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Arizona voters guarantee right to abortion in state constitution

Arizona voters have approved a constitutional amendment guaranteeing abortion access up to fetal viability, typically after 21 weeks a major win for advocates of the measure in the presidential battleground state who have been seeking to expand access beyond the current 15-week limit. Arizona was one of nine states with abortion on the ballot. Democrats have centered abortion rights in their campaigns since the US Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. Abortion-rights supporters prevailed in all seven abortion ballot questions in 2022 and 2023, including in conservative-leaning states. Arizona for Abortion Access, the coalition leading the state campaign, gathered well over the 383,923 signatures required to put it on the ballot, and the secretary of state's office verified that enough were valid. The coalition far outpaced the opposition campaign, It Goes Too Far, in fundraising. The opposing campaign argued the measure was too far-reaching and cited its own polling in sayi

Late season storm could disrupt 4 mn barrels of US oil output: Researchers

Raphael, the 17th named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, is on a track would take it through areas of the Gulf that are heavy with oil and gas platforms

US, Japan, South Korea hold drills after N Korea's ballistic missile launch

"Amid gradually increasing security cooperation between the three countries, (we) will strengthen coordination to deter and jointly respond to North Korea's threats," it said in the statement cited

Swiss firms set sights on India as $100 bn pact shows more opportunities

Under the deal, EFTA, whose other members are Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein, will invest $100 billion in India and will benefit from easier and cheaper access to the Indian market of 1.4 bn people

US finalises $20 billion loan to Ukraine, backed by frozen Russian assets

Yellen was keen to avoid a situation where US - or Ukrainian - taxpayers would be on the hook to pay back the loans if the frozen assets were turned back over to Russia as part of a truce agreement

FBI investigates leak of classified Israel documents on Iran attack

The FBI said Tuesday that it is investigating the unauthorized release of classified documents on Israel's preparation for a potential retaliatory attack on Iran. White House national security spokesman John Kirby said Monday that the Biden administration is still not certain if the classified information was leaked or hacked but that officials don't have any indication at this point of additional documents like this finding their way into the public domain." At the Pentagon, Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has spoken with his counterpart, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, about the release of documents. But Ryder, who is press secretary, said he could provide no details or say when the conversation took place. The Associated Press reported Saturday that US officials were investigating the release. The FBI confirmed the investigation for the first time on Tuesday and said in a statement that it is working closely with our partners in the Department

US investigates leak of classified documents on Israel's attack plans

The US is investigating an unauthorized release of classified documents that assess Israel's plans to attack Iran, three US officials told The Associated Press. A fourth US official said the documents appear to be legitimate. The documents are attributed to the US Geospatial Intelligence Agency and National Security Agency and note that Israel continues to move military assets in place to conduct a military strike in response to Iran's blistering ballistic missile attack on Oct. 1. They were sharable within the Five Eyes, which are the US, Great Britain, Canada, New Zealand and Australia. The documents, which are marked top secret, were posted online to Telegram and first reported by CNN and Axios. The officials spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly. The investigation is also examining how the documents were obtained including whether it was an intentional leak by a member of the US intelligence community or obtained by

Plane carrying stranded AI passengers from Iqaluit airport lands in US

The Canadian Air Force aircraft is ferrying 191 stranded passengers of an Air India flight from Iqaluit airport has landed in Chicago. In a statement on Wednesday, Air India said passengers of flight AI127, which was diverted to Iqaluit in Canada on October 15, are on their way to their destination -- Chicago. "Passengers are being ferried on a Canadian Air Force aircraft that has taken off from Iqaluit at 03:54 hrs UTC and is expected to land in Chicago at around 07:48 hrs UTC," the airline said. An official said the aircraft has landed at Chicago. The flight that was diverted on Tuesday had 211 people, including 20 crew members, onboard. Passengers have gone in the Canadian Air Force aircraft with their hand baggage. Their checked-in baggage will be carried in the Air India aircraft when it leaves for Chicago, the official in the know said. Earlier, Canada's Minister of Emergency Preparedness Harjit Sajjan said that 211 people of the flight were stranded and despite great effor

US warns Israel to boost humanitarian aid into Gaza or risk losing funding

The Biden administration has warned Israel that it must increase the amount of humanitarian aid it is allowing into Gaza within the next 30 days or it could risk losing access to US weapons funding. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin warned their Israeli counterparts in a letter dated Sunday that the changes must occur. The letter, which restates US policy toward humanitarian aid and arms transfers, was sent amid deteriorating conditions in northern Gaza and reports Israel had conducted a strike on a hospital tent site in central Gaza that killed at least four people and ignited a fire that left more than two dozen with severe burns. A senior defence official said Tuesday that Blinken and Austin sent a letter to their Israeli counterparts as they saw a recent decrease in assistance reaching Gaza. The official said a similar letter sent by Blinken in April triggered a constructive response and concrete measures from the Israelis. The official, who ..

