFM/NUlysjlibHA2RZaZT3UJlUc4kmhhZ00ywCLcBGAs/s1600/59841482.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="400" height="240" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-aD1QSMCXCqo/WX8MjJ1ESrI/AAAAAAAACFM/NUlysjlibHA2RZaZT3UJlUc4kmhhZ00ywCLcBGAs/s320/59841482.jpg" width="320" /></a></div> <br /> Many have no choice but to toil illegally in the stone quarries near where they live because their movements are strictly controlled by the authorities, suspicious of anyone from across the border.<br /> It is not the welcome most of them expected in Hindu-majority India.<br /> "No job, no house, no money, no food. There, we were working in the fields, we were farmers. But here people like us are forced to break rocks to earn a living," said 81-year-old Jogdas, who goes by just one name.<br /> "For us the partition is still not over. Hindus are still trying to come back to their country. And when they come here, they have nothing," he told AFP from the camp on the outskirts of Jodhpur where he lives.<br /> More than 15 million people were uprooted following India's independence from Britain in 1947, which triggered months of violence in which at least a million people were killed for their faith.<br /> Amid the bloody chaos, Hindus and Sikhs fled the newly formed Pakistan, as Muslims moved in the opposite direction.<br /> Despite the exodus, Hindus remain one of Pakistan's largest religious minorities. Estimates vary, but they are believed to account for around 1.6 percent of the population of roughly 200 million.<br /> Many say they face discrimination and even risk abduction, rape and forced marriage.<br /> "Soon after partition, the harassment started," said Jogdas, whose family had only moved to what is now Pakistan a few months before partition to escape a devastating drought.<br /> "There was not even a single day when we could live in peace. I wanted to come back to live with my Hindu brothers."<br /> Most of the migrants to India come from Pakistan's Sindh province, taking a four-hour train journey through the Thar desert to Jodhpur in the arid western state of Rajasthan.<br /> That they share the culture, food and language of Rajasthan should make it easy for them to assimilate in their adopted homeland.<br /> In reality, they live in isolated camps, far from local communities and are treated with suspicion by authorities.<br /> PM Narendra Modi's government has said it wants to make it easier for persecuted adherents of the faith to find refuge in India.<br /> Last year it changed the rules to allow immigrants to apply for citizenship in the state where they live, rather than having to go through the central government.<br /> Hindus from Pakistan qualify for a fast track to citizenship after seven years in the country.<br /> But bureaucratic delays have meant the process of getting it can take longer to complete.<br /> Khanaramji, 64, became an Indian citizen in 2005 after fleeing Pakistan in 1997.<br /> He said many others had given up and returned to Pakistan, disillusioned by life in India.<br /> "There is no assistance from the government. We are just like cattle with no owners. We are just surviving on our own," he said.<br /> Worse even than the poverty is the suspicion from authorities.<br /> "Those who do not have citizenship are harassed by (intelligence) agencies. They are always treated like suspects and agents of Pakistan," said Khanaramji, who goes by only one name.<br /> "They spend most of what they earn on going to police stations and agency offices."<br /> Hindu Singh Sodha, who runs a charity in Jodhpur for Pakistani Hindus seeking to settle in India, said they had high hopes of Modi when he came to office in 2014, but had been disappointed.<br /> The migrants still come under increased scrutiny whenever tensions flare between India and Pakistan — a frequent occurrence under the Modi government.<br /> "Their life becomes hell," he said.<br /> "Because everything is affected. Their shelter, healthcare, access to education, their livelihood."<br /> <br /> But some feel even that is worth tolerating.<br /> Horoji fled to India with his two adult sons two years ago after receiving death threats from the family's Muslim neighbours in Pakistan.<br /> <br /> "To save our lives, we had to run to India," said 65-year-old Horoji, whose grandparents were originally from present-day India but found themselves on the wrong side of the border at partition.<br /> "My grandfather had gone to the other side for work. But he had told us to move to India when the right time comes as he had sensed times would not be safe for Hindus in future."

'Partition is not over': Pakistani Hindus

For decades, Jogdas dreamed of moving to India to escape the persecution he suffered as a Hindu in Muslim Pakistan. But the reality of life ...

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Exclusive: Trump administration to allow 872 refugees into U.S. this week - document leftright 2/2leftright

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zkFsM3nNKZw/WI_nRnmVe0I/AAAAAAAAB2Q/JsL2MpCIKMYRoCi_pTwxIK6FFWn4SCZsQCLcB/s1600/download.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zkFsM3nNKZw/WI_nRnmVe0I/AAAAAAAAB2Q/JsL2MpCIKMYRoCi_pTwxIK6FFWn4SCZsQCLcB/s640/download.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">International travelers arrive after U.S. President Donald Trump's executive order travel ban at Logan Airport in Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. January 30, 2017. REUTERS/Brian Snyder</td></tr> </tbody></table> <br /> The U.S. government has granted waivers to let 872 refugees into the country this week, despite President Donald Trump's executive order on Friday temporarily banning entry of refugees from any country, according to an internal Department of Homeland Security document seen by Reuters.<br /> <br /> A Homeland Security official, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed the waivers, noting that the refugees were considered "in transit" and had already been cleared for resettlement before the ban took effect.<br /> <br /> Refugees preparing for resettlement typically have severed personal ties and relinquished their possessions, leaving them particularly vulnerable if their plans to depart are suddenly canceled.<br /> <br /> The waivers, granted by the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), came amid international protests against Trump's rushed executive order. Critics said the order in some cases was not clearly communicated to the agencies responsible for implementing it.<br /> <br /> It was not known if additional waivers would be granted, the official said. The document did not give the nationalities of the refugees who will be admitted into the United States.<br /> <br /> Over the weekend, non-refugee visitors from seven majority-Muslim countries also targeted in Trump's executive order were detained, deported and in some cases blocked from boarding flights to the United States.<br /> <br /> The countries covered by the traveler ban were Iran, Iraq, Syria, Sudan, Somalia, Libya and Yemen.<br /> <br /> The internal DHS document said that between late Friday and early Monday 348 visa holders were prevented from boarding U.S.-bound flights. In addition, more than 200 people landed in the United States but were denied entry, the document showed.<br /> <br /> More than 735 people were pulled aside for questioning by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers in airports, including 394 legal permanent U.S. residents holding green cards, over the same time period.<br /> <br /> Trump said the executive order he signed on Friday was designed to protect the United States "from foreign terrorist entry."<br /> <br /> The order stopped all refugee admissions for 120 days while government officials determine how to ensure that any refugees admitted do not pose a threat.<br /> <br /> The 872 refugees to be admitted this week, under the waivers, were screened using Obama administration procedures, which typically take two years and include several interviews and a background check.<br /> <br /> The DHS said on Sunday night that green card holders would be allowed to board U.S.-bound flights, but would be subjected to additional scrutiny upon arrival.<br /> <br /> The public guidance from DHS also said some people from the seven majority-Muslim countries could be allowed entry to the United States on a case-by-case basis.<br /> <br /> Congressional Democrats and some foreign countries, including key U.S. allies, put pressure on Trump on Monday over the executive order.<br /> <br /> Democratic Senators tried to force a vote on a bill to rescind the order, but were blocked by a Republican lawmaker. Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein said she had 27 co-sponsors for the legislation. But under Senate rules it takes only one member to prevent a vote, and Republican Senator Tom Cotton blocked consideration of the measure.<br /> <br /> The Democrats' leader in the U.S. Senate, Chuck Schumer, said he would bring legislation on Monday evening seeking to end the ban, although the measure stood little chance of being passed by the Republican-led Congress.<br /> (Reporting by Julia Edwards Ainsley; Editing by Kevin Drawbaugh and Jonathan Oatis)

Exclusive: Trump administration to allow 872 refugees into U.S. this week - document leftright 2/2leftright

International travelers arrive after U.S. President Donald Trump's executive order travel ban at Logan Airport in Boston, Massachusett...

