ECM WORLD WATCH: NATIONAL AND GLOBAL NEWS

November 29, 2017 (San Diego’s East County) - East County Magazine's World Watch helps you be an informed citizen about important issues globally and nationally. As part of our commitment to reflect all voices and views, we include links to a wide variety of news sources representing a broad spectrum of political, religious, and social views.  Top world and U.S. headlines include:

U.S.

Sexual harassment scandals

• How sexual misconduct claims brought down five major media players (ABC)
• How Congress Keeps Its Sexual Harassment Hush Money Secret (Reason)
• Pelosi refuses to hit Conyers on sexual harassment allegations, calls him an ‘icon’ (CNN)
• Garrison Keillor fired by MPR: 'I put my hand on a woman's bare back,' he says (Star Tribune)
• Report: More than 180 clients claim sex abuse at Massage Envy spas (San Diego Union-Tribune)

Other national news

• Jared Kushner interviewed by special counsel’s office (CBS)
• Trump to 59,000 Haitians: you have 18 months to pack your bags (VOX)
• U.S. Coast Guard operating secret floating prisons in Pacific Ocean (USA Today)
• Trump halts decision to allow elephant trophy import after uproar (Reuters)
• The Good, the Bad, and the Unspeakably Ugly: Surveillance Reform Bill Primer (Reason)
• A billionaire wages war on poverty in Oklahoma (CS Monitor)
• Hurricane Damage to Manufacturers in Puerto Rico Affects Mainland Hospitals, Too (NPR)
• U.S. Says PLO Office Must Close After Palestinians Call to Prosecute Israel (NPR)
• These states spend the most on public welfare programs (Fox Business)

 WORLD

• Egypt mosque attackers wore military uniforms and arrived in SUVs (CNN)
• Iranian president declares end of Islamic State (Reuters)
• Zimbabwe Swears in a New President in the First Transfer of Power Since Independence (NPR)
• Suddenly, newspaper can print anything. It's harder than it sounds (Jewish World Review)
• Russia's Putin signs 'foreign agents' media law (Reuters)
• Valery Gerasimov, Russian general, reveals nuclear treaty violation (Washington.com)
• Terrorist stabs, rams over Israelis in murderous spree across West Bank (JPost)
• North Korea defector regains consciousness, video shows getaway under fire (Reuters)
• Haitian army set to make controversial return after two decades (Reuters)
• Nigeria experiences worst bombing of the year in former Boko Haram territory (CS Monitor)
• Turkey orders detention of 216 people in post-coup probe: Anadolu  (Reuters)

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.

U.S.

Sexual misconduct scandals

How sexual misconduct claims brought down five major media players (ABC)

Numerous accusations of sexual misconduct against high-profile media figures have been made in recent months, largely coming after the allegations of widespread abuse by Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein. The fallout has been severe -- here are some of the biggest names who have turned from covering the news to being a part of it.

How Congress Keeps Its Sexual Harassment Hush Money Secret (Reason)

...the House had paid out millions of dollars over the last decade to settle sexual harassment claims.

Pelosi refuses to hit Conyers on sexual harassment allegations, calls him an ‘icon’ (CNN)

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi on Sunday refused to criticize Rep. John Conyers, a Michigan Democrat who has been accused of sexual harassment against former Capitol Hill staff…We are strengthened by due process," Pelosi said on NBC's "Meet the Press."  "John Conyers is an icon in our country. He's done a great deal to protect women," she added, citing the congressman's support for the Violence Against Women Act...

Garrison Keillor fired by MPR: 'I put my hand on a woman's bare back,' he says

MPR drops Keillor, Prairie Home, citing inappropriate conduct, saying he may move, Keillor sees nation in the "grip of a mania." 

Report: More than 180 clients claim sex abuse at Massage Envy spas (San Diego Union-Tribune)

More than 180 people across the United States have filed sexual assault lawsuits, police reports and other sexual misconduct complaints against Massage Envy spas, their employees and the national company

Other national news

Jared Kushner interviewed by special counsel’s office (CBS)

President Trump's son-in-law and senior White House adviser Jared Kushner was interviewed by special counsel Robert Mueller's office, CBS News has learned.

Trump to 59,000 Haitians: you have 18 months to pack your bags (VOX)

As of July 2019, Haitians living in the US — often for more than a decade — will lose humanitarian protections to stay here.

U.S. Coast Guard operating secret floating prisons in Pacific Ocean (USA Today)

If you've followed the War on Terror at all, you're almost certainly familiar with the U.S. detention facility at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba — a U.S. prison that exists outside the realm of the U.S. justice system. Now, it turns out, there's a secret U.S. detention system in the War on Drugs, too — and this one is aboard U.S. Coast Guard cutters sailing in the Pacific Ocean.

