Analyst news

• Tests find drugs, alcohol in blood of Paris airport attacker

  19-03-2017 23:56 via yahoo.com
  
  PARIS (AP) — Blood tests determined Sunday that a suspected Islamic extremist consumed drugs and alcohol before a frenzied spree of violence that ended when he took a soldier hostage at Paris' Orly Airport and was shot dead by her fellow patrolmen.
  
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• Man arrested after claiming bomb at White House gates: police report

  19-03-2017 23:46 via yahoo.com
  
  A 29-year-old man who was arrested near the White House late on Saturday falsely told the U.S. Secret Service he had a bomb, according to a police report released on Sunday.Sean Patrick Keoughan of Roanoke, Virginia, was arrested after he pulled up to the security checkpoint near the White House just after 11 p.m. on Saturday in a stolen 2017 Chevrolet Impala.Keoughan told the Secret Service: "There’s a bomb in the trunk” while holding something in his right hand, the police report s
  
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• Brazil says exports safe despite rotten meat scandal

  19-03-2017 23:43 via yahoo.com
  
  Brasília (AFP) - Brazil tried to reassure the world Sunday that its huge meat industry poses no threat -- with President Michel Temer even inviting ambassadors to a steak dinner -- despite allegations that corrupt exporters sold tainted products.Temer smiled as he inviteddiplomats to a traditional Brazilian meat restaurant called a churrascaria, saying "if you accept the invitation we will be very happy." Nineteen of the 33 envoys who met with him accepted the offer.The scare started Frid
  
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• French airport attacker 'had drunk and taken drugs'

  19-03-2017 23:38 via yahoo.com
  
  The man shot dead at Paris's Orly airport after attacking a soldier was under the influence of drugs and alcohol at the time, a judicial source said Sunday.Investigators are still trying to understand what motivated Saturday's assault by 39-year-old Ziyed Ben Belgacem, which led to a major security scare and the temporary closure of the capital's second-busiest airport.Ben Belgacem's father had insisted earlier Sunday that his son was "not a terrorist" and that his actions were caused by drink a
  
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• World Bank announces $57 bln in financing for Africa

  19-03-2017 23:30 via rocketnews.com
  
  Washington (AFP) – The World Bank on Sunday announced $57 billion in financing for sub-Saharan Africa over the next three fiscal years.
  Of that total, $45 billion will come from the International Development Association, the World Bank fund that provides grants and interest-free loans for the world’s poorest countries.
  The package will also feature an estimated $8 billion in private sector investments from the International Finance Corporation, a private-sector branch of World Bank,
  
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• Brazil reassures foreign countries after meat scandal

  19-03-2017 23:24 via yahoo.com
  
  RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Brazil's president met Sunday with dozens of ambassadors from countries that import Brazilian meat, seeking to minimize damage from a corruption probe that alleges meatpackers bribed inspectors to keep rotten meat on the market.
  
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• Abe, Merkel call for open markets

  19-03-2017 23:00 via yahoo.com
  
  German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe issued a staunch joint defence of free trade Sunday, as the United States pushes towards greater protectionism."We want free and open markets," Merkel said in a speech in Hanover, a day before the world's biggest computer trade fair, CeBIT, kicks off in the central German city.The event is partnered with Japan this year.
  
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• Tourism to food, Buddhist Thailand hunts halal gold

  19-03-2017 22:44 via yahoo.com
  
  From hotels with segregated swimming pools to jelly made from seaweed instead of pig bones, Buddhist Thailand is chasing halal gold as it welcomes Muslim visitors and touts its wares to the Islamic world.Inside the cavernous dining hall of the five-star Al Meroz hotel in a Muslim suburb of Bangkok, an elderly man with a wispy beard recites verses of the Koran as a nervous-looking groom awaits the arrival of his bride.The ceremony is one of dozens of marriages held over the last few months at the
  
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• SpaceX Capsule Returns To Earth

  19-03-2017 22:40 via yahoo.com
  
  The Dragon capsule was carrying more than 3,600 pounds of cargo back to Earth, some of which will be transported immediately to NASA scientists for study.
  