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Tens of thousands in U.S. cities protest Trump immigration order

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TRPKEAjOvxA/WI6RdaL3WXI/AAAAAAAAB0A/qSQOzzjPK-UKop8CUqt3wToF5dSxLJjRwCLcB/s1600/cv.jpg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="379" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TRPKEAjOvxA/WI6RdaL3WXI/AAAAAAAAB0A/qSQOzzjPK-UKop8CUqt3wToF5dSxLJjRwCLcB/s640/cv.jpg.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dozens of pro-immigration demonstrators cheer and hold sign as international passengers arrive at Dulles International Airport, to protest President Donald Trump's executive order baring visitors, refugees and immigrants from certain countries to the United States, in Chantilly, Virginia, in suburban Washington, U.S., January 29, 2017. REUTERS/Mike Theiler - RTSXYFU</td></tr> </tbody></table> <br /> Tens of thousands of people rallied in U.S. cities and at airports on Sunday to voice outrage over President Donald Trump's executive order restricting entry into the country for travelers from seven Muslim-majority nations.<br /> <br /> In New York, Washington and Boston, a second wave of demonstrations followed spontaneous rallies that broke out at U.S. airports on Saturday as U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents began enforcing Trump's directive. The protests spread westward as the day progressed.<br /> <br /> The order, which bars admission of Syrian refugees and suspends travel to the United States from Syria, Iraq, Iran and four other countries on national security grounds, has led to the detention or deportation of hundreds of people arriving at U.S. airports.<br /> <br /> One of the largest of Sunday's protests took place at Battery Park in lower Manhattan, within sight of the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor, long a symbol of welcome to U.S. shores.<br /> <br /> Democratic Senator Charles Schumer of New York told the crowd that Trump's order was un-American and ran counter to the country's core values.<br /> <br /> "What we are talking about here is life and death for so many people," the Senate Democratic leader said. "I will not rest until these horrible orders are repealed."<br /> <br /> The march, estimated to have grown to about 10,000 people, later began heading to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection office in lower Manhattan.<br /> <br /> In Washington, thousands rallied at Lafayette Square across from the White House, chanting: "No hate, no fear, refugees are welcome here."<br /> <br /> It was the second straight weekend that Washington was the scene of protests. Last Saturday, hundreds of thousands of women participated in an anti-Trump rally and march, one of dozens staged across the country.<br /> <br /> On Sunday, many of the protesters left the White House area and marched along Pennsylvania Avenue, stopping at the Trump International Hotel where they shouted: "Shame, shame, shame."<br /> <br /> A crowd that police estimated at 8,000 people eventually arrived at the steps of the U.S. Capitol, where a line of uniformed officers stood guard.<br /> <br /> As the crowd passed the Canadian Embassy en route to the Capitol, protesters chanted: "Hey hey, ho ho, I wish our leader was Trudeau." It was a reference to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's Saturday Twitter message affirming his country's welcoming policy toward refugees.<br /> <br /> Trump defended the executive order in a statement on Sunday, saying the United States would resume issuing visas to all countries once secure policies were put in place over the next 90 days.<br /> <br /> "To be clear, this is not a Muslim ban, as the media is falsely reporting," Trump said. "This is not about religion - this is about terror and keeping our country safe."<br /> <br /> 'NEVER AGAIN MEANS NEVER'<br /> <br /> Aria Grabowski, 30, of Washington, was carrying a sign that read: “Never again means never again for everyone.”<br /> <br /> Above the slogan was a photograph of Jewish refugees who fled Germany in 1939 on a ship that was turned away from Havana, Cuba, and forced to return to Europe. More than 250 people aboard the ship were eventually killed by the Nazis.<br /> <br /> About 200 protesters chanted on Sunday afternoon at Washington Dulles International Airport in northern Virginia near the U.S. capital.<br /> <br /> About the same number gathered at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport, where anxious families awaited relatives detained for hours after flights from countries affected by the presidential order.<br /> <br /> At Los Angeles International Airport, hundreds of people had gathered to protest Trump's order, as chants of "refugees are welcome here" echoed through the arrivals hall.<br /> <br /> Organizers estimated that more than 10,000 people packed Boston's Copley Square to hear Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, a vocal critic of Trump and a leader of the Democratic Party's liberal wing, and other speakers.<br /> <br /> During the protests, dozens of Muslims, some of them kneeling on protest signs, bowed in prayer on rugs laid out on a grassy patch of ground in the square.<br /> <br /> In Houston, which was already filling up with visitors for next Sunday's Super Bowl, about 500 people marched through the downtown.<br /> <br /> Jennifer Fagen, 47, a sociology professor at Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas, said she hoped she did not lose her job for protesting.<br /> <br /> "I'm Jewish, and it's supposed to be 'never again,'" Fagen said, referring to the Holocaust. "Jews should be the first ones to defend Muslims, considering what has happened to us, and it seems it's being repeated under Trump."<br /> <br /> At Detroit Metropolitan Airport, police cordoned off sections of terminal as up to 3,000 demonstrators chanted, "No hate, no fear, refugees are welcome here."<br /> <br /> Among the demonstrators were Wail Aljirafi and his wife, Samyeh Zindani of Ann Arbor, Michigan, and their three children.<br /> <br /> "We want them to feel that they're always included," Zindani, a Yemeni-American, told Reuters.<br /> <br /> In the Detroit suburb of Hamtramck, Michigan, home to a large number of Yemeni immigrant families and the nation's first Muslim-majority city council, at least 600 people rallied outside City Hall.<br /> <br /> Rama Alhoussaini, 23, a Syrian immigrant who lives in nearby Dearborn, said she and her family emigrated to Michigan in 1999 when she was 6 years old.<br /> <br /> "Now for us to see this kind of hatred and bigotry, it breaks my heart," she said. "It makes me feel like I am not wanted here."<br /> <br /> (Additional reporting by Susan Corwall, Ian Simpson and Lesley Wroughton in Washington, Brian Snyder in Boston, Ruthy Munoz in Houston, Chris Francescani in New York, and Serena Maria Daniels in Detroit; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn and Jonathan Oatis)

Tens of thousands in U.S. cities protest Trump immigration order

Dozens of pro-immigration demonstrators cheer and hold sign as international passengers arrive at Dulles International Airport, to protest...

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Two Iraqis lead legal fight against Trump order blocking entry

<br /> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-yDI4oWPWc1A/WI3jlwEDYKI/AAAAAAAABzk/AB25n4wO-jUscgcfrhjdLWgXh283f6sXwCLcB/s1600/x1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-yDI4oWPWc1A/WI3jlwEDYKI/AAAAAAAABzk/AB25n4wO-jUscgcfrhjdLWgXh283f6sXwCLcB/s640/x1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) stands on a railing to address demonstrators protesting U.S. President Donald Trump's executive order travel ban at Logan Airport in Boston. REUTERS/Brian Snyder</td></tr> </tbody></table> <br /> A federal judge blocked the deportation on Saturday of dozens of travelers and refugees from seven Muslim-majority nations, stranded at U.S. airports under an order from President Donald Trump, after a lawsuit filed on behalf of two Iraqis with ties to U.S. security forces.<br /> <br /> In the lawsuit filed in federal court in Brooklyn, New York, the two men challenged Trump's directive on constitutional grounds. The suit said their connections to U.S. forces made them targets in their home country and that the pair had valid visas to enter the United States.<br /> <br /> The lawsuit highlights some of the legal obstacles facing Trump's new administration as it tries to carry out the directive, which the president signed late on Friday to impose a four-month ban on refugees entering the United States and a 90-day hold on travelers from Syria, Iran and five other Muslim-majority countries.<br /> <br /> In an emergency ruling on Saturday, U.S. District Judge Ann Donnelly ordered U.S. authorities to refrain from deporting previously approved refugees as well as "approved holders of valid immigrant and non-immigrant visas and other individuals ... legally authorized to enter the United States" from the countries targeted in Trump's order.<br /> <br /> The American Civil Liberties Union, which sought the temporary stay, said it would help about 100 to 200 people who found themselves detained in transit or at U.S. airports after Trump signed the order.<br /> <br /> "I am directing the government to stop removal if there is someone right now in danger of being removed," Donnelly said in the court hearing. "No one is to be removed in this class."<br /> <br /> U.S. Department of Justice attorney Susan Riley during the hearing said, "This has unfolded with such speed that we haven't had an opportunity to address all the legal issues."<br /> <br /> Many of the people in a huge crowd that had gathered outside the Brooklyn courthouse broke out into cheers after word of the judge's ruling filtered out.<br /> <br /> The U.S. Department of Homeland Security in a statement hours later said only a small fraction of airline passengers arriving in the United States on Saturday were "inconvenienced while enhanced security measures were implemented."<br /> <br /> "These individuals went through enhanced security screenings and are being processed for entry to the United States, consistent with our immigration laws and judicial orders," the statement said.<br /> <br /> The department said Trump's executive order remained in place and that its officers would enforce it.<br /> Separately, a group of state attorneys general were discussing whether to file their own court challenge against Trump's order, officials in three states told Reuters.<br /> <br /> "TARGETED BY TERRORISTS"<br /> <br /> The plight of one of the men who brought the lawsuit, a former U.S. Army interpreter who was detained at John F. Kennedy International Airport, is especially compelling, said David Leopold, a former president of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, who is not involved in the suit.<br /> <br /> "Here is a guy who was a translator who worked for the U.S. military for years, who himself was targeted by terrorists," he said. "It is clear that if he is sent back, he is facing a direct threat to his life."<br /> <br /> That man, Hameed Khalid Darweesh, was released later on Saturday and told a crowd of reporters at JFK Airport that he did not have ill feelings about his detention.<br /> <br /> "America is the greatest nation, the greatest people in the world," he said.<br /> <br /> Darweesh, 53, worked for the U.S. Army and for a U.S. contractor in Iraq from 2003 to 2013 as an interpreter and engineer, the lawsuit said.<br /> <br /> The second plaintiff, Haider Sameer Abdulkhaleq Alshawi, 33, was also detained at JFK Airport but has since been released. He is the husband of an Iraqi woman who worked for a U.S. contractor in Iraq. She already lives in Houston, the suit said.<br /> <br /> Trump, a Republican, has said his order would help protect Americans from terrorist attacks.<br /> <br /> The lawsuit on behalf of the Iraqis challenges Trump's order on several grounds. It says the order violates the U.S. Constitution's guarantee of due process by taking away their ability to apply for asylum, and violates the guarantee of equal protection by discriminating against them on the basis of their country of origin without sufficient justification.<br /> <br /> It also says the order violates procedural requirements of federal rulemaking.<br /> <br /> The next hearing in the case was set for Feb. 10.<br /> <br /> Supporters of the order say the president has wide authority to limit the entry of foreign nationals from specific countries when it is in the national interest.<br /> <br /> "Even if they do and they win, my answer is so what?" said Mark Krikorian, the director of the conservative Center for Immigration Studies.<br /> <br /> "We are talking a few dozen people – that is just a last-ditch effort to get the last few people in. It doesn’t really change the policy," he said.<br /> <br /> Trump's order does not mention specific religions but Trump said in an interview with the Christian Broadcasting Network on Friday he was acting to help Christians in Syria who were "horribly treated."<br /> <br /> Comments like that could come back to haunt the president in litigation over his order, said Hiroshi Motomura, an immigration expert at UCLA School of Law.<br /> <br /> "There were comments during the campaign that focused very much on religion as the target," Motomura said. "If the record showed that the origins of a particular measure were based on targeting a particular group, that could be challenged in court."<br /> <br /> (Reporting by David Ingram and Mica Rosenberg; Additional reporting by Doina Chiacu in Washington and Jonathan Allen and Andrew Chung in New York, Writing by Alex Dobuzinskis; Editing by Franklin Paul, Nick Zieminski, Paul Tait and Susan Fenton)

