The Boy Scouts officially changes its name to
Scouts BSA and young women join as official members of the organization for the first time.
(ABC6)(Scouting Newsroom)
A large-scale
natural gas shortage in the U.S. state of
Michigan is averted following the compliance of an emergency request from
Consumers Energy for state residents to lower
thermostats, after a fire at a natural gas compressor station threatened to halt the delivery of gas to consumers. The public's observance of the request resulted in a 10 percent decrease in natural gas usage across the state.
(WNEM-TV)(Associated Press)
Three students at a school in
Johannesburg,
South Africa, are killed after a footbridge connecting the main school administration to various class rooms collapses.
(AA)
A
meteorite strikes near the
Cuban town of
Viñales, in the western province of
Pinar del Río, after sightings of a fireball over the
Florida Keys. The last confirmed meteorite to hit Cuba was in 1994.
(DW)
A sheriff's deputy is killed and another wounded during a 12 hour standoff in
Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. The suspect has been taken into custody.
(NBC News)
Venezuelan Air Force general Francisco Yáñez becomes the first high-ranking general to publicly support
Juan Guaidó after he denounced the "dictatorship" of Maduro and recognized Guaidó's claim as the nation's legitimate leader.
(Fox News)
Hundreds of thousands of Venezuelan people take to the streets to protest socio-economic and political situation of the country and to demand a better economic situation. Large competing anti-Maduro and anti-Guaidó rallies are held in
Caracas.
(The Washington Post)
Governor of the U.S. state of
VirginiaRalph Northam says he will not resign from office because he does not believe that he appears in a controversial photograph from his 1984 medical school
yearbook showing one person wearing
blackface and another person wearing
Ku Klux Klan attire. However, Northam later admits to wearing blackface during the same time period for a dance contest, in order to imitate musician
Michael Jackson.
(Post and Courier)(The Washington Examiner)
At the request of Chadian authorities,
French Air ForceMirage 2000 fighter jets strike a convoy of around 40 pickups of an armed group that entered northern
Chad from
Libya.
(Reuters)
Seven
Iranian pilgrims are wounded after their bus comes under attack by unidentified gunmen in central
Iraq; one woman is described as being in serious condition.
(AP)
25-year-old
Australian footballer and refugee from
Bahrain,
Hakeem al-Araibi, is ordered to defend an extradition order back to Bahrain in a
Bangkok court, after being detained upon arrival in
Thailand for his honeymoon with his wife in November 2018. International community is treating it as a
human rights issue; a campaign to free al-Araibi and return him to Australia is growing.
(news.com.au)
The location of the
magnetic north pole is updated one year early due to its increasingly rapid movement toward
Siberia from the
Canadian Arctic at a rate of 55 kilometers (34 miles) per year.
(NOAA)
The
Taliban kill over 40 people in three separate attacks while
Afghan-
Taliban peace talks are taking place in
Moscow. 12 others were injured.
(Al Jazeera)
Portuguese bank
Novo Banco blocks the transfer of $1.2 billion of Venezuelan government financial assets to
Uruguay. The move was requested by the
Nicolás Maduro government.
(Reuters)
A fire in an apartment block in
Paris,
France, kills ten and leaves over 30 wounded. The incident is being treated as possible
arson. A woman was arrested on suspicion of setting the fire.
(BBC News)(The Guardian)
Pope Francis makes a public statement acknowledging that some priests and bishops in the Catholic Church have been sexually abusing nuns.
(CBS-6)
The lone body found in the Piper PA-46 Malibu that disappeared two weeks ago is confirmed to be that of missing footballer
Emiliano Sala. The pilot remains missing, presumed dead.
(Mirror)
A senior
White House official, speaking on condition of anonymity, reveals that the United States government is holding direct communications with members of
Venezuela's military urging them to abandon
Nicolás Maduro.
(Reuters)
ThaiPrincess Ubolratana conveyed a message of thanks to Thais on Saturday morning after
KingVajiralongkorn issued a royal announcement late on Friday night saying political involvement by a senior royal is inappropriate.
