NATO vows united response to Russian aggression against Ukraine
NATO foreign ministers met virtually Friday to prepare their responses to Russia’s military buildup near Ukraine amid skepticism about Moscow’s willingness to de-escalate and negotiate in earnest. After the meeting, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg warned that “the risk of conflict is real” involving a further Russian invasion of Ukraine. But he asserted that the 30-member alliance was united in its desire for peaceful diplomacy. If diplomacy fails, he said, the alliance is prepared to continue supporting the integrity and independence of Ukraine both “politically and practically” while creating “significant consequences” that “carry a heavy price for Russia.”
Three men sentenced to life in prison in Arbery killing
A Georgia judge Friday sentenced Travis McMichael, who fatally shot Ahmaud Arbery, and his father to life in prison without the possibility of parole but issued a lesser sentence of life with the possibility of parole to the other white man convicted of murdering Arbery, a 25-year-old Black man whom they had chased through their neighborhood. The three men — Travis McMichael, 35, his father, Gregory McMichael, 66, and their neighbor, William Bryan, 52 — were convicted of murder and other counts in state court in November, resulting in mandatory life sentences. Lead prosecutor Linda Dunikoski said Bryan should be eligible for parole in part because he had cooperated with investigators.
Biden to deliver State of the Union address March 1
Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Friday invited President Joe Biden to deliver the State of the Union address to Congress March 1 as the White House grapples with an evolving pandemic and looks for ways to regain momentum for a legislative agenda stuck in congressional gridlock. Biden accepted Pelosi’s invitation, the White House said. The date is later than is traditional — the address will be the first to be delivered in March — but it gives Biden more time to advance his domestic policy package, which has been hung up in the Senate by the objections of Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va. Biden is also struggling to pass federal voting rights legislation.
Five in US died from rabies in 2021
Five people in the United States died from rabies last year, the highest number in a decade, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday. Three of those deaths, including that of a 7-year-old, involved direct contact with bats and occurred over a five-week period starting in late September. The deaths occurred in Idaho, Illinois and Texas, and all three people experienced symptoms three to seven weeks after contact with bats. They died two to three weeks after symptoms began, according to the CDC. Rabies is caused by a virus that is usually transmitted through the saliva of an infected animal through a bite.
Arson destroyed Planned Parenthood clinic in Tennessee, officials say
A fire that destroyed a Planned Parenthood clinic in Knoxville, Tennessee, last week was arson, the city Fire Department said Thursday, as federal and local investigators tried to identify who was behind the attack. The Fire Department received a call about the fire at 6:39 a.m. on Dec. 31, when the Planned Parenthood of Tennessee and North Mississippi clinic was closed for renovations. The investigation is the second in the past year to focus on a crime against the clinic, which provided birth control, cancer screenings and medication abortions. Investigators are searching the burned remains of the building for evidence, said Mark Wilbanks, the Knoxville Fire Department’s assistant chief.
Revival for a native New Zealand group pushed close to cultural death
For decades, people with at least partial Moriori heritage survived cultural marginalization in a country where children were taught in school that Moriori were inferior to the dominant Indigenous group, the Maori. And now they are fighting to establish themselves in the national consciousness as a thriving native people. A milestone came late last year when New Zealand’s Parliament approved a settlement over historical injustices suffered by the Moriori. The government agreed to pay the group 18 million New Zealand dollars ($12.3 million), hand over a range of property and grant a degree of control over cultural sites important to the approximately 2,000 people who now identify as Moriori.
Oscar winner, groundbreaking star Sidney Poitier dies
Sidney Poitier, the groundbreaking actor and enduring inspiration who transformed how Black people were portrayed on screen, and became the first Black actor to win an Academy Award for best lead performance and the first to be a top box-office draw, has died. He was 94. Poitier, winner of the best actor Oscar in 1964 for “Lilies of the Field,” died Thursday at his home in Los Angeles, according to Latrae Rahming, the director of communications for the Prime Minister of Bahamas. His close friend and great contemporary Harry Belafonte issued a statement Friday, remembering their extraordinary times together.
By wire sources