SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A jury on Thursday found a Mexican man not guilty in the killing of a woman on a San Francisco pier that touched off a national immigration debate two years ago, rejecting possible charges ranging from involuntary manslaughter to first-degree murder. Jose Ines Garcia Zarate had been deported five times and … Continue reading
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Rescuers dug with their bare hands Monday through the debris of buildings brought down by a powerful earthquake that killed more than 400 people in the once-contested mountainous border region between Iraq and Iran, with nearly all of the victims in an area rebuilt since the end of the ruinous 1980s … Continue reading
In a square outside the government palace in Barcelona, an announcer told the crowd that Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy is firing Catalonia’s regional government, dissolving its parliament and calling for a new regional election on Dec. 21. The news was greeted with loud jeers and whistles. Still, the thousands who came to celebrate Catalonia’s … Continue reading
BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Spain’s confrontation with its independence-seeking region of Catalonia intensified Monday when a judge ordered the leaders of two pro-independence groups jailed while they are investigated on possible sedition charges for organizing demonstrations before the region’s disputed secession vote. The jailing of Jordi Sanchez and Jordi Cuixart, the heads of grassroots organizations … Continue reading
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump lashed out at hurricane-devastated Puerto Rico on Thursday, insisting in tweets that the federal government can’t keep sending help “forever” and suggesting the U.S. territory was to blame for its financial struggles. His broadsides triggered an outcry from Democrats in Washington and officials on the island, which has been … Continue reading
WASHINGTON (AP) — It sounds sort of like a mass of crickets. A high-pitched whine, but from what? It seems to undulate, even writhe. Listen closely: There are multiple, distinct tones that sound to some like they’re colliding in a nails-on-the-chalkboard effect. The Associated Press has obtained a recording of what some U.S. Embassy workers … Continue reading
WASHINGTON (AP) — It sounds sort of like a mass of crickets. A high-pitched whine, but from what? It seems to undulate, even writhe. Listen closely: There are multiple, distinct tones that sound to some like they’re colliding in a nails-on-the-chalkboard effect. The Associated Press has obtained a recording of what some U.S. Embassy workers … Continue reading
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Rainfall from fast-moving Hurricane Nate lashed southeast Louisiana on Saturday afternoon as the storm headed for an evening landfall along the U.S. Gulf Coast and residents in vulnerable, low-lying areas fled. “It’s coming,” Larry Bertron said as he and his wife Kimberlee prepared to leave their home in the Braithwaite community … Continue reading
KEY WEST, Fla. (AP) — Architect Kobi Karp has a vision for affordable housing in the Florida Keys: residences set at coconut-tree height to keep them dry, atop concrete columns holding them in place. Key West clients sought out his designs before Hurricane Irma struck the island chain this month, and he thinks the … Continue reading
RICHMOND — Governor McAuliffe, on Sept. 22, authorized the Virginia National Guard to send 120 soldiers to the U.S. Virgin Islands to join a multi-state, multi-agency response effort to recent hurricanes. The Commonwealth of Virginia continues to send needed supplies, personnel and expertise into the storm-ravaged areas to assist with recovery and give emergency managers on the ground a … Continue reading
MIAMI (AP) — The Latest on tropical weather (all times local): 11:10 a.m. The National Hurricane Center in Miami says that Hurricane Maria has strengthened to a Category 3 storm as it headed toward the Caribbean. Maria on Monday was “rapidly” intensifying into a major hurricane. The eye is expected to move through the Leeward … Continue reading
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — The shrieks of children playing volleyball and the occasional barking of dogs echoed inside Puerto Rico’s largest convention center, transformed into a shelter for hurricane victims from other Caribbean islands as hundreds of families devastated by the Category 5 storm transition toward new lives. For many, that included tearful … Continue reading
CARTAGENA, Colombia (AP) — Pope Francis wrapped up his Colombia trip with a deeply personal final day Sunday honoring St. Peter Claver, a fellow Jesuit who ministered to hundreds of thousands of African slaves who arrived in the port of Cartagena to be sold during Spanish colonial times. Francis’ visit to Cartagena got off to … Continue reading
MEXICO CITY (AP) — One of the most powerful earthquakes ever to strike Mexico has hit off its southern Pacific coast, killing at least 32 people, toppling houses, government offices and businesses while sending panicked people into the streets more than 650 miles (1,000 kilometers) away. The U.S. Geological Survey said the earthquake hit off … Continue reading
ST. JOHN’S, Antigua (AP) — Hurricane Irma roared into the Caribbean with record force early Wednesday, its 185-mph winds shaking homes and flooding buildings on a chain of small islands along a path toward Puerto Rico, Cuba and Hispaniola and a possible direct hit on densely populated South Florida. The strongest Atlantic Ocean hurricane ever … Continue reading
Spartan Echo 