Catalonia referendum: 90% of voters back independence, Catalan officials say
Preliminary results show that 90% of those who voted in Catalonia’s independence referendum backed leaving Spain, Catalan officials say.
World News
Trump: military option for North Korea not preferred, but would be ‘devastating’
President Donald Trump warned North Korea on Tuesday that any U.S. military option would be ‘devastating’ for Pyongyang, but said the use of force was not Washington’s first option to deal with the country’s ballistic and nuclear weapons program.
Emmanuel Macron says Britain could be part of reformed EU after Brexit
Emmanuel Macron has signaled Britain could be part of a reformed European Union after Brexit.
North Korean official says Trump has ‘declared war,’ threatens to shoot down U.S. warplanes
A top North Korean official said Monday that President Trump has “declared war on our country,” and warned that Pyongyang could shoot down any U.S. warplanes flying nearby.
Devastated Puerto Rico struggles without power, water, phones
Millions of Puerto Rico residents are struggling to survive since Hurricane Maria devastated the island last week as a Category 5 storm.
Merkel celebrates fourth-term victory; right-wing nationalists win seats in German parliament
German voters delivered Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservative Christian Democrats a fourth consecutive term and the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) party a spot in the parliament in Sunday’s federal election, which was widely seen as a referendum on Ms. Merkel’s performance over the past 12 years.
Iran releases video of new ballistic missile being test-fired
Iran’s state media showed video Friday of the successful test-launch of a new ballistic missile capable of reaching portions of the Middle East, including Israel.
Defying Trump, Iran says will boost missile capabilities
Iran will strengthen its missile capabilities and will not seek permission from any country to do so, President Hassan Rouhani said on Friday in an undisguised snub to demands by U.S. President Donald Trump.
North Korean foreign minister: We may test hydrogen bomb in Pacific
South Korean media reports that North Korea’s top diplomat says his country may test a hydrogen bomb in the Pacific Ocean to fulfill leader Kim Jong-un’s vow to take the “highest-level” action against the United States.
U.S. weighs whether to stay in Iran nuclear deal
The United States said on Wednesday it is weighing whether the Iranian nuclear deal serves its security interests even as Iran said it did not expect Washington to abandon the agreement.
Scientists edit embryos’ genes to study early human development
British scientists have used a genome editing tool known as CRISPR/Cas9 to knock out a gene in embryos just a few days old, testing the technique’s ability to decipher key gene functions in early human development.
Hurricane Maria: ‘storm of the century’ gathered strength after lashing Puerto Rico
Hurricane Maria regained major hurricane strength as it thrashed parts of the Dominican Republic with heavy rain and high winds.
Maria ‘potentially most catastrophic hurricane to hit Puerto Rico in a century’: Governor
As residents of Puerto Rico brace for Hurricane Maria — which slammed into the Caribbean as a Category 5 storm Monday night — Puerto Rico’s governor is calling the storm ‘the biggest and potentially most catastrophic hurricane to hit Puerto Rico in a century.’
At least 149 dead in Mexico after magnitude 7.1 earthquake
A magnitude 7.1 earthquake stunned central Mexico on Tuesday, killing at least 149 people as buildings collapsed in plumes of dust. Thousands fled into the streets in panic, and many stayed to help rescue trapped victims.
‘Flawed’ Iran nuke deal must be reworked, Tillerson says
The United States is looking for support from its allies to persuade Iran to re-open talks on the nuclear deal, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Tuesday, pointing to the fact that it will expire as its biggest problem.
Ahead of UN meet, Trump vows: US won’t let Iran take over Syria
‘The U.S. won’t let Iran gain control over Syria. The U.S. won’t leave Israel alone in the battlefield,’ a senior White House official quoted U.S. President Donald Trump as saying unequivocally in a meeting on the topic over the weekend, amid reports suggesting that Iran was cementing its foothold in Syria and building precision missile factories in the south of the war-torn country.
Category 5 Hurricane Maria to lash Irma-battered Caribbean islands with flooding, damaging winds
The U.S. National Hurricane Center said Maria — on a path that would take it near many of the islands already wrecked by Hurricane Irma and then on toward Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic — is an “extremely dangerous” storm with maximum sustained winds of 160 mph. It was centered about 15 miles east-southeast of Dominica — or 40 miles east of Martinique — and heading west-northwest at 9 mph late Monday afternoon.
Trump to rail against North Korea at U.N., seek united front against nuclear and missile programs
President Trump will turn up the heat on North Korea and call out countries that coddle the rogue regime Tuesday in his first address to the United Nations General Assembly, said a senior White House official who recognized that the threat of war loomed over the speech.
White House: No thaw on Paris climate accord unless Trump gets better deal
Trump administration officials said Sunday that the president’s stance on the Paris climate agreement hasn’t changed: He’s open to re-engaging as long as he gets a better deal.
North Korea fires missile over Japan in longest-ever flight
North Korea fired an intermediate-range missile over Japan into the northern Pacific Ocean on Friday, U.S. and South Korean militaries said, its longest-ever such flight and a clear message of defiance to its rivals.