Vietnam receives last of 39 remains of trafficking victims

The last remains of the 39 Vietnamese who died while being smuggled in a truck to England last month were repatriated to their home country on Saturday. Photos by the official Vietnam News Agency showed the arrival at the Hanoi airport of 16 bodies and seven urns, which had been flown from London. The 31 men and eight women are believed to have paid human traffickers for their clandestine transit into England.

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Zimbabwe facing 'man-made' starvation, UN expert warns

Zimbabwe is facing "man-made" starvation with 60 percent of the people failing to meet basic food needs, a UN special envoy said Thursday after touring the southern African country. Hilal Elver, Special Rapporteur on the right to food, ranked Zimbabwe among the four top countries facing severe food shortages outside nations in conflict zones. "The people of Zimbabwe are slowly getting to a point of suffering a man-made starvation," she told a news conference in Harare, adding that eight million people would be affected by the end of the year.

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Millions are bracing for the impact of dangerous weather

The National Weather Service warns travel could become "impossible" in some places

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Chicago officer investigated for body-slamming man to ground

A Chicago police officer is being investigated for body-slamming a man who spat on his face, authorities said Friday. The officer approached the man for drinking alcohol at a bus stop, police said. “While a single video does not depict the entirety of the interactions between the police and the individual, this particular video is very disturbing,” Lightfoot said.

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White House 'can't find any record' of Trump's Sondland call

The White House reportedly has no record of a phone call President Trump claims exonerates him in the scandal that is threatening to bring down his presidency.

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Wintry weather bedevils holiday weekend travelers around US

Wintry weather bedeviled Thanksgiving weekend travelers across the United States Saturday as a powerful and dangerous storm moved eastward, dumping heavy snow from parts of California to the northern Midwest and inundating other areas with rain. Authorities found the bodies of two young children, including a 5-year-old boy, and a third child was missing in central Arizona after a vehicle was swept away while attempting to cross a runoff-swollen creek. The National Weather Service said the storm was expected to drop 6 to 12 inches (15-30 centimeters) of snow from the northern Plains states into Minnesota, Wisconsin and Upper Michigan.

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Peru Opposition Leader Keiko Fujimori Walks Free from Lima Jail

(Bloomberg) -- Opposition leader Keiko Fujimori walked free from a Lima prison Friday night after Peru’s highest court annulled her 18-month preventive jail sentence for obstructing a money-laundering probe.Speaking to reporters outside the jail, Fujimori said the Constitutional Court had corrected a process that was arbitrary and “full of abuses,” and said she’ll keep cooperating with the investigation.“I’m going to take time to reconnect with my family, recuperate, and later on we’ll decide what I’ll do in the second stage of my life,” Fujimori said, according to video broadcast by the Canal N network.The 44-year-old daughter of former autocrat Alberto Fujimori was jailed 13 months ago on allegations she sought to use her party’s congressional majority and contacts in the judiciary to derail a money-laundering probe against her. Prosecutors allege she received $1 million in campaign donations from Brazilian builder Odebrecht SA, though haven’t formally charged her. She denies any wrongdoing.In the court’s Nov. 25 ruling, three justices said prosecutors didn’t provide sufficient evidence directly linking Fujimori to the payments from Odebrecht. A fourth said she no longer posed a threat to the investigation after Congress was dissolved in September.Prosecutors investigating Fujimori and other politicians accused the court of thwarting Peru’s fight against corruption by releasing Fujimori. “The decision is surprising, incongruous and anti-technical, and suspiciously, it has political overtones,” prosecutor Jose Domingo Perez said Friday. He’s asked the judiciary to contest the ruling, La Republica newspaper reported.The Constitutional Court annulled a preventive jail sentence against former president Ollanta Humala and his wife Nadine Heredia last year.Voters will elect a new Congress on Jan. 26 and analysts don’t expect any political party to win a majority.To contact the reporter on this story: John Quigley in Lima at jquigley8@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Juan Pablo Spinetto at jspinetto@bloomberg.net, Ros Krasny, Steve GeimannFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.

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Hundreds march in Sudan capital seeking justice for martyrs

Hundreds of protesters marched Saturday through downtown Khartoum to demand justice for those killed in demonstrations against Sudan's now ousted autocrat Omar al-Bashir. More than 250 people were killed and hundreds injured in the months-long protests that erupted in December 2018, according to umbrella protest movement Forces of Freedom and Change. Bashir, who ruled Sudan with an iron fist for 30 years, was deposed by the army in a palace coup on April 11 after the demonstrations triggered by an acute economic crisis.