(Bangkok Post)
The family of pilot David Ibbotson launch a
GoFundMe campaign to locate and recover his body, raising thousands of
pounds within hours. Footballer
Emiliano Sala's body was recently found in the wreckage and recovered two weeks after the plane first went missing.
(BBC News)
Venezuelan authorities claim that a U.S.-owned air freight company delivered a crate of weapons to the international airport in
Valencia to be used in "terrorist actions" against the Maduro government. The air charter business involved, 21 Air, denies the charges.
(Chicago Tribune)
Hungary'sPrime MinisterViktor Orbán announces new tax and loan benefits for families as part of his government’s efforts to increase the birth rate in Hungary. The new measures include the expansion of a loan program for families with at least two children and waiving personal income tax for women raising at least four children. Orbán is one of the most outspoken critics of
immigration to Europe from the Middle East and Asia.
(France 24)(Reuters)
Mars One, a private
Dutch organization that had claimed it would send humans on a one-way trip to
Mars starting in
2024, releases a statement saying it has been declared bankrupt.
(CBC)
A winter storm is expected to bring up to 12 inches (30 cm) of snow to the Midwestern and Northeastern United States in the upcoming days.
(NBC News)
A winter storm hits
Hawaii, depositing snow at record-low elevations at
Polipoli State Park, along with massive waves, coastal flooding, and strong winds, resulting in at least one death.
(AP)(The Washington Post)
Finnish police start to investigate new rapes of two underage girls that had occurred a few days earlier in
Oulu, Finland.
(Yle)
A 15-year-old student has stabbed and killed his teacher and a classmate at a high school in
Stolbtsy,
Belarus. Two other classmates were also injured.
(The New York Times)
At his trial in a
Brooklynfederal court,
Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán is found guilty on all 10 counts; the charges include engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise, conspiracy to launder narcotics proceeds, international distribution of
cocaine,
heroin,
marijuana and other drugs, and use of firearms during the commission of a felony.
(CNN)
All 78 inmates escape from a prison in
Aquin,
Haiti, amid ongoing unrest in the country that has left four people dead.
(BBC News)
Venezuelan
disputed interim President
Juan Guaidó states that he is working to restore ties with
Israel, which were broken by
Hugo Chávez's anti-Israeli policy, while also weighing whether to relocate the nation's embassy into
Jerusalem.
(Al Jazeera)
The mission of
NASA's Opportunity rover on
Mars comes to an end. The rover stopped communicating in June 2018 after a Martian dust storm, and attempts to reestablish communications have not been successful.
(NASA)
At least 46 members of
India's security forces are killed when a suicide bomber blew himself up as a convoy of military vehicles drove on a highway in
Jammu and Kashmir.
(BBC News)
Thousands of
ISIL fighters and their families flee or surrender to the
Syrian Democratic Forces, pushing back ISIL control to a square mile in the last ISIL stronghold of
Baghuz. It is expected that ISIL still holds several hostages, including British Journalist
John Cantlie.
(US News)(The Guardian)
The
House of Commons votes to reject British Prime Minister
Theresa May's negotiating strategy with the
EU, though this motion has no legal force.
(BBC News)
After announcing that it was canceling its
New York City headquarters plans the day before,
Amazon announces that it will keep its second headquarters in
Virginia.
(CNET)
Former
Massachusetts GovernorBill Weld announces the launching of a presidential exploratory committee to run for President of the United States in the 2020 United States presidential election.
(CNN)
A senior
United States administration official says the U.S. is willing to meet with Venezuelan President
Nicolás Maduro to negotiate an exit to the crisis, as the U.S. military helps deliver aid to Venezuela.
(CNN)
Following the announcement of the launch of a joint bid to host the
2032 Summer Olympics,
North Korea and
South Korea announce that they are also interested in marching jointly at the 2020 Summer Olympics, as well as fielding unified teams in some sports.
(ESPN)
Militants attacked an
army checkpoint in
Sinai Peninsula killing and injuring 15. It is believed that 11 soldiers were killed but that has not been confirmed. Seven militants also died in the attack.
(The National)(The Times of Israel)
Sixteen militants are killed in two different raids in
Egypt's
Sinai Peninsula. A number of weapons and explosives are also found in the raids.