US and India can work together on mental health: Surgeon General Murthy

US Surgeon General Dr Vivek Murthy has said that mental health is an issue on which his country and India can work together, so that it not only benefits the two countries, but the entire world. He said it is time to prioritise and accelerate the work on mental health, because the consequences have been too high, and they will only get worse unless we make this issue a priority. "I'll just say this (mental health) is an issue where the US and India can work together, where we can learn from each other, where we can collaborate on programmes, where we can support each other, as we have in the past for six decades, on so many health issues," Murthy told reporters here on Friday. He said he was proud of the US-India health partnership for six decades, during which both countries have worked on smallpox, polio, HIV, tuberculosis and Covid-19, and many other health challenges. "This is a time for us to come together as two nations, to work on the issue of mental health, and the work tha

US Immigrants demand protection for immigrants shielded from deportation

Immigrants who grew up in the United States after being brought here illegally as children will be among demonstrators outside a federal courthouse in New Orleans on Thursday as three appellate judges hear arguments over the Biden administration's policy shielding them from deportation. At stake in the long legal battle playing out at the 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals is the future of about 535,000 people who have long-established lives in the US, even though they don't hold citizenship or legal residency status and they live with the possibility of eventual deportation. No matter what is said and done, I choose the US and I have the responsibility to make it a better place for all of us, Greisa Martinez Rosas, said Wednesday. She is a beneficiary of the policy and a leader of the advocacy group United We Dream. She plans to travel from Arizona to attend a rally near the court, where hundreds of the policy's supporters are expected to gather. The panel hearing arguments won't rule

Biden reassures Netanyahu of unwavering commitment to Israel's security

Iran launched 200 ballistic missiles at Israeli targets in at least two waves, on October 1, 2024, marking the largest attack during the ongoing Iran-Israel conflict

Hurricane Milton updates: Worst storm to hit Florida

While people are still reeling from the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, which struck just 2 weeks ago, another storm, Hurricane Milton, is imminent in Florida.

US arrests Afghan national for planning election day terror attack for ISIS

As part of the plot, the defendant allegedly took steps to liquidate his family's assets, resettle members of his family overseas, acquire AK-47 assault rifles and ammunition

US Judge orders Google to list rival apps stores to its Play Store

A federal judge on Monday ordered Google to tear down the digital walls shielding its Android app store from competition as punishment for maintaining an illegal monopoly that helped expand the company's internet empire. The injunction issued by US District Judge James Donato will require Google to make several changes that the Mountain View, California, company had been resisting. Those include a provision that will require its Play Store for Android apps to distribute rival third-party app stores so consumers can download them to their phones, if they so desire. The judge's order will also make the millions of Android apps in the Play Store library accessible to rivals, allowing them to offer up a competitive selection. Donato is giving Google until November to make the revisions dictated in his order. The company had insisted it would take 12 to 16 months to design the safeguards needed to reduce the chances of potentially malicious software making its way into rival Android app

Hindu group in US questions Pakistani-American's ties with VP Kamala Harris

A Hindu political group in the US has raised questions about Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris's ties with a Pakistani-American member of the US Commission for International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), expressing concerns about the direction her administration might take on sensitive issues like Kashmir. The remarks by Utsav Sanduja, founder and chairman of Hindus for America First, came after the USCIRF last week released an India Country Update which alleged that religious freedom conditions in India have continued to worsen throughout 2024, particularly in the months before and immediately following the country's general elections. India described the report as malicious which only serves to discredit USCIRF further. Sanduja, a supporter of former president Donald Trump, posted a video on X in which Vice President Harris was seen praising Asif Mahmood, a Pakistani-American and now a Commissioner of the USCIRF, for supporting her campaign. He has been supporting me

Maui fire erupts from blaze believed to have been extinguished: Probe

The wildfire that killed at least 102 people on Maui last year erupted from an earlier brushfire caused by downed power lines that firefighters believed they had extinguished, officials confirmed on Wednesday as they presented their findings on the cause of the tragedy. The August 8, 2023, blaze -- the deadliest US wildfire in more than a century -- was long known to have emerged in the afternoon, in the same area as the blaze that began early that morning. Driven by strong, erratic winds, the fire raced through the historic town of Lahaina, destroying thousands of buildings, overcoming people trapped in their cars and forcing some residents to flee into the ocean. It has been unclear whether the blaze was a rekindling of the morning fire after firefighters spent hours dousing it or a separate one. The answer could prove significant to questions about liability for the destruction, though a tentative USD 4 billion settlement has been reached. In presenting their findings, officials

US East Coast, Gulf of Mexico port strike set to start Tuesday, says union

If union members walk off the job at ports stretching from Maine to Texas, it would be the first coast-wide ILA strike since 1977, affecting ports that handle about half the nation's ocean shipping

Jaishankar reaches Washington DC, to meet counterpart Antony Blinken

The think-tank said amid fast-paced global developments, India's bilateral ties with the US had grown more extensive

US conducts precision strikes in Syria, kills 37 terrorist operatives

CENTCOM also confirmed that the strikes in Syria resulted in no civilian casualties