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Kamala Harris' campaign manager is under fire, receives blame for decline

Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) isn't bouncing back after a precipitous decline in the Democratic presidential race -- and fingers are starting to point at her campaign manager.Juan Rodriguez has drawn the ire of both camapaign staffers and outside observers, The New York Times reports. "This is my third presidential campaign and I have never seen an organization treat its staff so poorly," state operations director Kelly Mehlenbacher wrote in a resignation letter obtained by the Times.Mehlenbacher clarified she still supported Harris as a candidate, but did not have confidence in the campaign's leadership. She specifically cited the campaign's decision to move people from Washington, D.C., to Baltimore, Maryland, and then "lay them off with no notice" and "without thoughtful consideration of the personal consequences to them."Harris and other senior staff members were reportedly blindsided and angered by the extent of the layoffs, and some aides reportedly found out about them from junior aides and the press rather than Rodriguez himself.One of Harris' congressional supporters, Rep. Marcia Fudge (D-Ohio), said she told the senator she needs to make a change. "The weakness is at the top, and it's clearly Juan," she said. "He needs to take responsibility -- that's where the buck stops."More stories from theweek.com God's gift to America? 5 scathingly funny cartoons about the Trump-ified GOP Democrats are running into Trump's economic buzzsaw

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Thanksgiving photo Bill O'Reilly posted to Twitter freaks people out

Bill O’Reilly’s promotional tweet for his interview with President Trump went viral on Thursday, but not in the way he likely would have wanted.

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Northeastern US braces for foot of snow during first days of December

The second part of a double-barreled storm is forecast to unload heavy snow and create difficult travel over a large part of the northeastern United States, including some major cities from Sunday to Monday.A winterlike storm from the Midwest will move in this weekend, then hand off to a new coastal storm that strengthens by Monday.Accumulating snow is forecast to occur in Boston; Hartford, Connecticut; New York City and even to some extent around the Trenton, New Jersey, and Philadelphia area from the storm. The heaviest snow, on the order of 6-12 inches is forecast from the northeastern corner of Pennsylvania to central Massachusetts and southwestern New Hampshire. However, pockets of 12-18 inches are in store for the Catskills and Berkshires, where an AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 24 inches is expected.Heavy snow is in store for much of the Hudson, Mohawk and Connecticut river valleys with a few inches as far south as parts of the Delaware and Lehigh valleys.Part of the storm will bring ice, rain and a wintry mix along the Interstate-95 corridor from Philadelphia to New York City and Boston, with the ice and mix to occur during Sunday into Sunday night. Conditions are likely to be a wintry mess around the Meadowlands Sports Complex in East Rutherford, New Jersey, where the Packers will take on the Giants during Sunday afternoon. Farther south and west, drenching rain is in the offing for the NFL game between the 49ers and Ravens at Baltimore, and perhaps in Pittsburgh for the Browns and Steelers match up.A significant buildup of ice is forecast over parts of the central Appalachians to southern New England with dangerous travel conditions and the risk of falling tree limbs and power outages. How damaging the ice storm is will depend on whether the primary form of precipitation is sleet or freezing rain. Sleet tends to bounce off, while freezing rain weighs down trees and power lines.The middle part of the storm is likely to be the warmest during Sunday night. This is when just enough warm air is likely to sweep in from the south and the Atlantic to bring plain rain to coastal areas of the upper mid-Atlantic and southeastern New England. However farther inland, a transition from wet snow to more powdery snow is in store in some areas and a wintry mix or ice to snow in others as a storm along the coast strengthens and begins to pull in colder air.Rain showers will change to snow showers from the Ohio Valley to the central Appalachians during Sunday night and Monday. Locally a coating to an inch or two of snow can accumulate in these areas.During Monday, cold air is likely to collapse toward the mid-Atlantic and southern New England coast to bring a change to accumulating snow. While an accumulation of a coating to an inch or so is possible around Philadelphia, up to a few inches may fall on the New York City area with several inches likely around Boston. Much heavier snow is likely in the northern and western suburbs of New York City and Boston, with a few inches possible well north of Philadelphia.Should the storm strengthen a bit more, heavy snow may fall right in New York City and a few inches might occur in Philadelphia on Monday. Boston could pick up a foot of snow in such a case where rain does not hold back the accumulation.Some schools that are scheduled to be in session on Monday may have delays or cancellations. Flight delays and cancellations are likely from Boston to New York City and Philadelphia. Ripple-effect days can be felt not only in the Baltimore, Washington, D.C., and Pittsburgh areas, but across much of the nation as crews and aircraft are likely to be displaced as the storm also affected some of the major Midwest hubs this weekend. For those with flexible travel plans are encouraged to postpone Sunday and Monday trips.Travel conditions are likely to improve dramatically over the region on Tuesday as crews will have been out plowing and/or treating the road with ice-melting compounds. However, snow is likely to start the day in eastern New England. Download the free AccuWeather app to check the forecast in your area, as well as points along your travel route. Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.