Two Iraqis lead legal fight against Trump order blocking entry

Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) stands on a railing to address demonstrators protesting U.S. President Donald Trump's executive order...

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Trump moving on NAFTA, won't release tax returns; WH closer to moving embassy to Jerusalem

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BDkP_jEYhs4/WIVxSY15mnI/AAAAAAAABwo/_XkTeJnEX-IWaoBYMI9YGZlX3mOzFu4ZwCLcB/s1600/694940094001_5292037098001_President-Trump-slams-media-during-speech-to-the-CIA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BDkP_jEYhs4/WIVxSY15mnI/AAAAAAAABwo/_XkTeJnEX-IWaoBYMI9YGZlX3mOzFu4ZwCLcB/s400/694940094001_5292037098001_President-Trump-slams-media-during-speech-to-the-CIA.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> <br /> President Trump said Sunday that he’ll discuss immigration and renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement when he meets soon with the leaders of Canada and Mexico, part of a busy fourth day for his administration.<br /> <br /> “Anybody ever hear of NAFTA,” Trump said during a White House swearing-in of several top administration officials including senior adviser Kellyanne Conway. “I ran a campaign somewhat based on NAFTA, on immigration and security at the border. And Mexico has been terrific.”<br /> <br /> The president will meet on Jan. 31 with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto, according to the White House.<br /> <br /> To be sure, Trump ran for office on a pledge to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border and have Mexico pay for it. And he reiterated that promise following the election.<br /> <br /> The president is also expected to meet soon with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, whose country is also a partner in NAFTA.<br /> <br /> Trump has blamed the three-nation trade pact for disadvantaging American workers and leading companies to move out of the United States.<br /> <br /> Earlier in the day, White House officials said that they are having preliminary discussions about plans to move the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and, separately, that President Trump will not release his tax returns.<br /> <br /> The statement about officials being at the “very beginning” of discussions on possibly moving the embassy follows reports in Israeli media that Trump had imminent plans to announce the move.<br /> <br /> Trump, who has said he would move the embassy to Jerusalem, spoke Sunday to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu by telephone.<br /> <br /> Previous presidential candidates also have promised to make the embassy move. But presidents have avoided following through on that pledge in part because of concerns that it would inflame tensions in the Middle East.<br /> <br /> In addition, Conway said Sunday that Trump won’t release his tax returns, appearing to shut the door on a decades-long tradition of transparency.<br /> <br /> Every president since 1976 has released their returns. During the campaign, Trump refused to make his filings public, saying they were under audit by the Internal Revenue Service and saying he'd release them after that review is complete.<br /> <br /> Conway was asked Sunday about a petition on the White House website signed by more than 200,000 people calling for Trump to release his returns.<br /> <br /> "The White House response is that he's not going to release his tax returns," she said on ABC’s “This Week.” "We litigated this all through the election. People didn't care."<br /> <br /> However, polls appear to show a majority of Americans want Trump to release the returns.

Trump moving on NAFTA, won't release tax returns; WH closer to moving embassy to Jerusalem

President Trump said Sunday that he’ll discuss immigration and renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement when he meets soon w...

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In challenge to Trump, women protesters swarm streets across U.S

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iPVLR63aDbg/WIQJw7bK-gI/AAAAAAAABus/eF2Fr8PW8PwJWLussqlQenRhfyv332KRgCLcB/s1600/download%2B%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iPVLR63aDbg/WIQJw7bK-gI/AAAAAAAABus/eF2Fr8PW8PwJWLussqlQenRhfyv332KRgCLcB/s640/download%2B%25282%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Madonna performs at the Women's March in Washington U.S., January 21, 2017. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton</td></tr> </tbody></table> <br /> Women took to the streets in unexpectedly large numbers in major U.S. cities on Saturday in mass protests against U.S. President Donald Trump, in an early indication of the strong opposition the Republican may face in office.<br /> <br /> Hundreds of thousands of women - many wearing pink knit hats to evoke comments by Trump that were triggered outrage among many women - filled long stretches of downtown Washington around the White House and National Mall. Hundreds of thousands more women thronged New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Boston to rebuke Trump on his first full day in office.<br /> <br /> Trump has angered many liberal Americans with comments seen as demeaning to women, Mexicans and Muslims, and worried some abroad with his inaugural vow on Friday to put "America First" in his decision-making.<br /> <br /> The Women's March on Washington appeared to be larger than the crowds that turned a day earlier to witness Trump's inauguration on the steps of the U.S. Capitol. No official estimates of the crowd size were available, but the demonstrators appeared to easily exceed the 200,000 organizers had expected.<br /> <br /> In Los Angeles the Sister March estimated it drew 750,000 demonstrators, and a planned march in Chicago grew so large that organizers did not attempt to parade through the streets but instead staged a rally. Police said more than 125,000 people attended.<br /> <br /> The protests illustrated the depth of the division in the country, which is still reeling from the bitterly fought 2016 election campaign. Trump stunned the world by defeating Democrat Hillary Clinton, the first woman nominated for president by a major U.S. party.<br /> <br /> Pam Foyster, a resident of Ridgway, Colorado, said Saturday's atmosphere in Washington reminded her of the protests of the 1960s against the Vietnam War.<br /> <br /> "I'm 58 years old and I can't believe we are having to do this again," Foyster said. She said that after the Vietnam War the push for women's rights and civil rights made her "believe anything was possible. But here we are again."<br /> <br /> Although Republicans now control the White House and both houses of Congress, Trump faces entrenched opposition from segments of the public as he starts his term, in contrast to the honeymoon period that a new president typically experiences at the outset.<br /> <br /> A recent ABC News/Washington Post poll found Trump had the lowest favorability rating of any incoming U.S. president since the 1970s.<br /> <br /> Tens of thousands of protesters filled streets of midtown Manhattan, while around the world thousands of women took to the streets of Sydney, London, Tokyo and other cities in Europe and Asia in "sister marches" against Trump.<br /> <br /> Trump, in a Twitter post on Saturday, wrote, "I am honored to serve you, the great American People, as your 45th President of the United States!" He made no mention of the protests. Trump attended an interfaith service at Washington National Cathedral and then visited the Central Intelligence Agency headquarters.<br /> <br /> SUBWAY OVERWHELMED<br /> <br /> The Washington march stressed the city's Metro subway system, with riders reporting enormous crowds and some end-of-line stations temporarily turning people away when parking lots filled and platforms became overcrowded.<br /> <br /> The Metro reported 275,000 rides as of 11 a.m. Saturday, 82,000 more than the 193,000 reported at the same time on Friday, the day of Trump's inauguration, and eight times normal Saturday volume.<br /> <br /> No official crowd estimates were available from the National Park Service or Washington police.<br /> <br /> Trump on Saturday angrily attacked media reports, including photos, that showed crowds at Friday's inaugural had been smaller than those seen in 2009 and 2013 when Barack Obama was inaugurated for his first and second terms as president. Overhead photos of the area showed significantly smaller crowds on Friday compared with Obama's first inauguration eight years ago.<br /> <br /> SUBWAY OVERWHELMED<br /> <br /> The Washington march stressed the city's Metro subway system, with riders reporting enormous crowds and some end-of-line stations temporarily turning people away when parking lots filled and platforms became overcrowded.<br /> <br /> The Metro reported 275,000 rides as of 11 a.m. Saturday, 82,000 more than the 193,000 reported at the same time on Friday, the day of Trump's inauguration, and eight times normal Saturday volume.<br /> <br /> No official crowd estimates were available from the National Park Service or Washington police.<br /> <br /> Trump on Saturday angrily attacked media reports, including photos, that showed crowds at Friday's inaugural had been smaller than those seen in 2009 and 2013 when Barack Obama was inaugurated for his first and second terms as president. Overhead photos of the area showed significantly smaller crowds on Friday compared with Obama's first inauguration eight years ago.

