WorldAssociated PressUN diplomats: Russia and China block US on North Korea oil
Russia and China blocked the United States on Thursday from getting the United Nations to publicly accuse North Korea of smuggling in refined petroleum products beyond the annual quota of 500,000 barrels allowed under U.N. sanctions, diplomats said. The Russians and Chinese, who are key suppliers of petroleum products to North Korea, said they needed more time to examine the U.S. allegations, the diplomats said.
BusinessAFP'Treasure ship' stock bubble draws South Korea warning
Rumours of a treasure trove on a Russian ship that sank off South Korea a century ago have sent a company's shares on a rollercoaster ride, triggering a warning Friday from financial regulators. Start-up business Shinil Group announced earlier this week that it had found an imperial Russian navy vessel off Ulleung island in the Sea of Japan, saying it was believed to contain gold bullion and coins worth 150 trillion won ($130 billion). Others pointed out that Russia would have had no reason to load a vast treasure trove on a ship it was sending into battle, and doubly so as it had a land route to its destination Vladivostok anyway.
- PoliticsTime
Microsoft Says It Stopped Cyberattacks on Three 2018 Congressional Candidates
The targets, who it didn’t identify, were “all people who because of their positions might have been interesting from an espionage standpoint, as well as an election disruption standpoint,” Tom Burt, Microsoft’s corporate vice president for customer security and trust, said at the Aspen Security Forum in Colorado on Thursday. A Facebook Inc. executive on the same panel at the Aspen conference said that in April, the company removed a few hundred pages on the service controlled by the St. Petersburg-based Internet Research Agency, which has been indicted by Special Counsel Robert Mueller for an alleged social media campaign aimed at interfering in the 2016 U.S. election.
- PoliticsHuffPost
Kremlin Launches Twitter Flash Mob To Free Alleged Russian Agent Maria Butina
Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has launched a Twitter flash mob to free Russian national Maria Butina following U.S. charges that she conspired to influence American politics while covertly working for the Kremlin. The ministry urged people to show support for Butina by changing their Twitter profile photos to a portrait of Butina posted on the ministry’s official Twitter account and Facebook page on Thursday.
- HealthThe Independent
71-year-old man dies from bacterial infection after eating oyster in Florida
A 71-year-old man has died from a bacterial infection after eating an oyster in a Florida restaurant in Sarasota County, according to local reports. The Florida Department of Health has not identified the man or the restaurant but the man died on 10, July. In posts published to Twitter, the health department identified the bacteria in question as Vibrio vulnificus, a rare bacterium that normally lives in warm seawater and that is naturally occurring in warm salty or brackish water.
PoliticsThe TelegraphTrump questions if US should defend 'aggressive' Montenegro in blow to key Nato principle
President Donald Trump drew fresh criticism on Wednesday for calling NATO's undergirding principle into question and for attacking "tiny" Montenegro, whose accession to the alliance enraged Moscow. Trump's comments, which a former US ambassador to NATO decried as a "gift to Putin," came in an interview with Fox News when he was asked about Article 5, NATO's common defense clause which states that an attack on one member is an attack on all.
- CelebrityArchitectural Digest
The Iconic House from “The Brady Bunch” Is Now on the Market for the First Time in 45 Years
The late 1950s, split-level ranch home the Brady family called home on the 1970s sitcom The Brady Bunch has hit the market for the first time in 45 years for $1.885 million. One of the most recognizable homes in television history, the house is located
- BusinessThe Guardian
Aid group Raices rejects $250,000 from Salesforce over border agency contract
Raices has condemned Salesforce’s relationship with CBP. A not-for-profit legal aid group for immigrants and refugees has rejected a $250,000 donation from Salesforce over the technology company’s contracts with Customs and Border Protection (CBP). “When it comes to supporting oppressive, inhumane, and illegal policies, we want to be clear: the only right action is to stop,” wrote Jonathan Ryan, executive director of the Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services (Raices), in an email to Salesforce published on Twitter.