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Ilhan Omar's Republican opponent was banned from Twitter after suggesting the congresswoman should be tried for treason and hanged

The Republican campaign promoted a wild conspiracy theory that Omar had illegally shared sensitive government information with Qatar and Iran.

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Inmate wanted by ICE released on bail. He was arrested weeks later for attempted murder

A 2019 Colorado law bars law enforcement officials in the state from holding a person based only on a request from ICE.

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Tens of thousands rally in Europe, Asia before UN climate summit

Tens of thousands of protesters, primarily in Europe and Asia, hit the streets on Friday to make a fresh call for action against global warming, hoping to raise pressure on world leaders days before a UN climate summit. Carrying signs that read "One planet, one fight" and "The sea is rising, so must we", thousands flocked to Berlin's Brandenburg Gate for the latest "Fridays for Future" protest inspired by 16-year-old activist Greta Thunberg. In total, about 630,000 people demonstrated across more than 500 cities in Germany, the Fridays for Future movement said.

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2 victims are dead and a suspect was killed by police in a London terror incident. Here's how the attack unfolded.

Police said they were called to London Bridge just before 2 p.m. local time on Friday afternoon for reports of a stabbing.

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Peru Opposition Leader Keiko Fujimori Walks Free from Lima Jail

(Bloomberg) -- Opposition leader Keiko Fujimori walked free from a Lima prison Friday night after Peru’s highest court annulled her 18-month preventive jail sentence for obstructing a money-laundering probe.Speaking to reporters outside the jail, Fujimori said the Constitutional Court had corrected a process that was arbitrary and “full of abuses,” and said she’ll keep cooperating with the investigation.“I’m going to take time to reconnect with my family, recuperate, and later on we’ll decide what I’ll do in the second stage of my life,” Fujimori said, according to video broadcast by the Canal N network.The 44-year-old daughter of former autocrat Alberto Fujimori was jailed 13 months ago on allegations she sought to use her party’s congressional majority and contacts in the judiciary to derail a money-laundering probe against her. Prosecutors allege she received $1 million in campaign donations from Brazilian builder Odebrecht SA, though haven’t formally charged her. She denies any wrongdoing.In the court’s Nov. 25 ruling, three justices said prosecutors didn’t provide sufficient evidence directly linking Fujimori to the payments from Odebrecht. A fourth said she no longer posed a threat to the investigation after Congress was dissolved in September.Prosecutors investigating Fujimori and other politicians accused the court of thwarting Peru’s fight against corruption by releasing Fujimori. “The decision is surprising, incongruous and anti-technical, and suspiciously, it has political overtones,” prosecutor Jose Domingo Perez said Friday. He’s asked the judiciary to contest the ruling, La Republica newspaper reported.The Constitutional Court annulled a preventive jail sentence against former president Ollanta Humala and his wife Nadine Heredia last year.Voters will elect a new Congress on Jan. 26 and analysts don’t expect any political party to win a majority.To contact the reporter on this story: John Quigley in Lima at jquigley8@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Juan Pablo Spinetto at jspinetto@bloomberg.net, Ros Krasny, Steve GeimannFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.

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2 victims were killed and police fatally shot a man wearing a hoax explosive vest in a terrorist attack at London Bridge

London Metropolitan Police closed London Bridge and London Bridge Station is also closed. City of London police shot the man, who died at the scene.

