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A day after his release from a Turkish prison, Pastor Andrew Brunson met with President Donald Trump in the White House on Oct. 13. Brunson thanked the President before kneeling in prayer for him. Brunson, a Christian pastor from North Carolina, had been charged with unsubstantiated terrorism offenses by Turkey and jailed since 2016. Trump has repeatedly […]

News analysis Many Americans are keenly aware of the influence of transnational conglomerates clustered under monikers like “Big Oil”, “Big Tech”, and “Big Pharma.” Their CEOs regularly reap praise and criticism for the companies’ accomplishments and transgressions. But CEOs like Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg and Apple’s Tim Cook are hardly sovereign masters of their companies. Corporations […]

The New York City headquarters of a private club supporting the Republican party was vandalized in the early hours of Oct. 12. As yet unidentified vandals threw a brick through two windows, glued the building’s locks, damaged an entry keypad, and scrawled anarchy symbols on the front doors. The Metropolitan Republican Club is headquartered at […]

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s security clearance was removed at her request on Aug. 30, according to a letter (pdf) from the State Department to the Senate Judiciary Committee. Clearances for five other people Clinton designated as researchers have also been withdrawn on Sept. 20, including Clinton’s close aide Cheryl Mills, the State Department […]

NEW YORK—Picking the right college isn’t just a matter of finding a good fit for a student’s talents and interests, but should also involve what a family can reasonably afford. As U.S. high school seniors prepare their college wish lists, more parents than ever are scrutinizing the price tags. A recent T. Rowe Price survey […]

Tiny termites are causing big damage in parts of Egypt’s Luxor province. In the village of al-Aqalta, more than 500 kilometres (313 miles) south of Cairo, the amount of termite destruction has skyrocketed. Many houses are near to collapse as termites consume wood at an alarming rate, forcing some residents onto the streets. Roofs and doors are […]

US President Donald Trump says he will meet with pastor Andrew Brunson in the Oval Office on Oct. 13, following his release by Turkey. Trump says the 50-year-old pastor “suffered greatly” but is in “very good shape.” A Turkish court on Friday convicted the North Carolina native of terror links but released him from house […]

Newly released video footage shows the inside of a federal immigration shelter in Texas that houses unaccompanied children who reach the United States. The footage, released by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), shows the Tornillo shelter. The footage shows children playing soccer and eating, and shows the living facilities, which are sturdy […]

MEXICO BEACH—The death toll was expected to rise this weekend in the aftermath of Hurricane Michael as hundreds remained unaccounted for along the Florida Panhandle where decimated communities remained cut off and in the dark. As of early on Oct. 13, state officials were reporting that at least 18 have been killed in Florida, Georgia, […]

KABUL, Afghanistan—A motorcycle rigged with explosives detonated at an election rally in northeastern Afghanistan on Oct. 13, killing at least 14 people, including civilians and security forces, officials said. Khalil Aser, spokesman for the provincial police chief in Takhar province, said 32 others were wounded when the explosives-laden motorbike parked near the rally in Rustaq […]

ABC executives are regretting firing Roseanne Barr so quickly after she made a controversial, racially charged comment on Twitter, and fear the upcoming spinoff “The Connors,” which features many of the same characters minus Roseanne, won’t generate good ratings, according to a new report. The Daily Mail, quoting two senior executives at the network, who […]

MEXICO BEACH—Tom Garcia watched in terror as fingers of water pushed inland across the beach and began filling up his home. His wife handed him a drill and Garcia used screws to pin his front and back door shut. But soon the storm surge from Hurricane Michael was up to his chest. His dogs sat […]

HONG KONG—As Hong Kong’s government hews closer to Beijing, officials are taking a tough line on perceived national security threats, even deploying an elite police unit for political monitoring and surveillance–a sharp escalation in rhetoric and action. In just the last few months, the special administrative region has banned the Hong Kong National Party, which […]

Volunteer search-and-rescue networks formed during previous flood disasters in Texas and Louisiana sprang into action in Florida this week following Hurricane Michael, providing a boost to authorities hit by electricity and communications outages. By Oct. 11, two days after Michael plowed into Florida’s Panhandle as one of the fiercest hurricanes ever to strike the U.S. […]

PARIS—Scuba divers found two people dead inside an upended car lolling on a beach after torrential rains wrought havoc along France’s Riviera coast in the night of Oct. 10, when flash floods also killed 10 on the Mediterranean island of Mallorca. Meteorologists said major downpours were a classic phenomenon at this time of year but […]

MEXICO BEACH, Fla.—Searchers on Oct. 12 found the first body in the rubble of the Florida coastal town of Mexico Beach, which was nearly obliterated by Hurricane Michael, as the toll from the historic storm rose to at least 17 and was expected to rise. Rescue teams, hampered by power and phone outages, used cadaver […]

MEXICO BEACH, Fla.—Tom Garcia watched in terror as fingers of water pushed inland across the beach and began filling up his home. His wife handed him a drill and Garcia used screws to pin his front and back door shut. But soon the storm surge from Hurricane Michael was up to his chest. His dogs […]

IZMIR, Turkey—A U.S. pastor was flown out of Turkey on Oct. 12 after a court freed him from two years of detention, in a step that could improve U.S.-Turkish ties strained by disputes over Syria, Iran and Ankara’s planned purchase of Russian military equipment. Pastor Andrew Brunson was expected to land at Joint Base Andrews […]

MEXICO BEACH, Fla.—Search-and-rescue teams began finding bodies in and around Mexico Beach, the ground-zero town nearly obliterated by Hurricane Michael, an official said on Oct. 12 as the scale of the storm’s fury became ever clearer. But he gave no details on the number of dead. The death toll across the South stood at 13, […]

Zooworld, a privately owned and funded zoo is an attraction in Panama City Beach that has been in place for more than 60 years, the manager of the zoo for the past four years, Kayte Hogan told Reuters. The five acre small zoo, home to capybaras, alligators, a lion, tigers, giraffes and more, offers ‘a […]