In challenge to Trump, women protesters swarm streets across U.S

Madonna performs at the Women's March in Washington U.S., January 21, 2017. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton Women took to the streets in ...

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Trump is now president, but he still sees himself as leading an insurgency

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ZrfaIke6zFQ/WILPGkzUNNI/AAAAAAAABtU/RTi2xSWn9kUR0EBa-d4KnjYWjjD8aagSQCLcB/s1600/download.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ZrfaIke6zFQ/WILPGkzUNNI/AAAAAAAABtU/RTi2xSWn9kUR0EBa-d4KnjYWjjD8aagSQCLcB/s400/download.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: 12.8px;">Donald J. Trump arrives at the inauguration ceremonies swearing him in as the 45th president of the United States at the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C., January 20, 2017. REUTERS/Doug Mills/Pool</span></td></tr> </tbody></table> <br /> Donald Trump took over as U.S. president on Friday in the same way he conducted his upstart campaign, with a mixture of blustery salesmanship and naked contempt for the established political order.<br /> <br /> In doing so, he sent a clear signal to the country and the world: He plans to govern as he campaigned, refusing to align himself even with his own Republican Party and taking his message directly to the American people.<br /> <br /> He did nothing to dispel concerns that he would bring the cult of personality he built over the election campaign into the White House, and he offered little in the way of olive branches to the tens of millions of Americans who did not vote for him in the most divisive election in modern U.S. history.<br /> <br /> A former reality TV star, Trump offered an apocalyptic vision of reality: an America besieged by crime, immigration, terrorism and unfair trade deals.<br /> <br /> "The American carnage stops right here and stops right now," he pledged, as he presented himself as a champion of the ordinary American.<br /> <br /> The gloomy picture Trump sketched of the nation flies in the face of evidence that the economy is in healthy shape, crime is down and the nation is relatively safe and secure.<br /> <br /> After warning the public on the extent of the problems, Trump suggested, as he did during his campaign, that he and his "movement" are the only solution. He did not mention the Republicans in Congress with whom he will partner to govern and certainly not the Democrats who have fiercely opposed him.<br /> <br /> Trump campaigned as an outsider, railing against the sins of both his Republican Party and the Democratic Party. And, it became clear as he delivered his speech on the steps of the Capitol, that he intends to remain that outsider, the rebel leader who takes power with one foot still on the battlefield.<br /> <br /> Continuing the populist themes from his campaign, he condemned the politicians who he said have for years prospered at the expense of the public.<br /> <br /> He eschewed the high-flying rhetoric typical of such occasions in favor of more blunt, populist declarations.<br /> <br /> "Politicians prospered - but the jobs left, and the factories closed," he said. "The establishment protected itself, but not the citizens of our country."<br /> <br /> "We are transferring power from Washington D.C. and giving it back to you, the American people."<br /> <br /> Aundrea Friedley, 52, of Nampa, Idaho, who was in the crowd watching his speech, likened it to a “powerful punch” and praised Trump for returning power to the people.<br /> <br />      Trump won the majority of the U.S. Electoral College vote, but lost the popular vote to his opponent, Hillary Clinton, by nearly 3 million votes, making any attempt to unify the country that much more difficult. <br /> <br /> 'AMERICA FIRST'<br /> <br /> "We assembled here today are issuing a new decree to be heard in every city, in every foreign capital and in every hall of power," Trump said. "From this day forward a new vision will govern our land. From this moment on, it's going to be America First."<br /> <br /> His proposals though for ramped-up infrastructure spending, strong border controls and the strong isolationist tone of his speech may not jibe with traditional Republican priorities.<br /> <br /> At the same time, however, Trump has assuaged nervous Republicans by selecting a Cabinet that has largely affirmed bedrock conservative principals, and he plans to quickly begin signing executive orders designed to roll back some of former President Barack Obama’s progressive policies.<br /> <br /> In Trump's speech, historians said, there were echoes of Franklin D. Roosevelt with Trump mentioning "the forgotten" Americans left behind by the forces of trade and globalization, of Richard Nixon's "silent majority", and of Ronald Reagan’s pledge to restore the nation's greatness.<br /> <br /> But, said Julian Zelizer, a historian at Princeton University, there was also "more anger physically and verbally than in the past" with Trump punctuating his speech with pointed hand gestures.<br /> <br /> Trump spent little time trying to expand his appeal to the majority of Americans who view him unfavorably, according to opinion polls. Instead, he appeared to speak directly to his most fervent supporters.<br /> <br /> His speech perhaps was most reflective of Reagan’s 1981 address, in which the then-president spoke of “economic affliction” and “idle industries.”But Reagan inherited an economy struggling with stagflation and an unemployment rate of 7.5 percent. By contrast, under the departing Obama, the economy has added private sector jobs in 80 consecutive months and the unemployment rate stands at 4.7 percent.<br /> <br /> The picture painted by Trump "is probably not one that every American shares," said Thomas Alan Schwartz, a presidential historian at Vanderbilt University. Still, he said, Trump has tapped into a “sense of national crisis and decline.”<br /> <br />    Belinda Bee, 56, came to see Trump from Mooresville, North Carolina, saying she believed he would successfully combat Islamic terrorism and that he would remain a political outsider.<br /> <br /> “The country now belongs to the people and not the politicians,” she said.<br /> <br />

Trump is now president, but he still sees himself as leading an insurgency

Donald J. Trump arrives at the inauguration ceremonies swearing him in as the 45th president of the United States at the United States Cap...

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President Bush in the ICU: Why Does Pneumonia Strike Older Adults?

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Yb8zpF9FQx8/WIARol0sNrI/AAAAAAAABr8/n8oPA5Ixw4UAb66rsoF00VfrUXwjoA3UQCLcB/s1600/george-hw-bush.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Yb8zpF9FQx8/WIARol0sNrI/AAAAAAAABr8/n8oPA5Ixw4UAb66rsoF00VfrUXwjoA3UQCLcB/s400/george-hw-bush.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <br /></div> Former President George H.W. Bush was hospitalized on Jan. 14 following a bout of pneumonia, CNN reported today (Jan. 18).<br /> <br /> In addition, Bush's wife, former first lady Barbara Bush, was admitted to the hospital today as a precaution because she was experiencing "fatigue and coughing," according to CNN.<br /> <br /> The 41st president turned 92 last summer, and Barbara Bush is 91. Why does pneumonia often strike older adults?<br /> <br /> One reason is that a person's immunity declines after age 50, "so it wouldn't be surprising if someone who's over 90 would have a reduced immunity," said Dr. Len Horovitz, a pulmonary specialist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City who has not treated either of the Bushes.<br /> <br /> Pneumonia, which is characterized by inflammation of the lungs, is more common in the winter, Horovitz told Live Science. And, there are also many other respiratory illnesses, including the flu and common cold viruses, that are circulating at this time of year, he said.<br /> <br /> Doctors "always hospitalize" elderly individuals if they get pneumonia, and hospitalization is particularly important if the person also has other medical problems, Horovitz said.<br /> <br /> Although he isn't familiar with Bush's specific health conditions, Horovitz noted that the former president uses a wheelchair. This could mean that Bush also has neurological health problems, which could in turn mean that his cough may not be as effective at clearing mucus or secretions from the lungs as someone who is stronger, he said. (In fact, Bush does have a type of Parkinson's disease, according to CNN.)<br /> <br /> Exactly what treatment is used for someone with pneumonia depends on whether that person's disease is caused by a virus or bacterium, Horovitz said. Viral pneumonia tends to be more contagious, but also typically causes a less severe infection than bacterial pneumonia, he said. Oftentimes, doctors will give a patient an antibiotic — even before test results come back to determine if the cause is viral or bacterial — "to cover, just in case it does turn out to bacterial," he said.<br /> <br /> For older adults with pneumonia, doctors "have to be a little guarded" about giving a definitive prognosis, Horovitz said. "Pneumonia is not always straightforward, and in someone who's fragile with a compromised immune system because [he or she is] elderly, there's always a worry" that the individual may develop complications, he said.<br /> <br /> Bacterial pneumonia, for example, can get into a person's bloodstream and spread through the body, Horovitz said. Complications can include kidney failure and abscess formation, he said.<br /> <br /> The disease can trigger a cascade of events that lead to "a multipronged assault" on the body, he said.<br /> <br /> For older adults, however, vaccines are available that protect against certain types of bacterial pneumonia, he said. All adults over age 65 should get the vaccine, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