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Kamala Harris' campaign manager is under fire, receives blame for decline

Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) isn't bouncing back after a precipitous decline in the Democratic presidential race -- and fingers are starting to point at her campaign manager.Juan Rodriguez has drawn the ire of both camapaign staffers and outside observers, The New York Times reports. "This is my third presidential campaign and I have never seen an organization treat its staff so poorly," state operations director Kelly Mehlenbacher wrote in a resignation letter obtained by the Times.Mehlenbacher clarified she still supported Harris as a candidate, but did not have confidence in the campaign's leadership. She specifically cited the campaign's decision to move people from Washington, D.C., to Baltimore, Maryland, and then "lay them off with no notice" and "without thoughtful consideration of the personal consequences to them."Harris and other senior staff members were reportedly blindsided and angered by the extent of the layoffs, and some aides reportedly found out about them from junior aides and the press rather than Rodriguez himself.One of Harris' congressional supporters, Rep. Marcia Fudge (D-Ohio), said she told the senator she needs to make a change. "The weakness is at the top, and it's clearly Juan," she said. "He needs to take responsibility -- that's where the buck stops."More stories from theweek.com God's gift to America? 5 scathingly funny cartoons about the Trump-ified GOP Democrats are running into Trump's economic buzzsaw

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The First Time Congress Tried to Impeach a President Was a Disaster

It didn't go as planned...

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Pelosi to attend climate summit amid withdrawal from climate deal

The U.S. began the formal withdrawal process from the Paris Climate Agreement earlier this month.

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Lebanese rally against Iraq's crackdown on protesters

Dozens of people in protest-swept Lebanon staged a candlelit vigil outside Iraq's embassy on Saturday to denounce the excessive use of force against demonstrators there. Participants at the Beirut observance raised pictures of Iraqi protesters who have been killed in an unprecedented anti-government movement. Some raised the Lebanese flag, while one woman wrapped the Iraqi tricolour around her shoulders.

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Ilhan Omar GOP challenger banned from Twitter after saying she should be "tried for treason and hanged”

Danielle Stella campaign account also tweeted a picture of a stick figure being hanged with a link to a blog post about her comments.

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‘Hero’ Who Ended Terror Rampage Was Convicted Killer

