YANON, Myanmar – Myanmar's Information Ministry says nine policemen were killed in an attack in the western state of Rakhine by the increasingly active Arakan Army rebel group.
The ministry's website said 60 Arakan Army insurgents on Saturday night attacked the police post, which was safeguarding question and answer sheets from the national high school matriculation examination.
The Arakan Army, which is aligned with Rakhine's Buddhist population, seeks autonomy for the region. Rakhine is better known as the site of a brutal counterinsurgency campaign by the military against the Muslim Rohingya minority, causing more than 700,000 to flee to neighboring Bangladesh. Attacks on police by Rohingya insurgents triggered the crackdown.
The government declared the Arakan Army a terrorist organization after it killed 13 police officers and wounded nine in Jan. 4 attacks.
KIEV, Ukraine – Polls have opened in Ukraine's presidential election that pits the incumbent against a popular comedian and a former prime minister.
Ukrainians on Sunday will choose from among 39 candidates they hope can guide their country of more than 42 million out of troubles including endemic corruption, a seemingly intractable conflict with Russia-backed separatists in the country's east and a struggling economy.
Opinion polls have shown comedian Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who plays the country's president in a popular TV series, leading the field with President Petro Poroshenko and former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko trailing behind by a broad margin.
If none of the candidates gets an absolute majority of the vote, a runoff between the top two will be held on April 21.
FILE PHOTO: An exterior view Wynn hotel-casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S., February 7, 2018. REUTERS/Steve Marcus/File Photo
April 9, 2019
(Reuters) – Casino operator Wynn Resorts Ltd said on Tuesday it terminated takeover discussions with Australia’s Crown Resorts.
“Following the premature disclosure of preliminary discussions, Wynn Resorts has terminated all discussions with Crown Resorts concerning any transaction,” Wynn said.
Earlier in the day, Crown Resorts said Wynn made an A$10 billion ($7.1 billion) takeover approach for the company.
Wynn’s shares were last down 3.2 percent.
(Reporting by Nivedita Balu in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)
In this photo taken Wednesday, March 6, 2019 in Raleigh, N.C. Heather Allen holds a photo of her father, Lee Wayne Hunt, from his memorial. Even though Lee Wayne Hunt died as a prisoner found guilty of a double murder, his family says he never gave up hope of proving his innocence. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)
RALEIGH, N.C. – Lee Wayne Hunt died a prisoner, officially deemed guilty of a double murder — even though a co-defendant absolved him in a conversation with a lawyer that remained secret for decades.
Attorney Staples Hughes said a client who also was convicted in the case told him not long after the 1984 slayings of a Fayetteville couple that Hunt wasn't involved. Hughes risked disbarment when he told a judge in 2007 about the confession, after the client, Jerry Cashwell, had died.
"If you believe what my client told me, and I believe my client, that Mr. Hunt didn't do this, then it just becomes so terrible and so sad," Hughes told The Associated Press.
Hunt, 59, died alone Feb. 13 at Rex Hospital in Raleigh, where he had been taken about a week earlier for treatment of heart problems, his daughter, Heather Allen, told the AP. Prison officials didn't tell Hunt's relatives that he'd been moved from Maury Correctional Institution to the hospital until the family got word he had died, Allen said. He'd spent more than half his life in state prisons.
The AP received a tip that Hunt had died and is the only news organization to interview members of the families of both Hunt and the Matthews' couple since his death.
Hunt, Cashwell and a third man were convicted in the deaths of Roland and Lisa Matthews, who were shot and stabbed in their home in Fayetteville. Their 2-year-old daughter was found in a bedroom, physically unharmed.
Prosecutors said the couple was killed because Roland Matthews stole marijuana from Hunt, who ran a drug ring.
The only physical evidence tying Hunt to the crimes was a lead-content comparison of bullets that Hunt owned to bullets found at the crime scene — a comparison technique the FBI abandoned in 2005 after the method faced scientific criticism. Other evidence included testimony from an associate who received immunity and from a prison informant.
That's not to say Hunt had no criminal history.
In November 1985, Hunt was sentenced for felony drug possession and other charges. He was released in September 1986. Less than a month later, on Oct. 17, 1986, he was convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison.
Hunt's supporters were certain the lack of physical evidence, along with Cashwell's posthumously released confession, would eventually free him in the murder case.
But it didn't. Judges repeatedly ruled against him. North Carolina's unique Innocence Inquiry Commission couldn't take his case because there was no new evidence, said Chris Mumma, executive director of the nonprofit N.C. Center on Actual Innocence, which handled Hunt's case at one point.
