Page 56 - United States

US states push for speed-limiting devices on cars of high-risk drivers

A teenager who admitted being addicted to speed behind the wheel had totalled two other cars in the year before he slammed into a minivan at 180 kph in a Seattle suburb, killing the driver and three of the five children she was transporting for a homeschool co-op. After sentencing Chase Daniel Jones last month to more than 17 years in prison, the judge tacked on a novel condition should he drive again: His vehicle must be equipped with a device that prevents accelerating far beyond the speed limit. Virginia this year became the first state to give its judges such a tool to deal with the most dangerous drivers on the road. Washington, DC, already is using it and similar measures await governors' signatures in Washington state and Georgia. New York and California also could soon tap the GPS-based technology to help combat a recent national spike in traffic deaths. It's a horror no one should have to experience, said Amy Cohen, who founded the victims' advocacy group Families for Safe

Amoral art of deal-making: US-Ukraine pact opens new geopolitical paradigm

The deal, which is subject to ratification by the Ukrainian Rada, signals to Russia that the US is invested in a free Ukraine for the long term

Azad Engineering inks $54 mn pact with GE Vernova's Steam Power Services

Precision engineering firm Azad Engineering on Sunday said it has signed an agreement worth USD 53.5 million with GE Vernova's Steam Power Services business unit for supply of airfoils for nuclear and thermal power industries. The contract, spanning over six years (up to 2030) covers manufacturing and supply of highly engineered and complex rotating and stationary airfoils for advanced nuclear, industrial, and thermal power industries, Azad Engineering said in a statement. The pact comes on the heels of the inauguration of the company's 7,600 sq m lean manufacturing facility dedicated to meeting volume capacity obligations, it said. The order also strengthens the company's existing strategic long-term relationship with GE Vernova's Steam Power Services business unit. "This six-year agreement through 2030 strengthens our position in the global power generation supply chain and validates our precision engineering capabilities for critical applications," said Rakesh Chopdar, Chairman

Trump calls opponents 'communists,' evoking charged echoes of US history

For years, President Donald Trump blamed communists for his legal and political troubles. Now, the second Trump administration is deploying that same historically loaded label to cast his opponents from judges to educators as threats to American identity, culture and values. Why? Trump himself explained the strategy last year when he described how he planned to defeat his Democratic opponent, then-Vice President Kamala Harris, in the White House election. All we have to do is define our opponent as being a communist or a socialist or somebody who is going to destroy our country, he told reporters at his New Jersey golf club in August. Trump did just that branding Harris comrade Kamala and he won in November. With the assent of more than 77 million Americans who cast ballots 49.9 per cent of the vote Trump is carrying that strategy into his second term. 'What he's talking about is not actually communism' In 2025, communism wields big influence in countries such as China, Viet

US approves $3.5 bn missile sale to Saudi ahead of Trump's planned visit

The United States has given initial approval to sell $3.5 billion worth of air-to-air missiles for Saudi Arabia's fighter jets, the latest proposed arms deal for the region ahead of President Donald Trump's planned trip to the region later this month. The sale, announced early Saturday, likely will be one of several heralded by Trump on his visit to the kingdom. Saudi Arabia has already said it wants to invest $600 billion in the United States over the next four years, likely as a way to woo Trump to again pick the kingdom for his first formal trip as president. Trump travelled to Italy briefly for Pope Francis' funeral. Trump's 2017 trip to Saudi Arabia upended a tradition of modern US presidents typically first heading to Canada, Mexico or the United Kingdom for their first trip abroad. It also underscored his administration's close ties to the rulers of the oil-rich Gulf states as his eponymous real estate company has pursued deals across the region. The arms sale involves 1,000

216 deaths reported as US sees deadliest flu season for children in 15 yrs

More US children have died this flu season than at any time since the swine flu pandemic 15 years ago, according to a federal report released Friday. The 216 pediatric deaths reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention eclipse the 207 reported last year. It's the most since the 2009-2010 H1N1 global flu pandemic. It's a startlingly high number, given that the flu season is still going on. The final pediatric death tally for the 2023-2024 flu season wasn't counted until autumn. This number that we have now is almost certainly an undercount, and one that when the season is declared over, and they compile all the data it's almost certain to go up, said Dr. Sean O'Leary, of the American Academy of Pediatrics. There are likely several contributors to this season's severity, but a big one is that fewer children are getting flu shots, added O'Leary, a University of Colorado pediatric infectious diseases specialist. The flu vaccination rate for US children has plummeted f

UN memo lays out proposals for sweeping reforms, consolidation of its ops

United Nations officials have circulated proposals for a vast consolidation of its operations and other sweeping reforms to root out inefficiencies, overlaps and cost overruns as the world body faces a critical funding crunch, according an internal memo obtained by The Associated Press. The proposals, which are in the early stages of discussion and are far from certain to be adopted, would amount to one of the biggest overhauls of the UN, which has been upended by funding cuts from its biggest donor, the United States, under President Donald Trump's administration. The document, labelled strictly confidential, falls under a reform initiative known as UN80 that Secretary-General Antonio Guterres launched in March. It comes as the United Nations is set to celebrate its 80th anniversary this summer with its ability to work on resolving conflicts; help feed and house the poor, destitute and displaced; fight disease; and many other of its lofty humanitarian ambitions increasingly in ...