(Al Jazeera)
Honda confirms that it will be closing its car plant in
Swindon, South West England, because of decreased demand for diesel cars and tougher emissions regulations. The closure in 2021 will result in the loss of about 3,500 jobs.
(BBC News)
An
avalanche at the
Crans-Montanaski resort in
Switzerland injures four, one seriously, with fears that up to a dozen skiers may have been hit according to witnesses. 240 rescuers including police and army search the affected piste area. No further victims are immediately found, or missing persons reported.
(Fox News)(SwissInfo)
A father, his son, and a gas station employee are all killed in
Wayne, New Jersey when a driver under the influence swerves his car and hits the father and son’s
Chevrolet Camaro.
(NBC New York)
The opening round of the
Aeroflot Open, an international open
chess tournament, is postponed a day after 45 minutes of play as a bomb threat locks down the
Moscow hotel hosting the event. Similar threats also shut down cinemas, shopping centres, and theatres; thousands are evacuated.
(Chess.com)(Chessbase)
One surviving female specimen of the Fernandina
Galápagos tortoise species, which was thought to be extinct for more than 100 years, is found.
(USA Today)
North Carolina election authorities unanimously order a new election to choose the district's representative to the
United States House of Representatives after their investigation determined the Republican candidate's campaign illegally handled absentee ballots, and the candidate,
Mark Harris, reverses his position and calls for a new election.
(The New York Times)(NPR)
Scientists announce that the Megachile pluto (Wallace's giant bee), the world's largest
bee, has been rediscovered in
North Maluku,
Indonesia, after no confirmed sightings since 1981. The first ever pictures and videos are taken of the rare species.
(BBC News)
American musician
R. Kelly is indicted for raping a minor. A judge in Cook County, Illinois, issues an arrest warrant for Kelly in regard to 10 counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse.
(CNN)(NBC News)
Trucks carrying humanitarian aid from Colombia and Brazil attempt to enter Venezuelan territory. Two trucks are set on fire on the Francisco de Paula Santander International Bridge.
(Herald Sun)
Venezuelan opposition deputy
Freddy Superlano and his assistant are poisoned at a restaurant in
Cúcuta, Colombia. His assistant and cousin, Carlos Salinas, has died while Superlano is in a serious but stable condition in hospital.
(The Washington Post)(BNO News)
The
Labour Party announces it will support a second referendum on the end of the
United Kingdom's membership of the
European Union unless Wednesday sees Labour's proposed Brexit deal supported by Parliament.
(BBC News)
Police in
Kenya ask a court to allow them to detain three men for 30 days on suspicion of conspiring to aid two
Iranian terror suspects to escape.
(KBC)
Voters in
Cuba approve a new constitution which recognizes private and cooperative businesses, sets term limits for the president, creates the post of
prime minister, introduces the
presumption of innocence and
habeas corpus to the justice system, and affirms an "irrevocable" socialist government.
(Al Jazeera)(The Guardian)
Pakistan reports that
Indian military aircraft violated their airspace near
Muzaffarabad and were intercepted by Pakistan Air Force (PAF) military aircraft. Indian Air Force aircraft in a haste dropped their payload which fell near balakot. India claims that the incident was an airstrike on an alleged
Jaish-e-Mohammed camp in Balakot in retaliation to the
Pulwama attack days earlier.
(Reuters),
(New York Times)
Two
United States military officials tell CNN that the U.S. military has flown
reconnaissance flights in international
airspace off the coast of Venezuela during the last several days to gather classified intelligence about President
Nicolás Maduro.
(CNN)
A
JewishIsraeli teen is convicted of membership of a terror organisation, arson, and racially aggravated assault. He is the second Jewish person convicted of terror group membership ever in Israel in connection to crimes against
Palestinians. His conviction was announced today, but occurred last week in secrecy.
(The Times of Israel)
An oversight committee is expected to vote on whether to subpoena
Trump administration officials over family separations at the southern border.