Yet Hunt believed until the end that he would be exonerated, his daughter said. "He never let go of hope," Allen said.
He told her "If they don't find out while I'm here, hopefully the truth will come out when I'm not here," she said. "... He always talked about the Lord and he always believed things would come to a light one day."
Hughes, now 67, kept Cashwell's confession secret because of attorney-client privilege until after Cashwell died by suicide in prison in 2002. Hughes signed an affidavit for Hunt's attorneys in 2004. When Hughes came forward at a hearing for Hunt in 2007, the judge admonished him and reported him to the State Bar, which declined to take action against him.
Last fall, Hughes visited Hunt for the first time in prison. They talked for more than two hours.
"He completely understood the situation I was in," Hughes said. "He bore me no ill will."
But in his last few phone calls with his daughter, Hunt shared his worries about his health and the lack of care he believed he received behind bars, Allen said. When Allen received his personal belongings from prison officials, she found complaints about his medical care.
Correction Department spokesman John Bull said laws prohibit him from discussing a prisoner's health record. He said he'd share the Hunt family's concerns with prison medical officials.
The victims' family, meanwhile, is certain of Hunt's guilt and relieved he's finally gone.
Roland Matthews' sister, Paula Holland of Hope Mills, believes Hughes lied about Cashwell's confession. When asked what trial evidence convinced her of Hunt's guilt, Holland responded: "Because of who he is. Because of who he was. Because of his reputation."
Holland said her niece, Crystal Mayfield, was 22 months old when her parents were killed. She was found sitting on her bed, with her dog.
And when an exonerated ex-prisoner commented in a public Facebook post that Hunt died an innocent man, Mayfield responded: "I am very relieved that justice has finally been served and my family can have some peace now."
Mayfield didn't reply to a Facebook message from the AP. Her relatives said she didn't want to be interviewed.
It's not uncommon for prisoners who have evidence of innocence to die in custody. Responding to an email query, lawyers nationwide listed cases in multiple states where prisoners with strong evidence, including DNA, have died awaiting a chance to prove their innocence.
At least 21 people have been exonerated posthumously, with about half dying in prison, according to the National Registry of Exonerations.
Hunt, who learned to read and write in prison, was a woodworker. He enjoyed reading about log cabins and talked about the one he'd build when free, his family said. He used plastic knives and wood from pallets to carve animal figures, then dyed them with coffee grounds and decorated them with pastel crayons, Allen said.
The victims' family thinks Allen is lucky to have those memories.
"Lee Wayne Hunt was very fortunate," Holland said. "His family could go to prison and visit him. The only joy we had left was putting flowers on my brother's grave. I hate it for them, but I hate it for us, too ... We didn't take his life. ... We just had to wait and bide our time."
Hunt's supporters believe time did him no favors.
"Everything I knew about this case makes me believe he didn't do this," Hughes said. "And that's pretty terrible. I had hoped this would turn out different. And it didn't. It just turned out overwhelmingly sadly."
___
Associated Press reporter Allen G. Breed contributed to this story.
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Follow Martha Waggoner on Twitter at http://twitter.com/mjwaggonernc
The former campaign manager for Obama’s 2012 campaign warned Democrats that socialist candidate Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) can’t beat President Trump in the 2020 election, especially on the economic issues.
In a radio interview on ABC’s Powerhouse Politics, Jim Messina outright dismissed Sanders as a serious contender for Trump.
“Can Bernie Sanders beat [President] Donald Trump?” host Jonathan Karl asked.
“No,” Messina replied.
(Start at 6:45)
“I think if you look at swing voters in this country they are incredibly focused on the economy,” Messina said. “The winner of the economic argument in the last five Presidential elections with swing voters has won the presidency.”
“I think today you look at it and say that Bernie Sanders is unlikely going to be able to stand up to the constant barrage that is Donald Trump on economic issues,” he added.
(Jim Messina. Photo: Douglas Graham/Roll Call/Getty Images)
However, Messina believes Sanders could still clinch the nomination in the Democratic primaries due to the far-left’s growing influence within the caucus.
“If nothing else, he will definitely be one of the final two or three candidates who has a shot at the nomination,” Messina said.
In a show of delight, Trump said Tuesday he believes “Crazy” Bernie will be one of the Democrat finalists.
“I believe it will be Crazy Bernie Sanders vs. Sleepy Joe Biden as the two finalists to run against maybe the best Economy in the history of our Country (and MANY other great things)! I look forward to facing whoever it may be. May God Rest Their Soul!” he tweeted.