Trump halts decision to allow elephant trophy import after uproar (Reuters)

U.S. President Donald Trump said in a tweet on Friday he is putting a decision to allow imports of elephant trophies on hold after a torrent of criticism from conservation advocates and across social media. Trump’s reversal came hours after his administration released a rule on Friday to allow hunters who kill elephants in Zimbabwe to bring their trophies back to the United States, which had been banned by the Obama administration.

A billionaire wages war on poverty in Oklahoma (CS Monitor)

In Tulsa, Okla., philanthropist George Kaiser is mounting one of the most ambitious efforts in the US to help the poor.

Hurricane Damage to Manufacturers in Puerto Rico Affects Mainland Hospitals, Too (NPR)

The island is a major center for drug and medical device manufacturing. After Hurricane Maria, those products, including small IV bags, are running short throughout the U.S.

U.S. Says PLO Office Must Close After Palestinians Call to Prosecute Israel (NPR)

A U.S. State Department official announced that the Palestinian diplomatic mission in Washington, D.C., must shut down, saying the Palestinians violated U.S. law by calling on the International Criminal Court to prosecute Israel authorities.

These states spend the most on public welfare programs (Fox Business)

In fiscal year 2017, welfare costs were estimated to be around $1.145 trillion. But the costs were not distributed equally among all 50 states….  the top 10 states spend more, collectively, than the bottom 40 states and the District of Columbia, combined…. California, which leads the pack by a landslide, spends about $103 billion...

WORLD

Egypt mosque attackers wore military uniforms and arrived in SUVs (CNN)

Dozens of men wearing military combat uniforms and armed with automatic machine guns carried out the deadly assault on a Sufi mosque in northern Sinai, Egyptian authorities said...  By the time the attackers' weapons went quiet, 305 people were dead, including 27 children, the prosecutor said Saturday. An additional 128 people were wounded.

Iranian president declares end of Islamic State (Reuters)

 Iranian President Hassan Rouhani declared the end of Islamic State on Tuesday in an address broadcast live on state TV.  A senior commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, Major General Qassem Soleimani, also declared the end of Islamic State in a message sent to the country’s supreme leader Tuesday which was published on Sepah News, the news site of the Guards.

Zimbabwe Swears in a New President in the First Transfer of Power Since Independence (NPR)

Emmerson Mnangagwa, whose firing by now-ousted President Robert Mugabe prompted military intervention, promises to change the government's culture after years of corruption and economic trouble.

Suddenly, newspaper can print anything. It's harder than it sounds (Jewish World Review)

In Zimbabwe, suddenly, a newsroom that had been the mouthpiece of the regime was without a censor.

Russia's Putin signs 'foreign agents' media law (Reuters)

 Russian President Vladimir Putin signed into law on Saturday new measures allowing authorities to list foreign media outlets as "foreign agents" in response to what Moscow says is unacceptable U.S. pressure on Russian media.

Valery Gerasimov, Russian general, reveals nuclear treaty violation (Washington.com)

Gen. Valery Gerasimov, chief of the general staff, told Russian state media that units with precision-guided missiles with ranges of up to 2,485 miles are in place.

Terrorist stabs, rams over Israelis in murderous spree across West Bank (JPost)

A Palestinian terrorist ran over a 70-year-old man near the settlement of Efrat. From there he proceeded to drive to the Gush Etzion junction, where he ran over a 35-year-old man. He then got out of the vehicle and attempted to stab an IDF soldier with a knife. The soldier shot the perpetrator in self-defense, wounding and neutralizing him at the scene.

North Korea defector regains consciousness, video shows getaway under fire (Reuters)

 North Korean border guards were only steps behind a fellow North Korean soldier when they opened fire and one briefly crossed the border pursuing the wounded defector as he dashed to the South Korean side, a video released on Wednesday by the U.N. Command (UNC) in Seoul showed.

Haitian army set to make controversial return after two decades (Reuters)

 Haiti's president on Saturday heralded the re-establishment of the country's military after 22 years, a divisive issue in the impoverished Caribbean nation which has a history of bloody coups and political instability.

Nigeria experiences worst bombing of the year in former Boko Haram territory (CS Monitor)

Despite government assurances that Boko Haram is nearly defeated within Nigeria, a recent suicide bombing that killed 50 people has been attributed to the Islamist militant group.

Turkey orders detention of 216 people in post-coup probe: Anadolu  (Reuters)

 Turkish authorities have issued detention warrants for 216 people, including former finance ministry personnel, suspected of having links to last year's failed coup attempt, the state-run Anadolu news agency said on Wednesday.