President Bush in the ICU: Why Does Pneumonia Strike Older Adults?

Former President George H.W. Bush was hospitalized on Jan. 14 following a bout of pneumonia, CNN reported today (Jan. 18). In addition...

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Dead, partially skinned zebra discovered after washing up on California beach

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-APrp8r7dBqc/WH17bvy93XI/AAAAAAAABpk/OrgA3AbfnrQihBX4JPhimVDL0cZ0SpshgCLcB/s1600/namibia-zebra-migration%2B%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="277" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-APrp8r7dBqc/WH17bvy93XI/AAAAAAAABpk/OrgA3AbfnrQihBX4JPhimVDL0cZ0SpshgCLcB/s400/namibia-zebra-migration%2B%25281%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> <br /> A partially skinned dead zebra was found washed up on the rocky shore of a northern California beach on Saturday, authorities said.<br /> <br /> Photos of the surreal sight on San Simeon beach near Hearst Castle quickly circulated on social media and led to an investigation by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff.<br /> <br /> No foul play is suspected in the animal's death, though the skinning remains a mystery, officials said.<br /> <br /> The animal was part of a herd that's often seen roaming the hillsides near Hearst Castle. It's believed the zebra died on the landmark property during some recent storms and was carried down to the shore by Pico Creek.<br /> "We believe this was a natural death of a zebra that washed out to sea," Sgt. Tony Perry told the Daily News on Monday.<br /> <br /> "The Hearst Ranch is the adjacent property, and Pico Creek has become recently swollen due to all the rain that has fallen."<br /> <br /> The removal of large sections of the zebra's hide appeared to be something that took place after the animal's death, authorities said.<br /> <br /> Hearst officials made no immediate request for an investigation into the skinning, according to KSBY.<br /> <br /> The herd of zebras on the Hearst property is a remnant of the newspaper magnate's personal collection of exotic animals.<br /> <br /> The zoo was disbanded in 1937, and most of the animals were sold off. The zebras were released to graze the grassy hillsides and found a way to thrive mostly on their own.

Dead, partially skinned zebra discovered after washing up on California beach

A partially skinned dead zebra was found washed up on the rocky shore of a northern California beach on Saturday, authorities said. Pho...

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UK’s Prince Charles co-authors “Ladybird” guide to climate change

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WvcwpBA-0wo/WH125-1uPgI/AAAAAAAABpI/FKhirjjOfI8aQBfBzwpXJol6aQwB2CrrgCLcB/s1600/Prince-Charles.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="296" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WvcwpBA-0wo/WH125-1uPgI/AAAAAAAABpI/FKhirjjOfI8aQBfBzwpXJol6aQwB2CrrgCLcB/s400/Prince-Charles.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> <br /> LONDON: Britain’s Prince Charles, a vocal environmental campaigner, has co-authored a basic guide to the problems posed by climate change.<br /> <br /> Charles, 68, has written “The Ladybird Introduction to Climate Change” with the help of former Friends of the Earth director Tony Juniper and polar scientist Emily Shuckburgh.<br /> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: georgia, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px;"> The heir to the throne has long been a fierce critic of climate change sceptics and the cover image of the book shows a drawing of the village of Uckfield in southern England, which suffered extensive flood damage in 2000.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: georgia, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px;"> Ladybird books were popular children’s guides in the 1960s and 70s and publishers Penguin have now launched a new Ladybird Expert series of basic guides of which Charles’ book is one of the first.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: georgia, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px;"> The book, which goes on sale later this month, has been extensively peer-reviewed by figures within the environmental community, said a Penguin spokesman.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: georgia, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px;"> Charles’ earlier forays into print include a 1980s children’s book, “The Old Man of Lochnagar,” which was made into an animated film by the BBC.</div>

UK’s Prince Charles co-authors “Ladybird” guide to climate change

LONDON: Britain’s Prince Charles, a vocal environmental campaigner, has co-authored a basic guide to the problems posed by climate change...

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Pakistani mother sentenced to death for burning daughter alive in “honour killing”

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4IRlSFTGZD0/WH108O6QS8I/AAAAAAAABo8/vOb9xUYmR9sU7ggxLmJJhTqjzSrRRlZmQCLcB/s1600/article-doc-a88f9-1AyYTcHVAh4a72cd035c20d7f03e-565_634x411.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="258" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4IRlSFTGZD0/WH108O6QS8I/AAAAAAAABo8/vOb9xUYmR9sU7ggxLmJJhTqjzSrRRlZmQCLcB/s400/article-doc-a88f9-1AyYTcHVAh4a72cd035c20d7f03e-565_634x411.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: georgia, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px;"> <strong style="box-sizing: border-box;"><br /></strong></div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: georgia, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px;"> <strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">LAHORE:</strong> A court in Pakistan sentenced a mother to death on Monday for burning her daughter alive as punishment for marrying without the family’s consent.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: georgia, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px;"> Parveen Bibi confessed before a special court in the city of Lahore to killing her daughter in June for what she said was “bringing shame to the family”.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: georgia, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px;"> Police said 18-year-old Zeenat Rafiq married Hassan Khan and eloped to live with his family a week before she was killed.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: georgia, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px;"> The court sentenced Rafiq’s brother Anees to life in prison after the evidence showed her mother and brother had first beaten her, before her mother threw kerosene on her and set her on fire.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: georgia, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px;"> After Rafiq’s murder in a poor district of Lahore, none of her relatives sought to claim her body, police said, leaving her husband’s family to bury her charred remains after dark in a graveyard near the city.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: georgia, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px;"> Violence against women is rampant in Pakistan, according to the independent Human Rights Commission of Pakistan. Citing media reports, it said there were more than 1,100 “honour killings” in 2015.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: georgia, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px;"> Pakistan’s parliament passed legislation against “honour killings” in October, three months after the murder of outspoken social media star Qandeel Baloch. Her brother was arrested in relation to her strangling death in July.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: georgia, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px;"> Perceived damage to a family’s “honour” can involve eloping, fraternizing with men or other breaches of conservative values.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: georgia, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px;"> In most cases, the victim is a woman and the killer is a relative who escapes punishment by seeking forgiveness for the crime from family members.</div> <div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: georgia, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px;"> Under the new law, relatives can forgive convicts in the case of a death sentence, but they would still have to face a mandatory life sentence.</div>

Pakistani mother sentenced to death for burning daughter alive in “honour killing”

LAHORE:  A court in Pakistan sentenced a mother to death on Monday for burning her daughter alive as punishment for marrying without th...