Simon Dawson/ReutersLONDON—A frenzied knife attack by a known terrorist who was let out of prison early on parole was halted by a posse of Londoners that included a convicted killer on day release.The first deadly terror attack in Britain for two years spilled out of a Cambridge University event on rehabilitating ex-cons. A university spokesman told The Daily Beast that the terrorist Usman Khan had been invited to the event, but could not confirm reports that he had addressed the symposium, which included former prisoners and prison staff.A more detailed account of the attack emerged Saturday as the Islamic State claimed that one of its attackers carried out the stabbing, the group’s Amaq news agency reported. The announcement didn’t provide any evidence for the claim.Khan, 28, was wearing a tracking device on his ankle and a hoax suicide belt around his waist when he walked up the grand staircase inside the historic Fishmongers’ Hall, pulled out two knives, and threatened to blow up the building.He was run out of the event by attendees grabbing makeshift weapons to confront the killer, who had already inflicted fatal injuries on two people and wounded several more. One man picked up a fire extinguisher, another pulled the unicorn-like tusk of a narwhal off the wall and gave chase.Khan fled onto London Bridge with the avenging conference guests in hot pursuit. The man with the antique whale cudgel was identified by The Times as a Polish chef called Luckasz, who suffered lacerations in the attack. “Being stabbed didn’t stop him giving him a beating,” a colleague who did not want to be named told the paper.Some of the others who turned on the killer reportedly were ex-cons attending the event.They sprayed him in the face with the fire extinguisher and managed to force him to the ground even though he was flailing at them with knives that were taped to his wrists. Several people held him down while police cars raced to the scene.A man named James Ford grabbed one of the terrorist’s knives and carried it to safety, staggering south across the bridge away from the melee and warning clueless pedestrians to back away from a potential explosion.As cell-phone footage spread across social media and onto global news networks, the man was labelled a hero. Some of those watching the video, however, were appalled by what they saw.Angela Cox, 65, received a phone call from police liaison officers telling her to switch on the TV. She thought the man who had disarmed the terrorist was still in prison.Ford had been convicted of the brutal murder of her niece in 2004. He approached the 21-year-old, who was said to have the mental age of a 15-year-old, in an area of woodland and slit her throat. The judge at the time said: “What you did was an act of wickedness. You clearly have an interest in the macabre and also an obsession with death including murder by throat cutting.”He was out of prison on day release on Friday, reportedly to attend the University of Cambridge Criminology department’s “Learning Together” event, although a spokesman was unable to confirm.> — “He murdered a disabled girl. He is not a hero.”“He murdered a disabled girl. He is not a hero,” said Cox. “They let him out without even telling us. It was a hell of a shock.”The authorities will also have to explain why Khan was allowed out of prison to murder at least two people—one man and one woman who have not yet been named. In 2012, he was convicted of plotting to carry out terror attacks in London and set up a terror training camp on land owned by his family in Pakistan.The judge said Khan, who was just 19 at the time, was one of the ringleaders of a small British terror network that followed the teachings of U.S.-born Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula propagandist Anwar al-Awlaki. The eight men, who had been tracked for months by MI5, were convicted on terror offenses including a plot to blow up the London Stock Exchange—they also had a target list that included the U.S. Embassy and the home address of Boris Johnson, who is now prime minister.Five of them were given conventional jail sentences, but the judge said Khan and two of his colleagues were so dangerous that they should be locked up indefinitely under Imprisonment for Public Protection legislation.“They were about the long term business of establishing and operating a terrorist military training facility in Pakistan, on land owned by the family of Usman Khan to which British recruits, whom they would recruit, would go to receive training,” the judge said. “Furthermore it was envisaged by them all that ultimately they, and the other recruits may return to the UK as trained and experienced terrorists available to perform terrorist attacks in this country.”His ruling that they should remain in custody until they were no longer deemed a threat was quashed by the court of appeal in 2013. Britain’s head of counterterror policing Neil Basu said late on Friday night that Khan was released last year. The Times reported that he had agreed to wear an electronic monitoring device and live under restrictions including a curfew at his home in Staffordshire in the West Midlands.He would likely have told the officials monitoring his movements that he was traveling down to London to take part in the rehabilitation event “celebrating five years of Learning Together.”Khan had just taken part in a workshop on storytelling and creative writing when he revealed his true motivation for taking part in the event on the banks of the River Thames.Professor Anthony Glees, the director of the Centre for Security and Intelligence Studies at the University of Buckingham, who contributed to the parliamentary Homeland Security Group, said it was clear that the authorities and the academics who wanted to help had failed to identify the true scale of the threat from this man.“That is a deep irony, the do-gooder culture in universities actually gave him the opportunity; how daft was that?” he said to The Daily Beast. “Once a jihadist always a jihadist.”Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.

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Trump to decide if he wants lawyers at impeachment hearings

The chairman of the House Judiciary Committee asked President Donald Trump on Friday to say whether he’ll send his attorneys to participate in impeachment proceedings before the panel. Rep. Jerrold Nadler also is asking Republicans on his committee which witnesses they plan to ask permission to subpoena. The letters from the New York Democrat came as the House impeachment probe enters a new phase with a hearing next week on whether Trump’s actions might constitute impeachable offenses.

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The Latest: 4 more anti-government Iraqi protesters killed

Iraqi officials say four protesters were killed amid ongoing violence in Baghdad and southern Iraq, hours after Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi announced his intention to resign. Security and hospital officials say one protester was killed and 18 wounded Friday by security forces who fired live rounds and tear gas to repel them on Baghdad’s historic Rasheed Street, near the strategic Ahrar Bridge. Officials say three protesters were shot dead by security forces in the southern city of Nasiriyah, bringing the total killed there to six on Friday.

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Donald Trump Sees Another Opportunity to Teach Cuba a Lesson

Is Trump using "health attacks" on US diplomats in Havana as an excuse to punish Cuba?