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• Tillerson ends China trip with warm words from President Xi

  19-03-2017 22:30 via yahoo.com
  
  By Yeganeh Torbati and Michael MartinaBEIJING (Reuters) - With warm words from Chinese President Xi Jinping on Sunday, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson ended his first trip to Asia since taking office with an agreement to work together with China on North Korea and putting aside trickier issues.China has been irritated at being repeatedly told by Washington to rein in North Korea's nuclear and missile programs and the U.S. decision to base an advanced missile defense system in South Korea.B
  
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• More rain looms as Peru struggles with disastrous floods

  19-03-2017 22:06 via yahoo.com
  
  Peruvians struggled on Sunday to cope with avalanches, mudslides and extensive flash flooding caused by torrential downpours, and forecasters predicted still more rain ahead, prolonging the country's woes.It has been a bad year for flooding in Peru, and the toll including from the latest dangerous weather now stands at 75 since January, the government said.The National Emergency Operations Center said 99,475 Peruvians had lost everything since the beginning of the year, while 626,928 had suffere
  
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• The Latest: Judge rejects request to clarify travel order

  19-03-2017 22:05 via yahoo.com
  
  HONOLULU (AP) — The Latest on a lawsuit filed in Hawaii over the Trump administration's revised travel ban (all times local):
  
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• What Judge Gorsuch (and the rest of us) can expect at his confirmation hearing

  19-03-2017 22:02 via yahoo.com
  
  A whole 13 months after the death of Justice Antonin Scalia left a vacancy on the Supreme Court, the Senate will hold confirmation hearings starting on Monday to probe the judge nominated to replace him.“It’s a fascinating process because clearly he has strengths in intellect and articulateness that make him an appealing candidate,” Mr. Blumenthal told The New York Times.
  
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• Photos of the day - March 19, 2017

  19-03-2017 21:32 via yahoo.com
  
  A boy rides his bike past destroyed cars and houses in a neighborhood recently liberated by Iraqi security forces on the western side of Mosul, Iraq; a baboon looks at the road in Amboseli National Park, Kenya; a woman places flowers on a train wagon at the old train station in Thessaloniki, Greece, to mark the 74th anniversary of the roundup and deportation of its Jews to Nazi extermination camps during World War II. These are some of the photos of the day. (AP/EPA/Getty/Reuters)
  
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• In conflicts, faith leaders must often stay above

  19-03-2017 21:30 via yahoo.com
  
   If faith leaders take sides in a conflict, do they give up any possible role as a trusted mediator?The North African country, which had a budding democracy in 2011 after ousting dictator Muammar Qaddafi, is fast descending into violent chaos.Libya is no backwater country whose internal strife can be ignored.
  
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• Syrian Presidential Palace Bombarded

  19-03-2017 21:16 via yahoo.com
  
  Rebels launched a surprise assault ahead of peace talks set to begin Thursday in Geneva.
  
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• Principal Pushes 5th Grader With Autism An Entire 5K Race

  19-03-2017 21:11 via rocketnews.com
  
  A New Jersey principal ran more than three miles while pushing one of his students with autism in an effort to promote inclusion.
  Vincent Myers, the principal at West End Memorial Elementary in Woodbury, is an avid runner. 
  Read: Santa Claus With Autism Creates Special Holiday Experience for Children With Autism
  Recently, while he was looking for another race to sign up for, Ainsley’s Angels, a non-profit that helps children of all abilities compete in races, asked him if h
  
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• Germany says Erdogan has 'gone too far' with Nazi jibe

  19-03-2017 21:00 via rocketnews.com
  
  Berlin (AFP) – Germany angrily warned Turkey on Sunday that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had gone too far after he accused Chancellor Angela Merkel of using “Nazi measures” in an escalating diplomatic feud.
  Turkey and the European Union are locked in an explosive crisis that threatens to jeopardise Ankara’s bid to join the bloc, as tensions rise ahead of an April 16 referendum on expanding Erdogan’s powers.
  The row erupted after authorities in Germany and other E
  
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• Germany says Erdogan has 'gone too far' with Nazi jibe

  19-03-2017 21:00 via yahoo.com
  
  Germany angrily warned Turkey on Sunday that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had gone too far after he accused Chancellor Angela Merkel of using "Nazi measures" in an escalating diplomatic feud.Turkey and the European Union are locked in an explosive crisis that threatens to jeopardise Ankara's bid to join the bloc, as tensions rise ahead of an April 16 referendum on expanding Erdogan's powers.The row erupted after authorities in Germany and other EU states refused to allow some Turkish ministers
  