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Water, power crises cut short romance with snow

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MpZiJ0vNGi0/WHwfG506yaI/AAAAAAAABng/DU0GUhEuaU8Qg3Wzk8bbO8aKdq4EaWvzQCLcB/s1600/about-shimla.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="206" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MpZiJ0vNGi0/WHwfG506yaI/AAAAAAAABng/DU0GUhEuaU8Qg3Wzk8bbO8aKdq4EaWvzQCLcB/s400/about-shimla.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <br /></div> INDIA, SHIMLA: The romance of the snow may be a major draw for tourists, but ask locals and they will tell you the flipside of the snowfall. Locals swear how there is a huge difference between playing in the snow for a day or two and living with the snow for days together.<br /> <br /> The recent spell of snow in the western Himalayas lured thousands of tourists to popular tourist spots of Shimla, Manali and Dalhousie. But things were not as rosy as they seem for locals, who were forced to go without water and electricity in freezing temperature. In fact, even tourists who rushed to hill stations in droves after the January 6 snowfall visualised a blanket of pristine white, but what they got was a slippery mess and a bone-chilling cold they had probably never experienced. While five migrant labourers from Bihar died of asphyxiation as they kept a coal heater inside the room and fell asleep, two students of the National Institute of Technology (NIT) at Hamirpur in Himachal Pradesh found themselves stranded in heavy snowfall at Shikari Devi temple, located at an altitude of 12,000 feet in Mandi district. A 28-member rescue team had to walk 36 km amid 5 to 10 feet deep snow only to find them dead. More than 400 tourists from the plains were trapped between Manali and Solang, close to Rohtang Pass as the snow covered roads didn't allow vehicles to move.<br /> <br /> The locals came to their rescue and provided them with shelter, food and heating arrangements. Manoj Dua, a tourist from Delhi, who was trapped in Solang area of Kullu district with his family, said: "We found ourselves stranded after the sudden increase in snowfall, which left the road too slippery to allow vehicle movement in the area."<br /> <div> <br /></div> <div> <div> In the heavy snowfall, taxi drivers charged Rs 15,000 from tourists to take them to Manali from Patlikuhl, a new tourist destination just 16-odd kilometres from Manali. On normal days, the fare is not more than Rs 700.</div> <div> In Shimla district, around 230 tourists stranded between Faggu and Kufri on January 9 were rescued by Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) personnel. As if getting stuck was not enough, tourists also found themselves devoid of water and electricity. Hotel and Restaurant Owners Association (North India) president Sanjay Sood said, "Shimla and neighbouring areas faced a weeklong blackout. Phone batteries gave out and houses turned into cold prisons without heating arrangements."</div> <div> At least tourists who find their dream of playing in the snow soured have the option of leaving. But area residents can only wait for the sun to shine.</div> <div> Suman Thakur, a resident of Jakhu, said they have been melting snow for around a week as frozen water pipes have stopped water supply. "Each winter, the snow causes problems. But we have to live with it," she said.</div> </div>

Water, power crises cut short romance with snow

INDIA, SHIMLA: The romance of the snow may be a major draw for tourists, but ask locals and they will tell you the flipside of the snowf...

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Sports hall roof collapses during match in Czech Republic

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JCQxfE8h1UE/WHwcGPuJJXI/AAAAAAAABnI/WTuiZZhGwSA1NnObk7YPW8sZZcBRgXhzACEw/s1600/132281-93580151p04plr02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="223" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JCQxfE8h1UE/WHwcGPuJJXI/AAAAAAAABnI/WTuiZZhGwSA1NnObk7YPW8sZZcBRgXhzACEw/s400/132281-93580151p04plr02.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mFwtTXXF7Z4/WHwcGEvIlMI/AAAAAAAABnM/eHzhamYBmsYM-ksKKdka4-0NYgjOrtMFgCLcB/s1600/583d6492c36188d7598b469c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="223" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mFwtTXXF7Z4/WHwcGEvIlMI/AAAAAAAABnM/eHzhamYBmsYM-ksKKdka4-0NYgjOrtMFgCLcB/s400/583d6492c36188d7598b469c.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <br /></div> <div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #404040; font-family: Helmet, Freesans, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 1rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: 1.375; margin-top: 18px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="font-size: 1rem;">A sports hall roof collapsed on Saturday evening during a floorball game in the Czech Republic city of Ceska Trebova.</span></div> <div class="hide-wrapper extra-content" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #404040; font-family: Helmet, Freesans, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <div style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: 1rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; letter-spacing: inherit; line-height: 1.375; margin-top: 18px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> No one was injured by the failure, though two people were hurt escaping the collapsing building.</div> </div>

Sports hall roof collapses during match in Czech Republic

A sports hall roof collapsed on Saturday evening during a floorball game in the Czech Republic city of Ceska Trebova. No one was i...

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Kamiyah Mobley, kidnapped as infant, meets biological parents

CNN News - Kamiyah Mobley and the woman she long believed to be her mother were "always happy, always together" in the small town of Walterboro, South Carolina, family friend Melissa Hiers recalled Saturday.<br /> <br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wqF_6D1jh5M/WHraYmdlh2I/AAAAAAAABk4/WSNWUIlSEOctw0iEBz7-XsfaasZhQ8FZQCLcB/s1600/baby%2Bk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wqF_6D1jh5M/WHraYmdlh2I/AAAAAAAABk4/WSNWUIlSEOctw0iEBz7-XsfaasZhQ8FZQCLcB/s400/baby%2Bk.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> <br /> "They were like best friends," Hiers said.<br /> In Jacksonville, Florida, where Mobley was stolen from her mother as an hours-old infant, her biological mother would bake a birthday cake every year for her missing daughter, Mobley family attorney Wayne Alford told CNN affiliate WJXT-TV.<br /> "(It) would be the happiest thing in the world for me ... to hold my baby and know she's not going nowhere else," Shanara Mobley, sobbing uncontrollably near an empty bassinet and unopened baby toys, told the station after the 1998 abduction.<br /> The story of Mobley's young life has forever altered two families separated by 175 miles along Interstate 95.<br /> <br /> <b>A family is reunited</b><br /> Mobley, 18, met her biological parents for the first time Saturday, WJXT reported.<br /> Her biological father, Craig Aiken, told the station the reunion occurred at the Walterboro Police Department. He said he told his daughter that he loves her.<br /> "The first meeting was beautiful," Aiken told the station. "It's a feeling that you can't explain."<br /> DNA tests this week revealed that Mobley is Aiken's long-lost daughter, the same girl abducted as a newborn from a Florida hospital in July 1998 by a woman posing as a nurse, according to Jacksonville Sheriff Mike Williams.<br /> Gloria Williams, 51, who Mobley believed was her mother, has been charged with kidnapping and interference with custody. She has waived extradition to Florida, WJXT reported.<br /> Authorities said she used fraudulent documents to establish a new identity for Mobley.<br /> <br /> <b>"I love you, Momma'</b><br /> The South Carolina detention center where Williams is being held without bond was the scene of another emotional meeting, this one on Friday.<br /> Separated by a mesh screen, Williams blew a kiss to Mobley during a brief encounter, WJXT reported.<br /> "I love you, Momma," the sobbing teenager told Williams.<br /> For most of her life, Mobley lived under another name; authorities have not released it.<br /> "She's beautiful, just like Gloria, a well-mannered child," Hiers told CNN Saturday, standing outside the detention center to deliver a message of support to Williams.<br /> "She has positive energy. She's just a joy to be around. I know growing up she had the fanciest clothes and she had everything given to her that she wanted."<br /> Hiers said she has known Williams for 16 years. She met Mobley when the girl was 2. Hiers used to braid her hair; Mobley called her "Aunt Missy."<br /> Hiers learned about her friend's arrest from a Facebook post. There must be some mistake, she said.<br /> "She's such a good person," Hiers said of Williams. "If you know her like I know her and the town knows her, this is not something that you would expect from her."<br /> <br /> <b>A typical teenager</b><br /> A neighbor in Walterboro described Mobley as a typical 18-year-old.<br /> Mobley and Williams often got their nails done together, said the neighbor, who asked not to be identified. The teenager graduated from high school and had a steady boyfriend.<br /> The neighbor said Williams was a social worker who always provided for her daughter.<br /> Gloria Williams has been arrested in connection with the abduction.<br /> Gloria Williams has been arrested in connection with the abduction.<br /> Investigators are talking to Williams' extended family in hopes of learning more. It's unclear whether Williams has an attorney.<br /> Mobley, meanwhile, must now deal with the new revelations of her life.<br /> The Jacksonville sheriff said the young woman "had an inclination beginning a couple of months ago" that she may have been abducted.<br /> "She's taking it as well as you can imagine," he said. "She has a lot to process. She has a lot to think about."<br /> Mobley was located after a series of tips late last year to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, according to the sheriff. The FBI assisted in the investigation.<br /> In Jacksonville, her biological parents and grandmother were "extremely excited and overwhelmed with emotion" at the news, the sheriff said.<br /> Mobley seems to be in good health, he said.<br /> <br /> <b>'Bring my baby back'</b><br /> On July 10, 1998 -- the day Mobley disappeared -- a kidnapper dressed as a nurse, in a blue smock with flowers and surgical gloves, was captured in grainy surveillance video at the hospital.<br /> Shanara Mobley, who was 16 at the time, told investigators that a woman she thought was a nurse entered her hospital room.<br /> "The suspect remained in the room with the victim and continued helping her and talking with her," said the incident report filed with the sheriff's office.<br /> The mother asked the woman to place her daughter in a baby carrier but she instead left the room with the child, according to the report. The 8-pound baby girl was wrapped in a pink and blue blanket.<br /> Shanara Mobley believed the woman was a hospital employee. Hospital staff believed the woman was a relative of the Mobleys.<br /> "Please bring my baby back," Shanara Mobley cried during an interview with WJXT at the time. "If you were faking a pregnancy or you just can't have no kids, how do you think I feel. ... That's my first child."<br /> Aiken, then 19, was in jail for lewd assault for having sex with a minor, the station reported. Shanara Mobley was 15 when he got her pregnant.<br /> <br /> <b>Tips over the years</b><br /> The abduction made national headlines. Authorities searched the hospital and surrounding areas. Helicopters were brought in, roadblocks were set up. Hospitals in Jacksonville and beyond increased security in maternity wards, WJXT reported.<br /> Shanara Mobley was awarded $1.5 million after settling a lawsuit against the former University Medical Center, the station reported. She has since had three other children.<br /> Over the years, authorities received more than 2,500 tips in connection with the case. A sample of Mobley's DNA taken at the time of her birth was matched Thursday with a swab taken from the young woman earlier this week.<br /> Hiers, standing outside the South Carolina jail where her friend was being held, said: "I'm praying that it's not true. I hope it's a mix-up."<br /> CNN's Sheena Jones, Connor Spielmaker and Jaide Timm-Garcia contributed to this report.

