| Strasbourg attack: fourth victim dies as Christmas market re-opens after gunman killed in police raid Posted: 14 Dec 2018 06:35 AM PST  A fourth victim of the Strasbourg Christmas market attack died from his wounds yesterday as investigators searched for possible accomplices of the gunman slain after two days of terror. The prime suspect, Cherif Chekatt, 29, was killed on Thursday after he opened fire on three officers who crossed his path by chance while on patrol. Authorities had received two tip-offs about his general whereabouts. The fourth victim of the knife and gun attack in central Strasbourg, eastern France, was 28-year old Italian radio journalist Antonio Megalizzi. He had been shot in the head and had been in a coma. Giuseppe Conte, the prime minister, said the whole country was united by "sadness and pain". French interior minister Christophe Castaner was in Strasbourg to reopen the Christmas market Credit: SEBASTIEN BOZON/AFP Yesterday, Christophe Castaner, France's interior minister, attended the reopening of Strasbourg's Christmas market, which welcomes two million people every year and had been shut since Tuesday night's attack. To reopen swiftly, he said, was vital "for the honour of Strasbourg, for the honour of France". President Emmanuel Macron was due to attend later in the evening. Islamic State claimed Chekatt as one of its "soldiers" but Mr Castaner dismissed the claim as "totally opportunistic". Chekatt had 27 previous convictions for theft and violence and his Islamic beliefs were radicalised during previous periods in prison. Police were still holding seven people yesterday for questing, including his parents, in a bid to establish whether he was helped by accomplices while on the run. "We want to reconstruct the past 48 hours in order to find out whether he got some support," said Paris prosecutor Remy Heitz. Three police officers on patrol shot dead prime suspect Cherif Chekatt in a suburb of Strasbourg on Tuesday night after he opened fire Credit: UGC Relief in Strasbourg came as France braces for a fifth straight Saturday of violent protests linked to the "yellow vest" movement against high taxes and low purchasing power. Mr Castaner urged protesters not to test exhausted security forces with the type of riots seen in Paris and Bordeaux over the last two weekends. "I can't stand the idea that today people applaud police forces and that tomorrow some people will think it makes sense to throw stones at us," he said after meeting officers. With the movement apparently losing steam after concessions by Emmanuel Macron, the French president said France needed "calm, order and to return to a normal way of working". Michel Delpuech, Paris' police chief, said some 8,000 officers and 14 armoured vehicles would be deployed in Paris as last week with the focus on preventing vandals from wreaking fresh destruction. In an act of defiance, attractions such as the Louvre museum and Opera Garnier will be open this weekend, unlike last Saturday. The protests have hit the economy, with output in the last quarter of the year set to be half initial projections, while Macron's concessions are likely to push the budget deficit above an EU agreed limit.
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| AP FACT CHECK: Trump falsely claims Flynn didn't lie to FBI Posted: 13 Dec 2018 09:18 PM PST  WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is skimming over the facts when it comes to former national security adviser Michael Flynn's guilty plea for lying in the Russia investigation.
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| Global pressure vital for Yemen accord: analysts Posted: 14 Dec 2018 10:56 AM PST  A breakthrough accord between Yemen's warring sides is the most significant step towards ending the country's devastating conflict, but analysts warn its success depends on further international pressure. The United Nations on Thursday brokered a truce between Yemen's government, supported by a Saudi-led military coalition, and Iran-backed Huthi rebels. While the agreement signed in Sweden was welcomed by all involved, analysts say it is fraught with risks and needs to be reinforced by the international community.
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| After losing court battle, DeVos to cancel $150 million in student loan debt Posted: 13 Dec 2018 09:37 PM PST  DeVos proposed restricting "borrower defense" claims filed by former students whose schools closed or made false promises, but has to carry out regulations after court rulings sided with students.
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| The Gifts AD's Market Department Is Giving This Year Posted: 14 Dec 2018 12:50 PM PST |
| Pacific Life Yanks Ads After Tucker Carlson's Dig That Immigrants Make U.S. 'Dirtier' Posted: 14 Dec 2018 05:53 PM PST  Prominent insurance company Pacific Life has pulled its commercials from
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| Wall St. tumbles on global growth worries, J&J decline Posted: 14 Dec 2018 01:54 PM PST  The S&P 600 <.SPCY> small cap index confirmed it was in a bear market after closing 20.05 percent below its Aug. 31 peak, falling 1.6 percent on the day. The Johnson & Johnson report, which the company has disputed, sent its shares tumbling 10 percent in heavy volume, making it the biggest weight from a single stock on the S&P 500 and the Dow Industrials. Investors focused on global growth concerns and worried about U.S. growth after China reported weak monthly retail sales growth and industrial output numbers, as disappointing economic data was released from the euro zone.