(AP News)
The
Pakistani Air Force claims it has carried out
six airstrikes in Indian-administered
Jammu and Kashmir, shooting down one Indian aircraft and capturing one pilot following a
dogfight. Pakistani officials claimed that they have shot down two Indian Air Force (IAF) jets. Wreckage of one aircraft fell in
Azad Kashmir while the other fell in Indian-administered Kashmir. Indian officials initially rejected that any of their aircraft was shot down and claimed that all of IAF pilots were accounted for. However, later on they acknowledge that one IAF Mig-21 has been shot down and its pilot was captured by the Pakistan Army. India officials also claimed to have shot down one Pakistani Air Force (PAF) jet that violated its airspace. However, Indian officials claim were rejected by Pakistani officials.
(The Week (India))(NDTV)(The Hindu Business Line)(Dawn News)
Ukraine withdraws from this year's
Eurovision Song Contest in
Tel Aviv,
Israel, after Ukrainian entrant
Maruv said she refused to be used as a "political tool" after being asked to sign a contract saying she wouldn't hold any concerts in
Russia in the lead up to the event.
(BBC News)
A landslide hits an illegal gold mine in
North Sulawesi,
Sulawesi,
Indonesia. An estimated 60 people are trapped underground as shafts give way, while three others are found dead.
(Sky News)
MPs in the
House of Commons meet to discuss
UK Prime MinisterTheresa May's latest proposed deal for the state's departure from the
European Union. May says if this proposal and a 'no deal' scenario are both rejected by MPs they will be granted a vote on extending the departure deadline beyond the current one of March 29.
(BBC News)
Conservative MP
Alberto Costa tables an amendment to secure the rights of EU citizens within the UK and UK citizens abroad. Theresa May tells Commons she opposes the amendment;
Home SecretarySajid Javid subsequently supports it, apparently unaware of May's opposition. Costa resigns as parliamentary private secretary to
Scottish SecretaryDavid Mundell, who supports the amendment. The government subsequently announces it will support the amendment.
(The Guardian)
Nine men receive prison terms for raping two vulnerable teenage girls in
Bradford over a period of years. A tenth is cleared. The abuse began when the victims were fourteen. The girls were from a children's home.
(BBC News)
Shin Bet arrest lawyer Tarek Barghout, an attorney who has represented "terror" suspects, and a
Palestinian man named Zakaria Zubeidi for what it calls "their involvement in serious and current terrorist activities."
(The Times of Israel)
Steven Avery, a high-profile
miscarriage of justice victim subsequently convicted of murder after his release in 2003, is granted a fresh appeal in
Wisconsin. Avery, who was suing
Manitowoc County officials over his original wrongful conviction when he was arrested for murder, gained international attention as the subject of the documentary Making a Murderer.
(Sky News)
The family of
Pat Finucane, murdered during
The Troubles in
Northern Ireland, win a declaration from the
Supreme Court of the United Kingdom that the investigation into his killing was sufficiently ineffective to amount to a failure of the state's obligations under the
European Convention on Human Rights. The Supreme Court stops short of mandating a
public inquiry as requested by the family. Members of the security services are accepted to have colluded with Finucane's murderers, but the scale and nature of collusion is unclear.
(Sky News)
Juan Guaidó announces that he will exercise his "duties as president" when he returns to Venezuela from Colombia. Guaidó also stated that he did not see any signs of "broad support" from Russia towards
Nicolás Maduro.
(CNN),
(Forbes)
Chris Williamson, a
Labour MP, is suspended by his party over comments that Labour had "given too much ground" when responding to criticism over its handling of
antisemitism within its ranks.
(BBC News)
YouTube announces that it will turn off comments on videos featuring children under the age of 18 after reports that a
pedophile ring was operating in the comment sections of videos featuring minors, which subsequently led
AT&T,
Nestlé and
Hasbro to suspend advertisements on the website.
(BBC News)
The
United Nations Security Council rejected rival resolutions on
Venezuela by the
United States and
Russia Thursday. Russia and
China vetoed the U.S. call for new elections and the unhindered distribution of humanitarian aid, while Moscow's proposal for a political solution and reaffirmation of the government's role in soliciting assistance failed to gain sufficient support.
(The Washington Post)
Venezuelan opposition leader and interim president
Juan Guaidó said Thursday he will return to his country by Monday, and that a dialogue with
PresidentNicolás Maduro won't be possible without discussing elections.
(CNN)