WorldAFPS. Korea's ex-president Park given eight more years in prison
Disgraced former South Korean president Park Geun-hye was convicted of charges including illegally receiving funds from the country's spy agency on Friday and given eight more years in prison, on top of her current term. Park, the South's first female president, was impeached last year after huge street protests over a sprawling scandal, and was jailed for 24 years for corruption and abuse of power in April. Friday's penalty -- issued in her absence after she refused to attend the Seoul Central District Court -- came after a separate trial for pocketing money from the National Intelligence Service (NIS) and improperly intervening in 2016 in the selection of her ruling party's parliamentary candidates.
WorldReutersEritrean troops withdraw from Ethiopia border - Eritrean Press
ASMARA (Reuters) - Eritrea has pulled troops back from the heavily militarised border with Ethiopia as a "gesture of reconciliation" with its giant neighbour and long-time foe, the pro-government Eritrean Press agency said on its Facebook page.
WorldAssociated PressAfter rescue, soccer boys pray for protection at Thai temple
The youth soccer teammates rescued from a flooded cave began their first day back home with their families Thursday by going to a Buddhist temple to pray for protection from misfortunes. Eleven of the boys and the Wild Boars coach kneeled and pressed their hands in prayer to the tune of chanting monks at the ceremony meant to extend one's life and protect it from dangers. Only one member was absent, Adul Sargon, who is not Buddhist.
- HealthTime
Raw Turkey Is Connected to Salmonella Outbreak Affecting People in 26 States
A salmonella outbreak connected to raw turkey has affected 90 people in 26 states, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Thursday. At least 40 people have been hospitalized due to the Salmonella outbreak, according to the CDC. It is unclear where the Salmonella outbreak is coming from, and the CDC said it is still looking into which supplier or type of raw turkey product is linked to the outbreak.
- NewsHuffPost
Justice Department Will Tell Public About 'Persistent,' 'Pervasive' Attacks On Democracy
Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein said the report, crafted by the Justice Department’s new Cyber-Digital Task Force, demonstrates that U.S. citizens and businesses are targeted “every day” by hackers and influence campaigns, noting that it was far more than elections being targeted. “The Russian effort to influence the 2016 presidential election is just one tree in a growing forest,” Rosenstein said at the Aspen Security Forum in Colorado. Rosenstein, who is overseeing special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the last national election, said Justice would begin informing the public about such efforts in an attempt to combat future disinformation campaigns.
- WorldThe Telegraph
Russian warship ‘carrying £100 billion in gold’ discovered off South Korea
A South Korean salvage team has discovered the wreck of a Russian warship that was sunk in a naval battle 113 years ago and is believed to still contain a trove of gold bullion and coins worth 150 trillion won, or £100 billion. The Russian Imperial Navy cruiser Dmitrii Donskoi was discovered at a depth of more than 1,400 feet about one mile off the South Korean island of Ulleungdo. A joint team made up of experts from South Korea, Britain and Canada discovered the wreck on Sunday and used two manned submersibles to capture footage of the vessel, with the company behind the discovery promising to use a percentage of the money to fund the construction of a railway line linking Russia and South Korea through North Korea.
CelebrityAFP Relax NewsHailey Baldwin turns 'Style Creator' for Adidas Originals and JD
Hailey Baldwin is famous for her career in front of the camera, but she is stepping behind the lens for her latest big role. The model has been unveiled as the first-ever ‘Style Creator' for sportswear giant Adidas Originals and JD -- a move that will reportedly see her act as a creative voice for the brands behind the scenes. "Creativity is what drives me -- I love starring in campaigns but being able to direct and have creative control is what I am most passionate about," Baldwin told Harper's Bazaar.