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| Qatar Ruler Says Talks With Saudi Begin Only When Embargo Lifted Posted: 14 Dec 2018 11:44 PM PST ![Qatar Ruler Says Talks With Saudi Begin Only When Embargo Lifted]( "Qatar Ruler Says Talks With Saudi Begin Only When Embargo Lifted") "Our position on the solution hasn't changed," Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani said at a conference in Doha on Saturday. Last week, Sheikh Tamim spurned an invitation from Saudi Arabia's King Salman to attend a gathering of Gulf monarchies, which was seen as a sign of thawing relations after 18 months of Qatar's boycott by the kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt. The overture came as Saudi Arabia sought to defuse pressure over the killing of a vocal critic in Istanbul.
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| Isil driven from last town as US-backed forces leave caliphate on brink Posted: 14 Dec 2018 01:09 AM PST  Kurdish-led forces seized the Isil's main hub of Hajin Friday, a milestone in a massive and costly US-backed operation to eradicate the jihadists from eastern Syria. The Syrian Democratic Forces secured Hajin, the largest settlement in what is the last pocket of territory controlled by Isil, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. "After a week of heavy fighting and air strikes, the SDF were able to kick IS out of Hajin," Rami Abdel Rahman, the head of the Britain-based monitoring organisation, said. The operation was completed at dawn, he said, a day after SDF forces fanned out across the large village in the Euphrates valley. On Thursday, the last Isil fighters were confined to a network of tunnels and the edges of Hajin, which lies in the eastern province of Deir Ezzor, about 30 kilometres (18 miles) from the border with Iraq. Islamic State losing its grip on Syria The area held by Isil is sometimes referred to as the "Hajin pocket", the last rump of a once-sprawling "caliphate" the group proclaimed in 2014 over swathes of Syria and Iraq. Isil fighters pulled back to positions east of Hajin Friday and to Sousa and Al-Shaafa, the two other main villages in their shrinking Euphrates valley enclave. As recently as Thursday, the group posted pictures of fighting in Hajin on its social media accounts. According to Abdel Rahman, a total of 17,000 fighters from the Kurdish-Arab SDF alliance are involved in the operation to flush IS out of its last bastion. The operation was launched on September 10 and has taken a heavy toll, according to figures collected by the Observatory, which has a vast network of sources on the ground. Hajin, the last urban stronghold of Isil, in the aftermath of a US air offensive At least 900 jihadists and 500 SDF fighters were killed in the fighting, the monitoring group said. According to Abdel Rahman, more than 320 civilians were also killed, many of them in air strikes by the US-led coalition. US President Donald Trump this week predicted the jihadist group would be fully defeated within a month. "We've done a very, very major job on ISIS," he said on Tuesday, using another acronym for Isil. "There are very few of them left in that area of the world. And within another 30 days, there won't be any of them left," he vowed. Western and other officials have repeatedly announced deadlines for a final victory over Isil but the group is proving resilient. Global Isil attacks The push to retake Hajin was delayed by Turkish threats on the Kurdish heartland further north and deadly counter-attacks by die-hard jihadists making a bloody last stand. "ISIS anticipated its battlefield defeat and the loss of the caliphate and prepared accordingly," said Bruce Hoffman, a terrorism expert at Georgetown University in Washington. Besides what is left of the pocket near Hajin in the Euphrates valley, Isil has a presence in Syria's vast Badia desert, a front which is managed by Russian-backed government forces. What is left of the jihadist group also has sleeper cells across Iraq and Syria that regularly carry out attacks. The loss of Hajin came hours after Isil's propaganda agency Amaq claimed responsibility for a Christmas market shooting in the French city of Strasbourg. The Amaq statement was posted just after the suspect Cherif Chekatt was gunned down by police but bore the hallmarks of an opportunistic claim by the embattled jihadist group.
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| Scandal-plagued CBS grants $20M to 18 women's rights groups Posted: 14 Dec 2018 05:33 PM PST  NEW YORK (AP) — CBS on Friday pledged to give $20 million to 18 organizations dedicated to eliminating sexual harassment in the workplace as the network tries to recover from a scandal that led to the ouster of its top executive, Les Moonves.