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• Brazil confronts fallout from rotten meat exports row

  19-03-2017 20:32 via yahoo.com
  
  Brasília (AFP) - Brazil's president held crisis talks Sunday with ministers and foreign ambassadors to try and limit the damage to trade from allegations that major Brazilian producers have been selling rotten meat worldwide.Police allegations that meat producers bribed health inspectors for years to certify tainted food as fit for consumption has struck at the heart of the world's leading beef and chicken exporter.Temer -- whose government is already battered by a huge embezzlement scand
  
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• Earth just had its second-warmest February on record

  19-03-2017 20:27 via yahoo.com
  
  As the saying goes: Another month, another disconcerting report from top U.S. climate agencies. Last month was Earth's second-hottest February on record since at least 1880, NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) recently reported.  At the same time, the extent of sea ice in the Arctic and Antarctica hit record monthly lows.SEE ALSO: Here’s why it's so frickin’ hot right nowIn February 2017, the average global temperature was 1.76 degrees Fahrenheit
  
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• Clashes in Syria capital after surprise rebel assault

  19-03-2017 20:23 via yahoo.com
  
  Heavy clashes rocked eastern districts of the Syrian capital on Sunday as rebels and jihadists tried to fight their way into the city centre in a surprise assault on government forces.The attack comes just days before a fresh round of UN-brokered peace talks in Geneva aiming at ending Syria's six-year war.Rebels and government forces agreed to a nationwide cessation of hostilities in December, but fighting has continued across much of the country, including in the capital.
  
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• Cat exhibition in Bishkek

  19-03-2017 20:14 via yahoo.com
  
  Cats breeders and owners from Kyrgyzstan gathered in Bishkek to present their feline pets. (Getty)
  
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• Waiter Fired After Asking Latina Women For 'Proof of Residency'

  19-03-2017 20:05 via yahoo.com
  
  The women are all U.S. citizens.
  
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• Will Steve King’s immigrant comments keep wary tourists out of Iowa?

  19-03-2017 20:03 via yahoo.com
  
  A travel boycott of Iowa could have serious economic impact on the state, which takes in around $8 billion a year in tourism revenue, according to state officials.Last week, staffers grappled with an unwieldy influx of correspondence following Representative King's retweet of a post endorsing Geert Wilders, a controversial, far-right candidate for Dutch prime minister who came in second place during a Wednesday election."We’re in a politically charged environment," Shawna Lode, the to
  
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• Neil deGrasse Tyson unleashes hot fire on Trump in angry tweetstorm

  19-03-2017 20:00 via yahoo.com
  
  Neil deGrasse Tyson took a break from sharing science facts and nerdy dad jokes on Sunday to blast Donald Trump in a raging tweetstorm. SEE ALSO: Maybe the GOP will finally get to kill Big Bird after allSpecifically, Tyson targeted Trump's proposed slashing of federal funding for programs that support the arts, education, and the EPA, which has long been in the crosshairs of the Trump administration. The fastest way to Make a America Weak Again: Cut science funds to our agencies that s
  
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• In an Israeli warehouse, clues about Jesus' life and death

  19-03-2017 19:51 via yahoo.com
  
  BEIT SHEMESH, Israel (AP) — In a cavernous warehouse where Israel stores its archaeological treasures, an ancient burial box is inscribed with the name of Jesus.
  
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• In an Israeli warehouse, clues about Jesus' life and death

  19-03-2017 19:51 via rocketnews.com
  
  BEIT SHEMESH, Israel (AP) — In a cavernous warehouse where Israel stores its archaeological treasures, an ancient burial box is inscribed with the name of Jesus.
  Not THAT Jesus. Archaeologists in Israel say Jesus was a common name in the Holy Land 2,000 years ago, and that they have found about 30 ancient burial boxes inscribed with it.
  Ahead of Easter, Israel’s antiquities authority opened up its vast storeroom to reporters on Sunday for a peek at unearthed artifacts from the time
  
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• Canadian wins $1M global teacher prize for work with Inuit

  19-03-2017 19:47 via yahoo.com
  
  DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A Canadian school teacher who encourages hope and acts of kindness in an isolated corner of Quebec won a $1 million prize Sunday in what has become one of the most high-profile awards for teaching excellence.
  
