Scientists back temporary global ban on gene-edited babies
NEW YORK — An international group of scientists and ethicists on Wednesday called for a temporary global ban on making babies with edited genes. It’s the latest reaction to last November’s announcement that gene-edited twins had been born in China, which was widely criticized. Mainstream scientists generally oppose making babies...
Israeli group honors Nikki Haley with coin
JERUSALEM — An Israeli organization has minted a coin emblazoned with the face of Nikki Haley, President Donald Trump’s former ambassador to the United Nations, to commemorate her defense of Israel in the world body. The Sanhedrin, a Jewish organization that dreams of restoring the Jewish Temple, where ancient temples...
Claire’s recalls makeup products FDA said tested positive for asbestos
A week after disagreeing with the FDA about asbestos in three of its makeup products, girls’ fashion chain Claire’s did what the FDA wanted: issued an official recall of the three products. Claire’s pulled Eyeshadows, Compact Powder and Contour Palette from stores last week. So, this recall concerns those who...
Pitt disputes claims of union suppression
University of Pittsburgh officials are denying student claims that their choice of locations for a union election for graduate student workers was an attempt to suppress the voting turnout. Graduate teaching and research assistants at Pitt won a right to hold a union election last week when the Pennsylvania Labor...
Italy outraged as court finds victim too ugly to be raped
ROME — Italy’s Justice Ministry has ordered a preliminary inquiry into an appeals court ruling that overturned a rape verdict in part by arguing that the woman who was attacked was too ugly to be a credible rape victim. The ruling has sparked outrage in Italy, prompting a flash mob...
NASA’s new rocket won’t be ready for moon shot next year
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — NASA’s top official says the space agency’s new rocket won’t be ready for a moon shot next year. Administrator Jim Bridenstine told a Senate committee Wednesday he’s considering switching to commercial rockets to preserve the June 2020 launch date. Bridenstine says two commercial rockets would be...
Verizon says 5G network will cost extra $10 a month
A handful of Verizon customers will soon have faster wireless service — but they’ll have to pay $10 a month more. Verizon says it’ll flip the switch next month on a much-hyped, next-generation 5G phone network. Service will start in parts of Chicago and Minneapolis. The offer is available only...
Paul Manafort sentenced to a total of 7½ years in prison for conspiracy, fraud
WASHINGTON — A federal judge on Wednesday sentenced former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort to an additional three and one-half years of prison, questioning his remorse and rebuking him for his crimes and years of lies. That makes seven and one-half years for Manafort, coming on top of the roughly...
U.S. health officials move to tighten sales of e-cigarettes
WASHINGTON — U.S. health regulators are moving ahead with a plan designed to keep e-cigarettes out of the hands of teenagers by restricting sales of most flavored products in convenience stores and online. The new guidelines, first proposed in November, are the latest government effort to reverse what health officials...
Canada grounds Boeing 737 Max 8 and 9; U.S. last major user of plane
Canada said Wednesday that it is grounding all Boeing 737 Max 8 airplanes over safety concerns arising from the crash of an Ethiopian Airlines flight earlier this week. The news leaves the United States and its carriers as the last major users of the aircraft. Transport Minister Marc Garneau said...
Actress Lori Loughlin surrenders as admissions fallout spreads
BOSTON — Fallout from a sweeping college admissions scandal swiftly spread Wednesday, with actress Lori Loughlin surrendering ahead of a Los Angeles court hearing and a Silicon Valley hedge fund replacing its leader. Loughlin and fellow actress Felicity Huffman headline the list of some 50 people charged in documents unveiled...
Trump says late-night shows ‘one-sided’ and ‘unwatchable’
President Donald Trump is often the target of hosts on late-night shows. He’s often mocked or ridiculed, or both. On Wednesday the president longed for the days when Jay Leno sat in the comfy seat on the “Tonight” show on NBC. On Twitter he shared, “‘Jay Leno points out that...