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Iraqi PM offers resignation after security forces carry out 'bloodbath' killing of protesters

Iraq’s embattled prime minister offered his resignation on Friday, following the bloodiest day in weeks of unrest. Adel Abdel Mahdi, who took up the post of premier last year, said he would submit to the parliament a formal letter requesting my resignation to "preserve the blood" of Iraqis. Demonstrators greed the news with cheers, throwing rice and dancing to music in Baghdad's Tahrir (Liberation) Square. “Long live the revolution, long live the heroes. Thank you to the people,” one protester said over a loudspeaker. Mr Mahdi’s decision came hours after Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, Iraq's top Shia Muslim cleric, gave a sermon urging lawmakers to reconsider their support for the government, in a major boost to Iraqi demonstrators who have taken to the streets against a ruling class. "It's our first victory, and we're hoping for many more," shouted one demonstrator. "It's also a victory for the martyrs who fell," he said. An Iraqi anti-government protester waves a national flag close to a concrete barricade amidst clashes with security forces along the capital Baghdad's Rasheed street Credit: AFP Mr Mahdi’s resignation was one of the protesters’ demands, but it is unlikely to see them leave the streets after the crackdown by security forces. More than 45 were reported dead in just a 24-hour period between Wednesday and Thursday night, in an unprecedented level of violence against protesters by the government. Some 26 people were killed in the southern city of Nasiriyah after security forces tried to clear one of the main bridges into the city, 12 were killed in the holy city of Najaf and four in the capital, Baghdad. The demonstrations are the largest the country has seen in decades, but also the deadliest, with nearly 400 people killed and more than 15,000 wounded since they began last month. Iraq's "enemies and their apparatuses are trying to sow chaos and infighting to return the country to the age of dictatorship ... everyone must work together to thwart that opportunity," Mr Sistani said. The government "appears to have been unable to deal with the events of the past two months" and "parliament, from which the current government emerged, must reconsider its choices and do what's in the interest of Iraq," he said, urging them to stop killing protesters. Iraqi protesters carry the Iraqi national flag and shout slogans shortly after the resignation of Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdel-Mahdi Credit: REX The unrest in Iraq's south was unleashed after protesters stormed the Iranian consulate in Najaf late on Wednesday, accusing the neighbouring country of propping up Iraq's government. Tehran demanded Iraq take decisive action against the protesters, saying it was "disgusted" by developments. In response, Mr Mahdi, who has received Iran's support, ordered military chiefs to deploy in several provinces to "impose security and restore order" - but chaos reigned instead. Men in civilian clothes opened fire at demonstrators and tribal fighters deployed in the streets in their defence. "We had blocked off the roads and bridges over the past four days and security forces moved in on us to try to open up the bridges. They opened fire leading to a bloodbath," said Hussein, a 32-year-old lawyer from Nasiriyah. "What's happening in Nasiriya is unbelievable. Nothing justifies this use of violence against us. We, the people, are extremely angry. Our blood is boiling. Our brothers were killed unjustifiably. Lynn Maalouf, Amnesty International's Middle East research director, also used the word "bloodbath" to describe the crackdown in Nasiriyah and accused security forces of "appalling violence against largely peaceful protesters".

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Port Neches explosion: 60,000 evacuated from homes after Texas chemical plant blast

A series of explosions at a chemical plant forced some 60,000 people to be evacuated from the area surrounding Port Neches in Texas.The first blast occurred at 1am on Wednesday, injuring three workers who are now in hospital. TPC Group, which operates the plant, confirmed all other employees have been accounted for.

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Trump impeachment: White House 'can't find any record' of call which president insists exonerates him

The White House reportedly has no record of a phone call Donald Trump claims exonerates him over a scandal which is threatening to bring down his presidency.The US ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland testified to congress earlier this month that Mr Trump had made clear to him in the call that there was “no quid pro quo” with Ukraine.

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Hotpot vs bread: the culinary symbols of Hong Kong's political divide

A humble loaf of bread has become a new symbol for Hong Kong's pro-democracy protesters who have embraced a slew of colourful and sometimes surreal memes as they push the Beijing-backed government for reforms. Activists have begun bringing loaves of "Life Bread" -- a local brand beloved by Hong Kongers -- to demonstrations, or leaving them next to protest walls after a video of a police officer taunting protesters went viral. The footage was shot last week during a siege by police of Polytechnic University where a tense stand-off unfolded between riot officers and hundreds of activists who barricaded themselves inside.

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Snow to hit 2,000-mile stretch from Nevada to New England as weekend travelers head home

Black Friday blizzards and snow expected from Nevada to the Upper Midwest and into New England. Meanwhile, severe thunderstorms are headed south.

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Airlines are joining in on Black Friday with major flight sales — here's how you can save

Delta, American Airlines, Southwest, Emirates, and more have posted Black Friday and Cyber Monday flight deals. We expect more sales, too.