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• French Socialist draws crowd, says victory still possible

  19-03-2017 19:12 via yahoo.com
  
  PARIS (AP) — The Socialist candidate for the French presidency and his far-left rival have a big obstacle blocking their route to the presidential Elysee Palace: each other.
  
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• Macron holds edge in French election race ahead of first debate

  19-03-2017 18:56 via yahoo.com
  
  Emmanuel Macron remains favorite to win France's turbulent presidential election race, a poll showed on Sunday, on the eve of a first televised debate which could allow embattled conservative Francois Fillon to get back in contention.Macron, a former economy minister running as an independent centrist, would lead first-round voting with 26.5 percent, just ahead of far-right leader Marine Le Pen on 26 percent, before beating her 64-36 in the run-off, according to the Odoxa poll.Fillon scored 19 p
  
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• Correction: Radioactive Lab-Indictment story

  19-03-2017 18:50 via rocketnews.com
  
  KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — In a story March 17 about a Kansas man accused of tainting a lab with radioactive waste, The Associated Press misstated the name of an organization he founded. Ahmed el-Sherif founded the American Muslim Council of Greater Kansas City. The words “Kansas City” were mistakenly left off in the original story.
  A corrected version of the story is below:
  Kansas man accused of tainting lab with radioactive waste
  The former owner and operator of a Kansas City-a
  
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• Federal court gives students chance to parry with judges

  19-03-2017 18:25 via yahoo.com
  
  SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Arguing a case before a panel of federal appeals-court judges can be daunting even for experienced lawyers. Their clients often have much at stake, and the judges can be relentless, interrupting with questions to point out weaknesses and even occasionally to scold.
  
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• Top Dem on House intel panel hopes Comey ends ‘wild goose chase’ over Trump wiretap claims

  19-03-2017 18:14 via yahoo.com
  
  The leaders of the House Intelligence Committee continue to say they have seen no proof of President Trump’s explosive, evidence-free claim that former President Barack Obama ordered the wiretapping of Trump Tower before the 2016 presidential election.“Was there a physical wiretap of Trump Tower?
  
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• Meals on Wheels receives massive donations following proposed budget cut. Will it matter?

  19-03-2017 18:12 via yahoo.com
  
  Following Thursday’s White House budget proposal release, Meals on Wheels, a nonprofit organization that delivers food to elderly isolated or disabled citizens received more than $100,000 in donations over a two-day period.The surge in contributions came after last week’s release of the White House budget proposal which includes a 17.9 percent cut for in federal funding for the Department of Health and Human Services, which according to Meals on Wheels, provides most of the organizat
  
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• Pulitzer-winning New York columnist Jimmy Breslin dies at 88

  19-03-2017 17:59 via yahoo.com
  
  Pulitzer Prize-winning newspaper columnist Jimmy Breslin, a self-described “street reporter” who chronicled New York City life for decades and won acclaim for his coverage of the "Son of Sam" serial killings, died on Sunday morning at age 88.Breslin died at his home on Manhattan's West Side, said Michael Daly, a friend and a columnist at the New York Daily News, one of several newspapers where Breslin worked in his decades-long career.Breslin was believed to be 86 at the time of his
  
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• Israel threatens to 'destroy' Syrian air defence systems

  19-03-2017 17:59 via rocketnews.com
  
  Jerusalem (AFP) – Israeli Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman on Sunday threatened to destroy Syrian air defence systems after they fired ground-to-air missiles at Israeli warplanes carrying out strikes.
  “The next time the Syrians use their air defence systems against our planes we will destroy them without the slightest hesitation,” Lieberman said on Israeli public radio.
  Israeli warplanes hit several targets in Syria on Friday, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying th
  
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• Israeli archaeologists shine light on life in time of Christ

  19-03-2017 17:43 via yahoo.com
  
  The Israel Antiquities Authority on Sunday offered a rare glimpse into its storerooms, where staff said recent archaeological discoveries have cast new light on life at the time of Christ.The event was organised ahead of the upcoming Christian holiday of Easter, which marks the resurrection of Jesus following his crucifixion.Among finds from the first century AD discovered around Jerusalem and the Galilee, where the Bible says Jesus lived and preached, are vases, cooking utensils, a wine press,
  
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• German Social Democrat Schulz chosen to challenge Merkel