Kamiyah Mobley, kidnapped as infant, meets biological parents

CNN News - Kamiyah Mobley and the woman she long believed to be her mother were "always happy, always together" in the small town ...

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Note ban hurting Nepal, says envoy

<h4> Upadhyay underlined that domestic politics should not be mixed with foreign relations. “It is harmful for our national interest,” he said.</h4> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-n9y8IFCWsdg/WHoidpYb2qI/AAAAAAAABkY/lTvqYKNwpxg2JAZLfGWPBF_o1rqtv1U4QCLcB/s1600/black-money759.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="221" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-n9y8IFCWsdg/WHoidpYb2qI/AAAAAAAABkY/lTvqYKNwpxg2JAZLfGWPBF_o1rqtv1U4QCLcB/s400/black-money759.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Upadhyay underlined that domestic politics should not be mixed with foreign relations. “It is harmful for our national interest,” he said.</td></tr> </tbody></table> <div> <div style="text-align: left;"> <span style="color: #3e3e3e; font-family: "droid serif" , serif;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: left;"> <span style="color: #3e3e3e; font-family: "droid serif" , serif;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: left;"> <span style="color: #3e3e3e; font-family: "droid serif" , serif;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: left;"> <span style="color: #3e3e3e; font-family: "droid serif" , serif;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: left;"> <span style="color: #3e3e3e; font-family: "droid serif" , serif;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: left;"> <span style="color: #3e3e3e; font-family: "droid serif" , serif;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: left;"> <span style="color: #3e3e3e; font-family: "droid serif" , serif;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: left;"> <span style="color: #3e3e3e; font-family: "droid serif" , serif;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: left;"> <span style="color: #3e3e3e; font-family: "droid serif" , serif;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: left;"> <span style="color: #3e3e3e; font-family: "droid serif" , serif;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: left;"> <span style="color: #3e3e3e; font-family: "droid serif" , serif;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: left;"> <span style="color: #3e3e3e; font-family: "droid serif" , serif;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: left;"> <span style="color: #3e3e3e; font-family: "droid serif" , serif;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: left;"> <span style="color: #3e3e3e; font-family: "droid serif" , serif;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: left;"> <span style="color: #3e3e3e; font-family: "droid serif" , serif;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: left;"> <span style="color: #3e3e3e; font-family: "droid serif" , serif;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: left;"> <span style="color: #3e3e3e; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Nepal’s ambassador Deep K Upadhyay on Friday said that people in his country were facing a lot of hardship due to India’s demonetisation move and failure to resolve the problem soon may erode their faith in the Indian government’s assurances.</span></div> </div> <div> <div style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #3e3e3e; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 28px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 20px;"> <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“They are worried. I have pursued the issue at all levels, including at the diplomatic level. I hope it will be solved soon. I am requesting the government of India, please resolve it as early as possible. Otherwise people may lose their faith in the government of Nepal and naturally in government of India too,” Upadhyay said during an interaction at the Foreign Correspondents Club of South Asia here.</span></div> </div>

Note ban hurting Nepal, says envoy

Upadhyay underlined that domestic politics should not be mixed with foreign relations. “It is harmful for our national interest,” he said. ...

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At least 19 dead, 17 hurt in Ecuador bus crash

<h4> A source at the Integrated Security Service, or ECU-911, said the school vehicle "was not following a route," so it carried no passengers during the accident</h4> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-l5uEhviPiaE/WHogbt0NkbI/AAAAAAAABkM/8erV7AzT3-4yyLRfvTkUGombyTpdDfOqgCLcB/s1600/ecuadort-lead.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="208" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-l5uEhviPiaE/WHogbt0NkbI/AAAAAAAABkM/8erV7AzT3-4yyLRfvTkUGombyTpdDfOqgCLcB/s400/ecuadort-lead.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> <div> <br /></div> <div> <div style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #3e3e3e; font-family: "Droid Serif", serif; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: 28px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 20px;"> At least 19 people died and 17 were injured when a school vehicle collided with a bus in southwestern Ecuador, the national security service said Saturday.</div> <div style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #3e3e3e; font-family: "Droid Serif", serif; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: 28px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 20px;"> A source at the Integrated Security Service, or ECU-911, said the school vehicle “was not following a route,” so it carried no passengers during the accident Friday.</div> <div style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #3e3e3e; font-family: "Droid Serif", serif; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: 28px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 20px;"> The agency did not specify how many passengers were traveling on the interprovincial service bus. An off-road vehicle was also involved in the crash on the road between the southwestern coastal towns of Yaguachi and Milagro. Road accidents are one of the leading causes of death in Ecuador.</div> </div>

At least 19 dead, 17 hurt in Ecuador bus crash

A source at the Integrated Security Service, or ECU-911, said the school vehicle "was not following a route," so it carried no pa...

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Power-hungry Xi Jinping's newfound 'magic wand'

<h3> President dreams up new state institution to crack down on corruption</h3> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9ZboTapHGJw/WHoeJNY7EYI/AAAAAAAABkE/rh4fMZ3M4I0alRJfTDomZEer3SI-EdJMQCLcB/s1600/20160113-Hungry-Xi1_article_main_image.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="282" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9ZboTapHGJw/WHoeJNY7EYI/AAAAAAAABkE/rh4fMZ3M4I0alRJfTDomZEer3SI-EdJMQCLcB/s400/20160113-Hungry-Xi1_article_main_image.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Chinese President Xi Jinping delivers a speech during the plenary session of the Chinese Communist Party's Central Commission for Discipline Inspection in Beijing on Jan. 6 (Xinhua/Kyodo photo).</span></td></tr> </tbody></table> <div> TOKYO -- China's move to establish a new state institution as part of President Xi Jinping's signature anti-corruption campaign is expected to help him retain his right-hand man and further consolidate power.</div> <div> <div> <br /></div> <div> "Ostensibly, the national supervisory commission is to become an institution that is independent of the Communist Party and cracks down on corruption," one Beijing-based researcher said. "But in reality, it will become Xi's magic wand ahead of top-level leadership changes this autumn."</div> <div> <br /></div> <div> The researcher, who is well-versed in issues related to Chinese government and ruling party organizations, also said the institution's future is now a main topic of discussion in Chinese political circles.</div> </div> <div> <div> The national supervisory commission is to be set up in 2018; its details remain shrouded in mystery.</div> <div> <br /></div> <div> The Chinese Communist Party's Central Commission for Discipline Inspection wrapped up an annual plenary session on Jan. 8. It adopted a communique vowing to push the enactment of a national supervision law and make preparations for the establishment of the new institution.</div> <div> <br /></div> <div> The current administrative supervision law is to be abolished and replaced by the national supervision law, which will target all those in public office.</div> <div> <br /></div> <div> The Ministry of Supervision, which answers to the State Council, China's cabinet, is also to be disbanded.</div> <div> <br /></div> <div> Li Shulei, a prominent 52-year-old policy adviser to Xi, was promoted to deputy chief of the discipline commission during the commission's recent plenary session.</div> <div> <br /></div> <div> Li is believed to be closely involved in efforts to work out details of the national supervisory commission. He is also tipped as a candidate to join the Politburo.</div> <div> <br /></div> <div> A year ago, Xi advocated the creation of a new supervision system that would cover all state organizations and civil servants. The CCP has been considering such a system behind the scenes.</div> </div>

Power-hungry Xi Jinping's newfound 'magic wand'

President dreams up new state institution to crack down on corruption Chinese President Xi Jinping delivers a speech during the plenary ...