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Massive black hole that "should not even exist" discovered

A black hole with a mass of about 70 times that of the sun is lurking across our galaxy.

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Trump's antics leaving Republicans 'disgusted and exhausted', says former GOP congressman

A former Republican congressman said he would “probably vote to impeach” Donald Trump if he were still serving in the US House of Representatives while suggesting the president's scandals are “infuriating" current GOP House members.Charlie Dent, a frequent critic of Mr Trump who resigned from Congress last year, said he has heard from several of his former Republican colleagues who are “absolutely disgusted and exhausted by the president’s behaviour”.

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'Very disturbing': Chicago officer under investigation for body-slamming man to the ground

A Chicago police officer is under investigation after body-slamming a man during an arrest on the South Side, an incident captured in a viral video.

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Heavy snow in U.S. West and Midwest could disrupt post-Thanksgiving travel

Over a foot of snow is forecast in mountainous parts of Colorado, Utah and Arizona on Friday before the storm system slips toward the upper Midwest, the National Weather Service said. Freezing rain will likely turn to snowy blizzards in parts of Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan beginning on Friday night, with more than 18 inches of snowfall possible in some mountainous areas, the service said. More than 4 million Americans were expected to fly and another 49 million expected to drive at least 50 miles or more this week for Thanksgiving, according to the American Automobile Association.

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Gigantic storm to wreak havoc on post-Thanksgiving travel

A massive winter storm that has already prompted warnings from Arizona to Wisconsin will be lumbering east in coming days, almost certainly interfering with Thanksgiving return-travel plans for millions, The Washington Post reports. By the time it's finished, the storm, created by the same conditions that caused the "bomb cyclone" in California and Arizona earlier in the week, could pummel an area stretching from the Sierra Nevadas to New England -- where a nor'easter is predicted to begin on Sunday night. "This storm will... produce significant snow and blizzard conditions across the Northern Plains through Saturday before moving to the Great Lakes and Northeast Sunday and Monday," the National Weather Service said in a statement. USA Today reports that Accuweather is forecasting up to three feet of snow in South Dakota's Black Hills region, where "visibility could be so low at times it may be difficult to determine where the road surface actually is." So if you happen to be stuck at a relative's house this weekend: stay inside, avoid discussing politics, and try not to get too sick of that days-old cranberry sauce.More stories from theweek.com Democrats are running into Trump's economic buzzsaw 5 gut-bustingly funny cartoons about politics and Thanksgiving Knives Out does what so many of the best mysteries do: Carve up the rich

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The US fertility rate has dropped for the fourth year in a row, and it might forecast a 'demographic time bomb'

Russia, Japan, and Spain are all dealing with their growing elderly populations and declining birthrates. The US could be next.

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2 cruise passengers dead, 5 injured after Belize tour bus crash

Two Carnival Cruise Line passengers died in a bus crash while on an independent tour in Belize on Wednesday.

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The Latest: 4 more anti-government Iraqi protesters killed

Iraqi officials say four protesters were killed amid ongoing violence in Baghdad and southern Iraq, hours after Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi announced his intention to resign. Security and hospital officials say one protester was killed and 18 wounded Friday by security forces who fired live rounds and tear gas to repel them on Baghdad’s historic Rasheed Street, near the strategic Ahrar Bridge. Officials say three protesters were shot dead by security forces in the southern city of Nasiriyah, bringing the total killed there to six on Friday.

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British teenager in gang rape case had no serious physical injuries, doctor tells Cyprus court