DEA warns of scam phone calls after increase
The Drug Enforcement Administration issued a warning Wednesday after an “alarming” rise in scam phone calls relating to the agency. The phone calls involve a caller posing as a DEA agent or other law enforcement official threatening arrest for drug-related offenses or legal action over an exorbitant fine that doesn’t...
Sudan cancels flogging of 9 women arrested in protests
CAIRO — A Sudanese opposition group says an appeals court has overturned a sentence of flogging and imprisonment against nine women who took part in anti-government protests. The Democratic Lawyers Alliance says Wednesday the court ordered their release the previous day. The women were arrested Saturday and an emergency court...
Officials: 2 attackers kill 6, themselves at Brazil school
SAO PAULO — Authorities say hooded teenagers opened fire at a school in southern Brazil, killing six people before taking their own lives. Wednesday’s shooting happened in a public school in Suzano, a suburb of Sao Paulo, Brazil’s largest city. The state government of Sao Paulo says two youths armed...
Germany to compensate gay men investigated after WWII
BERLIN — German authorities on Wednesday extended compensation payments to more gay men who were investigated under a law criminalizing homosexuality that was enthusiastically enforced in West Germany after World War II. German lawmakers in 2017 approved the annulment of thousands of convictions under the Paragraph 175 law, which remained...
Woman sentenced for stealing donations for young burn victim
WICHITA, Kan. — A 34-year-old Kansas woman who stole charitable donations meant for an 11-year-old burn victim has been sentenced to a year of probation. KAKE-TV reports Cinthia Davis, of Wellington, was sentenced Tuesday and ordered restitution to the victim’s family. Davis was found guilty of felony theft in January....
Ohio man says he’ll sustain himself with just beer for Lent
Commonly Christians give up something for Lent in preparation for the Easter holiday. But one man in Ohio is taking a different tack and deciding to only have beer during the Lenten season. Del Hall, who works at the Fifty West Brewing Company in Cincinnati, has challenged himself to sustain...
Carnival in Spanish towns
ALSASUA, Spain (AP) — Dozens of devil-like figures dance and convulse at the sound of cowbells, chasing onlookers with pitchforks in Alsasua as part of this northern Spanish town’s Carnival. Alsasua is one of several villages in this remote region in the foothills of Pyrenees Mountains that still honor these...
Feds charge dozens in widespread U.S. college admissions scam
BOSTON — A fast-moving college admissions scandal moved from bombshell indictments to guilty pleas in a matter of hours, yet the full fallout from the federal case against the rich and famous could take months or more to unfold. Big names such as actresses Felicity Huffman and Lori Loughlin headline...
Trump sees advantage in debate over Israel, anti-Semitism
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump can’t get enough of Rep. Ilhan Omar. As Democrats try to turn the page after the freshman lawmaker’s remarks, criticized by some as anti-Semitic, ignited an embarrassing, intra-party fight, the Republican president is trying to prolong and weaponize the issue for his 2020 campaign, asserting...
Compromise seeks to limit president’s emergency declarations
WASHINGTON — The White House and Republican senators sought compromise on limiting presidents’ powers to unilaterally declare national emergencies, as chances improved that President Donald Trump might avoid a long-expected rejection by Congress of his effort to divert billions more for building barriers along the Mexican border. As a Thursday...
New Pentagon transgender rule sets limits for troops
WASHINGTON — The Defense Department has approved a new policy that will largely bar transgender troops and military recruits from transitioning to another sex, and require most individuals to serve in their birth gender. The memo outlining the new policy was obtained Tuesday by The Associated Press, and it comes...
3-story building collapses in Nigeria with children inside
LAGOS, Nigeria — Frantic rescue efforts were underway in Nigeria on Wednesday after a three-story school building collapsed while classes were in session, with scores of children thought to be inside. Witnesses said nearly a dozen students had been pulled from the ruins, but it was not yet clear if...
Traces of weed killer in products like Roundup found in popular beers, wineVideo
The weed-killing chemical found in products such as Bayer AG’s Roundup has been cropping up in some of Americans most popular foods. Now that glass of vino or brew also may be tainted, according to a new report by U.S. Public Interest Research Group. Some wines or beers likely contain...