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Syria conflict: Seven dead in Damascus bombing

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"> <b style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;">A suspected suicide bomber has killed at least seven people in a high security area of the Syrian capital, Damascus, state TV has said.</b></div> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div> <div style="text-align: start;"> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></div> <a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-sUu0HHW4fQo/WHgxkRM8RjI/AAAAAAAABh0/9DGyTK_zpekVeDO3zUkkA7yL2saSxaKDACEw/s1600/_93548209_mediaitem93548208.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="223" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-sUu0HHW4fQo/WHgxkRM8RjI/AAAAAAAABh0/9DGyTK_zpekVeDO3zUkkA7yL2saSxaKDACEw/s400/_93548209_mediaitem93548208.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /> <br /> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Police said the attack happened in the Kafr Sousa neighbourhood where some of the country's key security installations are located.<br /><br />Footage showed destroyed cars and the security forces deploying in force in the aftermath of the bombing.<br /><br />It is feared the number of dead is likely to rise.<br /><br />Several people are critically wounded, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said.<br /><br />The Kafr Sousa area lies south of Damascus and is home to several senior ministers and top officials, but sources told the AFP news agency that the blast took place away from where they live.<br /><br />Damascus is mostly under the control of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, but rebel groups are present in outlying districts of the city.<br /><br />A ceasefire between government forces and rebel groups, which was brokered by Turkey and Russia, came into effect at the end of last year.<br /><br />The ceasefire was "largely holding with some exceptions", the UN's envoy for Syria said on Thursday.</span><br /> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Source: bbc</span>

Syria conflict: Seven dead in Damascus bombing

A suspected suicide bomber has killed at least seven people in a high security area of the Syrian capital, Damascus, state TV has said. ...

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Watchdog Will Review Justice Department, FBI's Handling Of Hillary Clinton Email Case

The Department Of Justice's inspector general said Thursday that he will open a review into how the department and the FBI handled its investigation into Hillary Clinton's private email server before the election.<br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EzPe3k4gyAI/WHgubbm6ApI/AAAAAAAABhk/EgqSt8wYxa8-t7smtBBXslj4sv6N0kr6wCLcB/s1600/fbi_director_speaks_on_civil_rights_and_law_enforcement_at_conference_27182463191-1484246557-5482.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EzPe3k4gyAI/WHgubbm6ApI/AAAAAAAABhk/EgqSt8wYxa8-t7smtBBXslj4sv6N0kr6wCLcB/s400/fbi_director_speaks_on_civil_rights_and_law_enforcement_at_conference_27182463191-1484246557-5482.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> <br /> <br /> FBI Director James Comey drew heavy criticism for his decision to announce just 11 days before the election that the bureau was looking into emails found on the computer of disgraced former congressman Anthony Weiner, whose estranged wife, Huma Abedin, was one of Clinton's top aides.<br /> <br /> Nearly all of the emails turned out to be duplicates of ones the FBI had already reviewed, but Comey's letter to Congress announcing the new findings received a torrent of coverage in the news media and gave Republicans a jolt of new life in the late stages of the presidential campaign.<br /> <br /> Brian Fallon, Clinton's spokesman during the campaign, called the new investigation into the DOJ and FBI "entirely appropriate and very necessary, but also not surprising" in an interview with MSNBC. Fallon said the FBI's and DOJ's deviations from protocols were "glaring and egregious."<br /> <br /> Michael E. Horowitz, the inspector general, is opening the review following requests from lawmakers on oversight committees, members of the public and "various organizations," according to a Department of Justice release.<br /> <br /> Patch Weekend Movie Guide: 'Patriots Day,' 'Silence,' 'Live By Night'<br /> Wahlberg's a cop, Affleck's a criminal and Scorsese is making Oscar buzz. Find out what to see, plus a horror flick to stay far away from.<br /> Specifically, the DOJ release said, Horowitz will investigate:<br /> <br /> whether FBI procedures were followed when Comey made a public announcement in July to not recommend charges against Clinton, sent his Oct. 28 letter to Congress about the new emails and said on Nov. 2 that nothing new was found.<br /> whether Comey should have recused himself from the investigation all together.<br /> whether the DOJ and FBI improperly disclosed "non-public information."<br /> and whether releasing some FOIA documents on Oct. 30 and Nov. 1 were made "influenced by improper considerations."<br /> Comey said at a July news conference that Clinton was "extremely careless" in her handling of classified information but said "no reasonable prosecutor" would bring charges against her for it. That seemed to be the end of the Clinton email story for good.<br /> <br /> His Oct. 28 letter, though, upended the presidential campaign at a time when Clinton held about a 5-point polling lead over Trump and many millions of voters were casting ballots early. By the time he sent his follow-up letter to Congress two days before the election saying the latest emails had been reviewed, Clinton's polling lead had narrowed to as low as 1.6, according to RealClearPolitics.

Watchdog Will Review Justice Department, FBI's Handling Of Hillary Clinton Email Case

The Department Of Justice's inspector general said Thursday that he will open a review into how the department and the FBI handled its i...

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In first press meet after election, Trump assails ‘fake news’ dossier

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-m4Fk63DI4F0/WHbbeymHRpI/AAAAAAAABgc/PZ_OIyjeGZwPVQb7urTYiSP578PU8txIwCLcB/s1600/kn.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="411" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-m4Fk63DI4F0/WHbbeymHRpI/AAAAAAAABgc/PZ_OIyjeGZwPVQb7urTYiSP578PU8txIwCLcB/s640/kn.png" width="640" /></a></div> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Blasts U.S. intelligence agencies over reports that Russia has compromising information about him</span><br /> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">U.S. President-elect Donald Trump slammed the country’s intelligence agencies for allegedly leaking uncorroborated information about his ties with Russia and the media for reporting what he called was “fake news”.</span><br /> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">“It would be a tremendous blot on their record if they did that,” he said about the intelligence agencies that obtained reports prepared by a private political consultant that suggested Russian agencies had filmed Mr. Trump with prostitutes. Their reports also suggested Mr. Trump and his employees had secret contacts with Russian agents during the campaign.</span><br /> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">“A thing like that should never have been written, it should never have been had and it certainly should have never been released,” Mr. Trump said, calling out CNN and BuzzFeed, platforms that carried the reports based on the intelligence dossiers that were submitted to President Barack Obama and Mr. Trump himself. “You are fake news,” he told the CNN reporter, in his first press conference after being elected President.</span><br /> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The interaction turned stormy as reporters sought a categorical answer on whether any official from the Trump organisation interacted with Russian agents during the election process. Mr. Trump called BuzzFeed “a failing pile of garbage” and refused to allow the CNN reporter a question.</span><br /> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Mr. Trump, however, admitted publicly for the first time that Russia was behind the hacking of Democratic Party’s computer networks during the election campaign. “As far as hacking, I think it was Russia,” he said, reversing his position that has always been sceptical of the intelligence report that accused Russia. “But I think we also get hacked by other countries and other people,” Mr. Trump added.</span><br /> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <b><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Message to Putin</span></b><br /> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Asked what would be his message to Mr. Putin, Mr. Trump said: “He shouldn’t be doing it. He won’t be doing it. Russia will have much greater respect for our country when I’m leading it than when other people have led it…. We have to work something out, but it’s not just Russia. Take a look at what’s happened. You don’t report it the same way. 22 million accounts were hacked in this country by China, and that’s because we have no defence. That’s because we’re run by people that don’t know what they're doing.”</span><br /> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Meanwhile, Secretary of State-nominee Rex Tillerson, parried questions relating to his relationship with Russia and Mr. Putin at a Senate hearing for his confirmation. He refused to agree with Republican Senator Marco Rubio’s suggestion that Mr. Putin was a “war criminal”.</span><br /> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">“I would not use that term,” Mr. Tillerson said. He also refused to state his position on recent sanctions announced by President Barack Obama against Russia for allegedly interfering in the U.S. election process. The incoming Secretary of State said he needed to examine the details of existing and proposed sanctions. “I think it is important that those be dealt with on a country-by-country basis,” he said.</span><br /> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">At his press conference Mr. Trump dismissed calls by another Republican Senator Lindsay Graham for stronger sanctions against Russia. “Lindsay Graham has been competing with me for sometime. I hope he grows beyond the one per cent [support] level that he has,” Mr. Trump said, without directly responding to the demand for further sanctions.</span>

In first press meet after election, Trump assails ‘fake news’ dossier

Blasts U.S. intelligence agencies over reports that Russia has compromising information about him U.S. President-elect Donald Trump s...

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