  19-03-2017 17:31 via yahoo.com
  
  Martin Schulz on Sunday officially became Chancellor Angela Merkel's chief rival atGermany's September general election, leading the leftwing challenge to unseat arguably the world's most powerful woman.The bearded Social Democrat, already credited with giving his ailing party a strong shot in the arm, was unanimously elected SPD leader and standard bearer at a one-day congress in Berlin.In a speech to the SPD rank and file, the 61-year-old attempted to harness this momentum against Merkel, whos
  
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• Smoothly but warily, U.S. and China stick to script in Tillerson visit

  19-03-2017 17:25 via yahoo.com
  
  By Yeganeh Torbati and Ben BlanchardBEIJING (Reuters) - Despite a long list of potential pitfalls, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson's visit to China, the first by a senior member of the Trump administration, passed off relatively smoothly although there were no tangible gains to show.On the positive side, there was none of the awkwardness of the kind seen in Washington as President Donald Trump and German Chancellor Angela Merkel held the first summit meeting between two of the West's bigge
  
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• Germany's SPD endorses Schulz as leader and Merkel challenger

  19-03-2017 17:10 via yahoo.com
  
  By Michelle MartinBERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's Social Democrats (SPD) on Sunday formally endorsed former European Parliament President Martin Schulz as their leader and challenger to Chancellor Angela Merkel in what is set to be a tightly contested national election in September.The SPD has undergone a revival since nominating Schulz in late January, gaining around 10 points in opinion polls and signing up thousands of new members as the 61-year-old focuses his campaign on social justice."The SP
  
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• Saffron growers look to get a foothold in the US

  19-03-2017 17:09 via yahoo.com
  
  BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP) — As spring crocus blooms approach, some growers have visions of a fall-flowering crocus that produces saffron, the world's most valuable spice.
  
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• This Week Fast Forward 3.19.2017

  19-03-2017 17:03 via yahoo.com
  
  Speed through the highlights from the latest "This Week."
  
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• Jimmy Breslin, chronicler of wise guys and underdogs, dies

  19-03-2017 16:58 via yahoo.com
  
  NEW YORK (AP) — Author-columnist Jimmy Breslin, the Pulitzer Prize-winning chronicler of wise guys and underdogs who became the brash embodiment of the old-time, street smart New Yorker, died Sunday. He was 88.
  
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• How are Americans reacting to the GOP health care bill?

  19-03-2017 16:50 via yahoo.com
  
  ABC News' David Wright spoke to people in Florida about their thoughts on the future of health care in the United States.
  
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• Rep. Schiff On Trump Campaign-Russia Connections: “There Was Circumstantial Evidence of Collusion”

  19-03-2017 16:33 via yahoo.com
  
  On NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Rep. Adam Schiff — the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee — defended his committee’s investigation, saying: "At the outset of the investigation, there was circumstantial evidence of collusion.
  
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• North Korea Says It Has Tested New ‘High-Thrust’ Rocket Engine

  19-03-2017 16:31 via yahoo.com
  
  State-run media KCNA said that the rocket engine would help the country's plans to launch satellites, but the isolated regime has also in the past conducted nuclear tests and has said it is preparing to test an intercontinental ballistic missile.
  
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• Wife Pleas For Husband, 50, To Return 15-Year-Old He Allegedly Kidnapped As Search Continues

  19-03-2017 16:22 via yahoo.com
  
  They have been missing since Monday.
  
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• Three US soldiers wounded in Afghan 'insider attack'

  19-03-2017 16:03 via rocketnews.com
  
  Three American troops were wounded Sunday when an Afghan soldier opened fire in southern Helmand province, officials said, in the first known “insider attack” on international forces this year.
  No insurgent group has so far claimed responsibility for the attack in Camp Antonik in Washer district, which highlights long-simmering tensions between Afghan and foreign forces.
  “Three US soldiers were wounded this afternoon when an Afghan soldier opened fire on them at a base in Helm
  
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• Three US soldiers wounded in Afghan 'insider attack'

  19-03-2017 16:03 via yahoo.com
  
  Three American troops were wounded Sunday when an Afghan soldier opened fire in southern Helmand province, officials said, in the first known "insider attack" on international forces this year.No insurgent group has so far claimed responsibility for the attack in Camp Antonik in Washer district, which highlights long-simmering tensions between Afghan and foreign forces."Three US soldiers were wounded this afternoon when an Afghan soldier opened fire on them at a base in Helmand province.
  
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