- NewsThe Guardian
Rightwing rally cancelled as Maxine Waters supporters stand guard
A rightwing group that had vowed to stage weeks of protests against California’s best-known African American member of Congress, Maxine Waters, was a no-show at its own demonstration as activists thronged to offer their support outside Waters’ district office in south Los Angeles. The Oath Keepers, founded in 2009 in reaction to the election of America’s first black president, and described by the Southern Poverty Law Center as one of the country’s largest anti-immigrant and anti-government groups, had targeted Waters because of her encouragement of anti-Trump activists who refused service to cabinet members and White House aides at restaurants and other businesses. Donald Trump slammed Waters on Twitter last month, calling her an “extraordinarily low IQ person” who meant to do his supporters harm.
- ScienceThe Telegraph
Spiky Utah dinosaur had more than 'a face only a mother could love'
With its head and snout covered in bony armor shaped like cones and pyramids, a spiky tank-like dinosaur unearthed in southern Utah was not just another pretty face. Scientists on Thursday announced the discovery of fossils of a dinosaur named Akainacephalus johnsoni that lived 76 million years ago during the Cretaceous Period. It was a member of a dinosaur group called ankylosaurs, among the most heavily armored animals ever on Earth - and for good reason, considering the predators around at the time.
- NewsThe Independent
Father of two Parkland shooting survivors shot and killed in Florida robbery
The father of two Parkland shooting survivors has reportedly been shot and killed in a robbery, just five months after his children survived one of the deadliest school shootings in US history. Ayub Ali, age 61, died on Tuesday after being fatally wounded in a robbery of his Florida convenience store, according to the Broward County Sheriff’s Office. Surveillance video released by the sheriff’s department shows the suspect engaging Mr Ali in the aisles of the store, then leading him to the cash register with a black object against his back.
NewsAFPBrazil's fugitive 'Dr. Bumbum' plastic surgeon arrested over patient death
A Brazilian celebrity butt-enhancement surgeon known as Dr. Bumbum was arrested Thursday over the death of a patient in a botched operation after spending four days on the run. Denis Furtado, who calls himself Dr. Bumbum on social media, was arrested in an office building thanks to a tip from an anonymous telephone caller, police said. Furtado was considered capable of performing magic on women's bodies, in particular their bottoms, and became known throughout the country for his expertise.
WorldReutersPhilippines to expel 'undesirable' Australian nun who irked Duterte
The Philippines blacklisted and ordered the deportation on Thursday of an elderly Australian nun at odds with President Rodrigo Duterte, calling her an "undesirable alien" who broke terms of her missionary visa by engaging in political activism. The resolution was the second time immigration chiefs have sought to deport Patricia Fox, 71, who two months ago had been granted a reprieve by the justice department. Fox has worked in the Philippines since the early 1990s and is a coordinator of a congregation of Catholic nuns called Notre Dame de Sion.
- NewsAssociated Press
Worker killed in Army depot explosion died of burns
A civilian worker killed in a fire and explosion at an Army facility in Pennsylvania died from burns, officials announced Friday. The Lehigh County coroner's office identified the victim as Eric Byers, a resident of central Pennsylvania. Byers was pronounced dead just after 7 p.m. Thursday at Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest.
- NewsHuffPost
Home Depot Backtracks After Firing Employee Who Says He Stood Up To Racist Customer
Maurice Rucker, who is black, was working in the garden center when he asked a customer with a dog to leash his pet while in the store, the Albany Times Union reported on Thursday. In response, the customer, who is white, reportedly cursed at Rucker and said, “You’re from the ghetto.
- WorldInside Edition
Stuffed Animal Keeps Preemie Penguin Company at London Zoo
Rainbow, as she is now known, was born prematurely after zookeepers at the London Zoo saw that her egg had accidentally been broken. One-month-old Rainbow is expected to stay in the incubation room until she's 10 weeks old. Then, she'll head off to a special zoo nursery for swimming lessons and will eventually be introduced to the 80 other penguins at the facility.
