SEPT 11-ANNIVERSARY-THE LATEST
The Latest: Remembering 9/11 in the age of coronavirus
NEW YORK (AP) — Americans are set to commemorate the 19th anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks with tributes altered by the coronavirus. President Donald Trump and Democratic challenger Joe Biden both plan to visit the Flight 93 National Memorial in Pennsylvania Friday, though not at the same time. In New York, a dispute over coronavirus precautions is leading to separate remembrances. Vice President Mike Pence plans to attend both events. Biden will also attend a ceremony at the World Trade Center memorial site in New York before heading to Pennsylvania.
AP-US-CALIFORNIA-WILDFIRES
10 dead as California fire becomes deadliest of year
GRIDLEY, Calif. (AP) — A Northern California wildfire that destroyed a foothill hamlet has become the state’s deadliest blaze of the year with 10 people confirmed dead — and the toll could climb as searchers look for 16 missing people. Authorities say the North Complex fire that exploded in wind-driven flames earlier in the week is advancing more slowly Friday after the winds eased and smoke from the blaze shaded the area and lowered the temperature, allowing firefighters to make progress. That was a change from the hot weather and gusty winds that two days earlier sent flames exploding through foothills northeast of San Francisco, destroying at least 2,000 buildings.
PACIFIC NORTHWEST-WILDFIRES
‘Evacuate now:’ Wildfires grow in Oregon as 500K flee
PHOENIX, Ore. (AP) — Deadly wildfires in heavily populated northwest Oregon were growing, with hundreds of thousands of people told to flee encroaching flames while residents to the south tearfully assessed their losses. The Oregon Office of Emergency Management reported that by Thursday evening, the number of people evacuated statewide because of fires had climbed to an estimated 500,000. That’s over 10% of the 4.2 million residents of the state. One fire approached Molalla, triggering a mandatory evacuation order for the community of about 9,000 people located 30 miles (48 kilometers) south of Portland. A police car rolled through the streets with a loudspeaker blaring “evacuate now.”
HYUNDAI RECALL
Hyundai warns owners to park outside, recalls 180,000 SUVs
DETROIT (AP) — For the second time this month, Hyundai is telling some SUV owners to park outdoors because an electrical short in a computer can cause vehicles to catch fire. The Korean automaker is recalling about 180,000 Tucson SUVs in the U.S. from 2019 through 2021 to fix the problem. The company says corrosion can cause a short circuit in defective anti-lock brake circuit boards that can start a fire. Hyundai says it knows of a dozen engine fires from the problem but no injuries. Hyundai says if the anti-lock brake warning light comes on, the vehicles should not be driven and owners should contact a dealer and disconnect the positive cable on the battery. Hyundai will notify owners around Oct. 30. Dealers will replace the anti-lock brake control computers.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-POVERTY
UN expert: Pandemic’s worst impacts on poverty yet to come
GENEVA (AP) — The United Nations independent expert on poverty is warning that the worst impacts from the coronavirus pandemic on poverty are yet to come, and that measures taken by governments to protect people so far have been insufficient. Olivier De Schutter, a Belgian legal scholar appointed by the U.N. Human Rights Council as special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, says “the social safety nets put into place are full of holes.” His message is directed to world leaders meeting this month for the U.N. General Assembly.
AFGHANISTAN-PEACE TALKS
Pompeo says Afghan negotiations likely to be ‘contentious’
ISLAMABAD (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is warning that much anticipated negotiations between Afghanistan’s warring parties are likely to be “contentious.” But he says Friday that they are the only way forward if Afghans are to find peace after decades of relentless conflict. Pompeo made his comments en route to the Middle Eastern State of Qatar, where intra-Afghan negotiations are to begin Saturday, a day mostly reserved for ceremony before the hard task of hammering out a road map for a post-war Afghanistan begins. The negotiations were laid out in a peace deal Washington brokered with the Taliban and signed in Doha on Feb. 29 aimed at ending the war and bringing U.S. troops home ending America’s longest conflict.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-ATTACKING SCHOOLS
UN urges end to attacks on schools, especially in Africa
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. Security Council is urging warring parties in all conflicts to immediately stop attacking schools and teachers. And it is reaffirming Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ call for global cease-fires to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic. A presidential statement approved by the council Thursday expressed grave concern about the significant increase of attacks on schools in recent years and the resulting alarming number of children denied access to quality education. U.N. envoy Virginia Gamba says attacking schools and teachers seems to be an emerging tactic of war, particularly in Africa’s Sahel region. And she says the COVID-19 pandemic has made things worse.
SYRIA-ISRAEL
Syria reports Israeli airstrike near northern city of Aleppo
DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Syrian state media is reporting that Israeli warplanes have fired missiles on suburbs of the northern city of Aleppo. The attack comes amid increased Israeli airstrikes on Syria in recent weeks. There were no immediate reports of casualties. On Aug. 31, an attack targeted the southern suburbs of the capital Damascus killing two soldiers and wounding seven. Israel rarely comments on such reports, but is believed to have carried out scores of raids targeting Iran’s military presence in Syria. In the past three months alone, Syria has accused Israel of carrying out at least nine air raids on its territory.
BRITAIN-ECONOMY
UK inks Japan trade deal in principle just as EU talks sour
LONDON (AP) — The U.K. has secured its first major post-Brexit trade deal after signing an agreement with Japan just as discussions with the European Union appeared to be on the verge of collapse. The agreement was reached only in principle and details are thin. The government said the pact will increase commerce with Japan by around 15 billion pounds, or $19 billion. Skeptics say no amount of trade deals can mitigate for the losses that may accrue if Britain does not reach a trade agreement with the EU when the current pacts expire at the end of the year. Trade with the 27-nation bloc accounts for around half the country’s total.
DEPUTY KILLED-SUSPECT
North Carolina deputy shot to death; suspect killed
HENDERSONVILLE, N.C. (AP) — Authorities in North Carolina say a sheriff’s deputy was fatally shot by a break-in suspect, and that the suspect was then killed when other deputies returned fire. News outlets report 35-year-old Henderson County Deputy Ryan Hendrix died Thursday afternoon, hours after being shot when he and other deputies responded to a call about a vehicle break-in. Sheriff Lowell Griffin said a homeowner noticed someone breaking into a car. Griffin said the man and the homeowner exchanged gunfire before deputies arrived. The sheriff said the suspect appeared to comply with commands to show his hands before shooting Hendrix in the face.
Credit: Source link