A British teenager who claimed she was gang-raped by Israeli tourists in the party resort of Ayia Napa bore no physical signs of a serious sexual assault, a doctor told a court in Cyprus on Friday. Giving evidence for the prosecution, Dr Sophocles Sophocleous said he found a few light bruises on the young woman’s thighs and some scratches on her legs but they were not, in his opinion, consistent with gang rape. The UK's Crown Prosecution Service describes as a "myth" the idea that a lack of physical injuries rules out a rape having taken place.  The teenager claimed in July that she had been gang-raped in a hotel room by the group of Israeli men, but two weeks later signed a police statement in which she retracted the claims. She is on trial in a court in the town of Paralimni, a few miles from Ayia Napa’s beaches and nightclubs, on a charge of public mischief for which she could be jailed for a year. She denies the charge. The alleged gang rape took place in party resort of Ayia Napa Credit: Getty Her lawyers insist that she was raped and that she only signed the statement because she was suffering from extreme trauma and was subjected to aggressive questioning by Cypriot police officers, without a lawyer or family member, for eight hours. Dr Sophocleous said he examined the young woman, who was then 18, after the alleged gang rape took place on July 17. “I did not see any signs of violence,” he told the court. Some of the bruises on her legs were consistent with bumping into a piece of furniture, he said. Together with a gynaecologist, he examined her vagina but found no lesions or other injuries. Lawyers for the teenager said they would summon a Cambridge-educated pathologist who will tell the court next week that the absence of bruises does not mean that the teenager was not pinned down and raped. Michael Polak, a British barrister who is part of her legal team, said: “No one is saying she was kicked or punched or anything like that. She was pinned down and that’s when the other youths got involved.” The teenager will be cross-examined for two hours by the prosecution at the next hearing in the trial, on Tuesday. Under Cypriot law she had the option of staying silent in the dock, giving a statement to the court or subjecting herself to what is likely to be vigorous cross-examination. She chose the latter, with her lawyers saying she has “nothing to hide.” “She will say exactly what happened to her on that night,” said Mr Polak. “A rape took place.”

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Port Neches explosion: 60,000 evacuated from homes after Texas chemical plant blast

A series of explosions at a chemical plant forced some 60,000 people to be evacuated from the area surrounding Port Neches in Texas.The first blast occurred at 1am on Wednesday, injuring three workers who are now in hospital. TPC Group, which operates the plant, confirmed all other employees have been accounted for.

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California snow-bound highway reopens but storm snarls Thanksgiving travel

Interstate 5 through the Grapevine area, a mountain pass, was shut down in both directions early on Thursday morning and the California Highway Patrol said on Twitter it was working to clear stuck vehicles as snow kept falling. The highway, a major artery connecting Southern California to the rest of the state, was reopened later in the day, although more snow and rain were still forecast. The winter storm was expected to bring heavy snow in the mountains and high winds across much of the Western United States before moving toward the Great Plains late on Friday, the National Weather Service said.

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India announces $400 million loan for Sri Lanka, in support of new president

India will lend Sri Lanka $400 million for infrastructure projects, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday after talks with the island nation's new President Gotabaya Rajapaksa aimed at improving bilateral ties. Sri Lanka, located off the southern tip of India, has become an arena of competing influence between New Delhi and China, which has built ports, power stations and highways as part of President Xi Jinping's signature "Belt and Road Initiative", designed to boost trade and transport links across Asia.

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Row over Chinese 5G equipment further strains U.S.-German relations

U.S. Ambassador Richard Grenell called a German official's remarks this week "an insult to the thousands of American troops who helped ensure Germany's security."

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2 victims were killed and police fatally shot a man wearing a hoax explosive vest in a terrorist attack at London Bridge

London Metropolitan Police closed London Bridge and London Bridge Station is also closed. City of London police shot the man, who died at the scene.

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Texas cities evacuated after second explosion at chemical plant; three injured in first blast

An early morning explosion rocked an East Texas chemical plant in Port Neches, injuring three workers. An afternoon blast prompted evacuations.

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Iran arrests eight 'linked to CIA' in street unrest

Iran has arrested eight people it accused of CIA links and sending abroad information on recent urban unrest, days after the United States said it had received thousands of messages on a protest crackdown in the Islamic republic. New York-based Human Rights Watch has accused Tehran of "deliberately covering up" more than 140 deaths that it said came when security forces suppressed demonstrations against a sharp fuel price hike. Iran said that among the more than 500 people arrested were eight who were "linked to the CIA", state news agency IRNA said late Wednesday, citing the head of the intelligence ministry's counter-espionage department.

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Hawaii man arrested for 'extreme stalking' of family in Utah

U.S. prosecutors have arrested a Hawaii man they accuse of sending hundreds of unwanted service providers, including plumbers and prostitutes, to a Utah home.

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Rudy Giuliani was angling for a 6-figure business deal with a corrupt Ukrainian prosecutor while pushing him to get political dirt on the Bidens

Rudy Giuliani said he had been approached by the Ukrainians with multiple business offers, but dismissed all of them and never accepted any money.

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