India asks IMF to review loans to Pakistan, Indian govt source says

India suspended a critical river water sharing treaty and the two countries have closed their airspace to each other's airlines

Mangione wants murder case dropped, cites double jeopardy in CEO killing

Luigi Mangiones lawyers urging a judge Thursday to throw out his state murder charges in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, arguing that the New York case and a parallel federal death penalty prosecution amount to double jeopardy. If that doesn't happen, they want terrorism charges dismissed and prosecutors barred from using evidence collected during Mangione's arrest last December, including a 9 mm handgun, ammunition and a notebook in which authorities say he described his intent to wack an insurance executive. Mangione's lawyers also want to exclude statements he made to police officers who took him into custody at a McDonald's restaurant in Altoona, Pennsylvania, 230 miles (about 370 kilometers) west of New York City, after a five-day search. Among other things, prosecutors say the Ivy League graduate apologised to officers for the inconvenience of the day, and expressed concern for a McDonald's employee who alerted them to his whereabouts, saying: A lot of peop

Apple to source over 19 billion US-made chips in supply chain shift

Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook talked about leaning more heavily on Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., which is expanding its Arizona operations to half a dozen plants

Support India's right to defend itself, says US Defence Secy Pete Hegseth

Hegseth, according to a statement from the Ministry of Defence, reiterated "full support" from the United States (US) government in India's fight against terrorism

Weekend round of nuclear talks between US, Iran postponed, says Oman

Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei issued a statement describing the talks as being 'postponed at the request of Oman's foreign minister'

Cognizant to recruit 20,000 freshers in 2025 amid AI, services push

US IT firm Cognizant, which has a huge employee base in India, has announced plans to hire 20,000 freshers in 2025 -- a move intended to reshape the company's talent pyramid, particularly to support managed services and AI-led software development. While the company's overall headcount remained nearly flat compared to previous quarter at 3,36,300, Cognizant's leadership highlighted the strategic importance of talent amplification as the firm accelerates its growth and innovation agenda. "As we stated at our Investor Day, we are hiring 20,000 freshers as part of our strategy, which is more than double what we did last year," Cognizant CEO Ravi Kumar S said. This year, Kumar noted that the company plans to hire many more fresh graduates to build a stronger workforce pyramid, especially since managed services projects have increased over the past two years. "But it also comes equally with a overhead of carrying higher bench at a lower cost and actually offshore," he said. He said the

US warning against EU tech fines casts shadow over India's digital Bill

Group representing American tech industry calls proposed Indian legislation as a trade barrier

US judge orders Apple to stop charging commissions on non-App Store sales

The changes the company must now make could put a sizable dent in the double-digit billions of dollars in revenue the App Store generates each year

US measles cases near 900, outbreaks reported in 10 states; What to know

With one-fifth of states seeing active measles outbreaks, the US is nearing 900 cases, according to figures posted Friday by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC's confirmed measles case count is 884, triple the amount seen in all of 2024. The now three-month-long outbreak in Texas accounts for the vast majority of cases, with 663 confirmed as of Tuesday. The outbreak has also spread to New Mexico, Oklahoma and Kansas. Two unvaccinated elementary school-aged children died from measles-related illnesses in the epicenter in West Texas, and an adult in New Mexico who was not vaccinated died of a measles-related illness. Other states with active outbreaks defined as three or more cases include Indiana, Michigan, Montana, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Tennessee. North America has two other ongoing outbreaks. One in Ontario, Canada, has resulted in 1,020 cases from mid-October through April 23. And as of Wednesday, the Mexican state of Chihuahua had 786 measles cases and

Wall Street tumbles as S&P 500 slides 2% on signs of US slowdown

A discouraging report suggesting the US economy may have shrunk at the start of the year, before most of President Donald Trump's announced tariffs could take effect, is knocking US stocks lower on Wednesday. The S&P 500 was down 2% in morning trading and on track to break a six-day winning streak. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 702 points, or 1.7%, as of 9:55 am Eastern time, and sharp drops for such AI superstars as Super Micro Computer had the Nasdaq composite falling a market-leading 2.5%. The weaker-than-expected report on the US economy surprised financial markets because economists were expecting to see modest growth, particularly after the economy closed last year running at a solid pace. But importers rushed to bring products into the country before tariffs could raise their prices, which helped drag on the country's overall gross domestic product. Such data raises the threat of a worst-case scenario called stagflation, one where the economy's growth stagnates .

Backing founders building from India for the world: Pearl Agarwal

The pre-seed venture firm is sharpening its investment strategy around emerging AI applications across enterprise software, automation, and industrial analytics

'In touch with India, Pakistan', says US official on Pahalgam terror attack

The US State Department spokesperson sidestepped a reporter's question about a Pakistani minister's claim that his country carried out 'dirty work' on behalf of the US and the UK

$6 bn funding crisis at US mass transit threatens commuters, travel

The Trump administration's spending cuts raise fears of job losses that could slash transit ridership, while tariffs may fuel inflation, making riders less able to afford potential fare hikes