Abortion pill providers experiment with ways to broaden access
As bans and restrictions proliferate across the country, abortion pill providers are pushing the envelope of regulations and laws to meet the demand for medication abortion in post-Roe America — from using physician discretion to prescribe pills to patients further along in pregnancy than the 10-week limit set by the Food and Drug Administration, offering “advance provision” of abortion pills to patients who aren’t pregnant, and more. The changes are easing access to the pills for patients in states that have curtailed abortion and also in states where it remains legal but where clinics have longer wait times as patients flood in from restrictive states.
NASA scrubs another moon launch
On Saturday, when NASA tried for a second time to launch the Artemis I mission’s Space Launch System rocket, a large leak in a hydrogen fuel line stymied engineers. They tried several times to fix it before the launch director, Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, decided at 11:17 a.m. that it was time to scrub the day’s flight. NASA will have to try again another day, possibly not until sometime in October. Officials said during a news conference Saturday afternoon that they need to do considerable work to understand and fix the problem before they are comfortable launching the rocket, which is to propel an uncrewed Orion capsule around the moon.
Crash threat over Mississippi skies ends with pilot’s arrest
Authorities say a man who stole a plane and flew it over Mississippi after threatening to crash it into a Walmart store faces charges of grand larceny and terroristic threats. Tupelo Police Chief John Quaka says 29-year-old Cory Wayne Patterson didn’t have a pilot’s license but had some flight instruction and was an employee of Tupelo Aviation. Patterson could also face federal charges. No one was injured in the incident. The drama unfolded as tens of thousands of college football fans were headed to north Mississippi for Saturday football games at the University of Mississippi in Oxford and Mississippi State University in Starkville. Tupelo is between those two cities.
Gorbachev buried in Moscow in funeral snubbed by Putin
Former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev has been buried in Moscow after a ceremony attended by thousands of mourners but snubbed by Russian President Vladimir Putin. The Kremlin’s refusal to formally declare a state funeral reflects its uneasiness about the legacy of Gorbachev. Gorbachev has been venerated worldwide for bringing down the Iron Curtain but reviled by many at home for the Soviet collapse and the ensuing economic meltdown that plunged millions into poverty. Gorbachev died Tuesday at the age of 91. He was buried Saturday at Moscow’s Novodevichy cemetery next to his wife Raisa.
Ukraine’s nuclear plant partly goes offline amid fighting
The head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog says the Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in Ukraine was disconnected to its last external power line. But the facility is still able to run electricity through a reserve line amid sustained shelling in the area. International Atomic Energy Agency Director-General Rafael Grossi said in a statement Saturday that the agency’s experts were told by senior Ukrainian staff that the fourth and last operational line was down. The three others were lost earlier during the conflict. The IAEA experts arrived at Zaporizhzhia on Thursday.
Attack raises doubts about Argentine VP’s security protocols
An apparent assassination attempt on the vice president of Argentina is raising questions about her security protocols and her habit of pressing the flesh with supporters. Cristina Fernández was greeting well-wishers Thursday when a man in the crowd pulled out a handgun, held it inches from her face and pulled the trigger with a distinct click. The loaded .38-caliber semiautomatic weapon evidently jammed, and the man was arrested. Fernández has been the most influential woman in Argentine politics for the past two decades. She has derived political strength from her closeness to the crowds that venerate her.
Pakistan appeals for more aid for 33M affected by flooding
Pakistan has appealed to the international community for an “immense humanitarian response” to unprecedented flooding that has left at least 1,265 people dead. The request comes even as planes carried supplies to the impoverished country across a humanitarian air bridge. Pakistan’s federal planning minister called for an “immense humanitarian response for 33 million people” affected by monsoon rains that triggered devastating floods. International attention to the devastation has increased as the number of fatalities and homeless have risen. According to initial government estimates, the devastation has caused $10 billion in damage. Multiple officials and experts have blamed the unusual monsoon rains and flooding on climate change.
Rescued dolphins swim free from Indonesia sanctuary
Three bottlenose dolphins have been released into the open sea in Indonesia after years of being confined for the amusement of tourists. As Indonesian flags fluttered, underwater gates opened off the island of Bali to allow Johnny, Rocky and Rambo to swim free. The trio were rescued three years ago from their tiny pool in a resort hotel to which they had been sold after spending years performing in a traveling circus. They regained their health and strength at the Bali sanctuary , a floating pen in a bay that provided a more natural environment. Lincoln O’Barry, who worked with the Indonesian government to set up the sanctuary, says dolphins are wild animals that should live free.
By wire sources