I believe it will be Crazy Bernie Sanders vs. Sleepy Joe Biden as the two finalists to run against maybe the best Economy in the history of our Country (and MANY other great things)! I look forward to facing whoever it may be. May God Rest Their Soul!
Bernie Sanders appears to be ok with the possible physical attacks on Kaitlin Bennett due to his rhetoric and characterization of Kaitlin and Infowars. Alex exposes this false narrative smear from the left.
Stan Lee, the legendary co-creator of Marvel Comics, has died, according to TMZ. TMZ reports an ambulance brought Lee from his Hollywood Hills home to a hospital Monday morning. Lee founded Marvel in 1961 alongside Jack Kirby and is credited with creating The Avengers and and other Marvel heroes. Mr. Lee YOU WILL BE MISSED!! […]
TULSA, Okla. – Police in Tulsa have arrested a man who they say stole an empty school bus and took it for a joyride.
Police say the Tulsa Public Schools bus was stolen early Monday when the driver went into a gas station and left the bus running. The Tulsa World reports a man told officers he decided to steal the bus after seeing an anti-texting-and-driving sign on the bus that said, "drop it and drive."
Police say the man told officers that he "dropped what he was doing" and drove off in the bus.
The man later radioed dispatch to tell him where he would leave the bus. Police arrested him on complaints of auto theft and driving without a license.
Sri Lanka’s former defense secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa greets his supporters after his return from the United States, in Katunayake, Sri Lanka April 12, 2019. REUTERS/Dinuka Liyanawatte
April 26, 2019
By Sanjeev Miglani and Shihar Aneez
COLOMBO (Reuters) – Sri Lanka’s former wartime defense chief, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, said on Friday he would run for president in elections this year and would stop the spread of Islamist extremism by rebuilding the intelligence service and surveilling citizens.
Gotabaya, as he is popularly known, is the younger brother of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa and the two led the country to a crushing defeat of separatist Tamil rebels a decade ago after a 26-year civil war.
More than 250 people were killed in bomb attacks on hotels and churches on Easter Sunday that the government has blamed on Islamist militants and that Islamic State has claimed responsibility for.
Gotabaya said the attacks could have been prevented if the island’s current government had not dismantled the intelligence network and extensive surveillance capabilities that he built up during the war and later on.
“Because the government was not prepared, that’s why you see a panic situation,” he said in an interview with Reuters.
Gotabaya said he would be a candidate “100 percent”, firming up months of speculation that he plans to run in the elections, which are due by December.
He was critical of the government’s response to the bombings. Since the attacks, the government has struggled to provide clear information about how they were staged, who was behind them and how serious the threat is from Islamic State to the country.
“Various people are blaming various people, not giving exactly the details as to what happened, even people expect the names, what organization did this, and how they came up to this level, that explanation was not given,” he said.
On Friday, President Maithripala Sirisena said the government led by premier Ranil Wickremesinghe should take responsibility for the attacks and that prior information warning of attacks was not shared with him.
Wickremesinghe said earlier he was not advised about warnings that came from India’s spy service either, presenting a picture of a government still in disarray since the two leaders fell out last October.
Gotabaya is facing lawsuits in the United States, where he is a dual citizen, over his role in the war and afterwards.
The South Africa-based International Truth and Justice Project, in partnership with U.S. law firm Hausfeld, filed a civil case in California this month against Gotabaya on behalf of a Tamil torture survivor.
In a separate case, Ahimsa Wickrematunga, the daughter of murdered investigative editor Lasantha Wickrematunga, filed a complaint for damages in the same U.S. District Court in California for allegedly instigating and authorizing the extrajudicial killing of her father.
Gotabaya said the cases were baseless and only a “little distraction” as he prepared for the election campaign. He said he had asked U.S. authorities to renounce his citizenship and that process was nearly done, clearing the way for his candidature.
‘DISMANTLE THE NETWORKS’
He said that if he won, his immediate focus would to be tackle the threat from radical Islam and to rebuild the security set-up.
“It’s a serious problem, you have to go deep into the groups, dismantle the networks,” he said, adding he would give the military a mandate to collect intelligence from the ground and to mount surveillance of groups turning to extremism.
Gotabaya said that a military intelligence cell he had set up in 2011 of 5,000 people, some of them with Arabic language skills and that was tracking the bent towards extremist ideology some of the Islamist groups were taking in eastern Sri Lanka was disbanded by the current government.
“They did not give priority to national security, there was a mix-up. They were talking about ethnic reconciliation, then they were talking about human rights issues, they were talking about individual freedoms,” he said.
