Memphis police disband unit that beat Tyre Nichols
The Memphis police chief has disbanded the city’s so-called Scorpion unit after some of its officers beat to death Tyre Nichols. The announcement on Saturday reversed an earlier statement that the unit would remain intact. Police Director Cerelyn “CJ” Davis said she listened to Nichols’ relatives, community leaders and uninvolved officers in making the decision. She said the officers currently assigned to the unit “agree unreservedly” with the step. The unit is composed of three teams of about 30 officers who target violent offenders in areas beset by high crime. It had been inactive since Nichols’ Jan. 7 arrest.
Trump opens 2024 run, says he’s ‘more committed’ than ever
Former President Donald Trump has kicked off his 2024 White House bid with a stop in New Hampshire. And later Saturday, he plans to be in South Carolina. The appearances in the early-voting states mark the first campaign events since Trump announced his latest run more than two months ago. Trump tells party leaders in New Hampshire that “we’re starting right here” and he says he’s “more committed now than I ever way.” A sluggish start to a campaign he announced in November has left many questioning his commitment to running again. The opening events come at a critical point as rivals prepare their own expected challenges.
Online system to seek asylum in US is quickly overwhelmed
A mobile app for migrants to seek asylum in the United States has been overwhelmed since it was introduced this month in one of several major changes to the government’s response to unprecedented migration flows. New appointments are made available daily. But migrants are increasingly frustrated by a variety of error messages. Many can’t log in. Others are hopeful when they get a date, only to be deflated when the screen freezes at final confirmation. The daily ritual resembles a race for concert tickets when online sales begin for a major act.
Israel to ‘strengthen’ settlements after shooting attacks
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has announced a series of punitive steps against the Palestinians in response to a pair of shootings in Jerusalem that killed seven Israelis and badly wounded five others. The steps, announced late Saturday, include new moves to “strengthen” Jewish settlements, his office announced. The decision came ahead of a visit by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken. The Biden administration opposes Israeli settlement construction in the West Bank and east Jerusalem — territories dclaimed by the Palestinians for a future state.
California shooting: 3 dead, 4 hurt in ritzy LA neighborhood
Authorities say three people were killed and four others wounded in a shooting at a multi-million dollar short-term rental home in Los Angeles early Saturday. The shooting happened just after 2:30 a.m. in the upscale Beverly Crest neighborhood. Los Angeles police say the three who were killed were in a vehicle. Police Sgt. Bruce Borihahn says investigators don’t have any information on suspects in the shootings. Two people who were shot were taken to the hospital in private vehicles and two were transported by ambulance. Borihahn says two victims are in stable condition and two are listed as critical. This is at least the sixth mass shooting in California this month.
In Texas oil country, an unfamiliar threat: Earthquakes
The West Texas earth shook one day in November. The tremor registered as a 5.4-magnitude earthquake, among the largest ever recorded in the state. Then, a month later, another of similar magnitude struck not far away, near Odessa and Midland. The earthquakes were the latest in what has been several years of surging seismic activity in Texas, where oil and gas production has increasingly meant hydraulic fracturing, a process of extraction that produces, as a byproduct, a huge amount of wastewater. Most of that wastewater is injected back under the ground, and it is that process, regulators and geoscientists agree, that is to blame for many of the earthquakes.
Netherlands and Japan said to join US chip restrictions on China
The Netherlands and Japan, both makers of some of the world’s most advanced equipment for manufacturing semiconductors, agreed on Friday to join with the United States in barring some shipments of their most high-tech machinery to China, people familiar with the agreement said. The agreement, which followed high-level meetings with U.S. national security officials in Washington, will help expand the reach of sweeping restrictions issued unilaterally by the Biden administration in October on the kinds of semiconductor technology that can be shared with China. The countries did not publicly announce the agreement, because of its sensitivity, and details remain unclear.
By wire sources