President Sirisena’s government sought to forge reconciliation with minority Tamils and close the wounds of the war and launched investigations into allegations of rights abuse and torture against military officers.
Officials said many of these secret intelligence cells were disbanded because they faced allegations of abuse, including torture and extra judicial killings.
Muslims make up nearly 10 percent of Sri Lanka’s population of 22 million, which is predominantly Buddhist.
(Reporting by Sanjeev Miglani; Editing by Frances Kerry)
FILE PHOTO: The Federal Reserve Board building on Constitution Avenue is pictured in Washington, U.S., March 27, 2019. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid
April 26, 2019
NEW YORK (Reuters) – The Federal Reserve may lower the interest it pays on excess reserves banks leave with it by 5 basis points at its April 30-May 1 policy meeting in a bid to prevent the federal funds rate from drifting higher, Morgan Stanley analysts said on Friday.
This would mark the third such “technical” adjustment on the interest on excess reserves (IOER) following cuts last June and December.
(Reporting by Richard Leong; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
Calling the advance in gross domestic product a “blow-out number,” Kudlow told “America’s Newsroom” Friday that it serves as concrete proof Trump’s measures to grow the economy have been successful.
“I’ll just say, Trump’s policies to rebuild the economy, lower taxes, regulations, opening energy, trade reform. Look, this stuff is working,” he said.
“It tells me, among other things, that the prosperity cycle we have entered into is continuing, it is strong. It has legs and momentum and frankly it is going to go on for quite some time,” he continued. “This is the new Trump economy. Some people don’t like that or they don’t agree with that. I respect the differences but I’ll tell you it’s working.”
Kudlow added that Trump has “ended the war” on business and success, and is rallying for the small business owners of America.
“The president is rebuilding incentives, he is rebuilding confidence, he the rebuilding optimism,” he said. “He is basically saying you should keep more of what you earn. He is basically saying to small businesses we’ll cut the paperwork back and make it easier for you to start a business and prosper.”
Kudlow said the Trump administration is also working with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other Democratic leaders to implement bipartisan deals to ensure the continuation of the GDP’s success.
“If the policies and the principles remain in place — and I believe they will — then I believe this new prosperity expansion cycle is going to go on for a whole bunch of more years,” he said.
FILE PHOTO: Tennis – Australian Open – Women’s Singles Final – Melbourne Park, Melbourne, Australia, January 26, 2019. Japan’s Naomi Osaka attends a news conference after winning her match against Czech Republic’s Petra Kvitova. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi
April 26, 2019
(Reuters) – World number one Naomi Osaka came from behind in the final set to beat Croatian Donna Vekic 6-3 4-6 7-6(4) on Friday and move into the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix semi-finals.
Osaka comfortably won the opening set but was tested by the Croatian, who pushed her to the limit in the second and third. The Japanese made 45 unforced errors as she struggles to get to grips with swapping hard courts for clay.
Osaka was visibly frustrated and trailed 5-1 in the final set but she refused to give up and found her rhythm to break Vekic twice and prevent her from serving for the match.
In the tiebreaker, a confident Osaka upped her baseline game and had two early mini breaks before wrapping up the match in two hours and 18 minutes. An infuriated Vekic even smashed her racket after losing the match.
“I told myself I didn’t want to have any regrets here,” Osaka said. “I was stressed out when I went down 1-5… but this (comeback) was pretty good because I don’t play really well on clay.”
Earlier, world number three Petra Kvitova came back from a set down to beat Anastasija Sevastova 2-6 6-2 6-3 and move into the tournament’s semi-finals for the third time in her career.
Sevastova had a dream start, breaking Kvitova twice to take a 3-0 lead as the Czech struggled with her first serve. Kvitova also made a slew of unforced errors, with many of her returns going long.
Sevastova used the full width of the court to get the better of Kvitova, who played on the back foot for much of the first set as the Latvian gave her little time to catch her breath.
However, Kvitova recovered in the second set and she broke Sevastova’s serve when she was 3-2 up, winning 10 straight points to take a 5-2 lead. Sevastova looked shaken and was broken again to give Kvitova the second set.
Kvitova took command in the final set and broke a visibly upset Sevastova to take a 3-1 lead before easing into the semis.
“In the first set I missed almost everything. I was pretty slow and she just couldn’t miss,” Kvitova said. “In the second set it was very important for me to stay on my serve and the chance to break her came.”
Kiki Bertens plays Angelique Kerber later on Friday and Victoria Azarenka faces Anett Kontaveit in the last quarter-final.
(Reporting by Rohith Nair in Bengaluru, editing by Ed Osmond)
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