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| White House says probe of inauguration funding has 'nothing to do with the president' Posted: 14 Dec 2018 08:39 AM PST  The White House is brushing off reports that federal prosecutors are investigating the over $100 million that was raised from donors for President Trump's inauguration last year.
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| The best Free Shipping Day deals on the internet: Amazon, Nordstrom, Walmart and more Posted: 14 Dec 2018 09:45 AM PST ![The best Free Shipping Day deals on the internet: Amazon, Nordstrom, Walmart and more]( "The best Free Shipping Day deals on the internet: Amazon, Nordstrom, Walmart and more") Score great deals and don't pay for shipping? Sign us up!
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| Seven-year-old Guatemalan girl dies in US custody: report Posted: 13 Dec 2018 07:29 PM PST  Washington (AFP) - A seven-year-old Guatemalan girl died in American custody after being detained by US border police in the state of New Mexico, The Washington Post reported on Thursday.
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| Federal judge strikes down Obamacare Posted: 15 Dec 2018 09:27 AM PST  A federal judge in Texas on Friday ruled the Affordable Care Act, commonly known as Obamacare. was unconstitutional based on its mandate requiring that people buy health insurance, a decision in a case that could reach the U.S. Supreme Court. Tamara Lindstrom reports.
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| EU's Tusk says no more Brexit negotiations Posted: 14 Dec 2018 08:25 AM PST  By Gabriela Baczynska and Jan Strupczewski BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European Council President Donald Tusk said on Friday he had no mandate to reopen Brexit negotiations with Britain, while the head of the bloc's executive, Jean-Claude Juncker, said he "admired" Prime Minister Theresa May. Tusk and Juncker were speaking at a news conference after two days of talks at an EU summit that were dominated by the issue of Brexit and saw the other 27 national leaders of the bloc offer May only vague assurances over their Brexit deal. "I have no mandate to organize any further negotiations. ...
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| Mueller investigation: Special counsel attacks Flynn criticism of FBI interview Posted: 14 Dec 2018 12:20 PM PST  Special Counsel Robert Mueller has urged a federal judge to reject an attempt by Michael Flynn "to minimise the seriousness" of him lying to the FBI. Mr Mueller's team was responding to a sentencing memo from Flynn's lawyers criticising the FBI interviews with their client, saying agents did not provide him "with a warning of the penalties" for misleading investigators. In a note to a judge in Washington DC, he added: "He does not need to be warned it is a crime to lie to federal agents to know the importance of telling them the truth.
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| Infiniti's Next Concept Car Previews a New All-Electric Crossover Posted: 14 Dec 2018 05:41 AM PST  It will pay homage to the pioneering FX45 while looking to Infiniti's electrified future.
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| 2 women in custody in death of 4-month-old boy at NYC hotel Posted: 15 Dec 2018 01:22 PM PST ![2 women in custody in death of 4-month-old boy at NYC hotel]( "2 women in custody in death of 4-month-old boy at NYC hotel") NEW YORK (AP) — A 4-month-old boy died Saturday after he was found unconscious and unresponsive in the lobby of a New York City hotel. Police apprehended two women who were with him, and they're expected to face charges.
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| CBS Pledges $20M From Les Moonves' Severance To Combat Sexual Harassment Posted: 14 Dec 2018 02:57 PM PST  Scandal-ridden CBS is shelling out $20 million to more than a dozen
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| Cohen Reiterates That Trump Directed Hush Payments to Women Posted: 14 Dec 2018 11:59 AM PST  Cohen's first since he was sentenced Wednesday to three years in prison for a host of crimes including those payments -- he rebuffed Trump's assertions that he had acted on his own and that Trump had relied on him as a lawyer to say if something was illegal. Cohen insisted Trump acted knowingly. "Nothing at the Trump Organization was ever done unless it was run through Mr. Trump," Cohen said.
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| Thousands of Ohio schoolkids plead with GM CEO Mary Barra to keep Chevy Cruze plant open Posted: 14 Dec 2018 08:12 AM PST ![Thousands of Ohio schoolkids plead with GM CEO Mary Barra to keep Chevy Cruze plant open]( "Thousands of Ohio schoolkids plead with GM CEO Mary Barra to keep Chevy Cruze plant open") About 20 school districts in Ohio near GM's Lordstown plant launched a letter-writing campaign to GM CEO Mary Barra asking her to save the factory.
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| Rebels hail Yemen ceasefire accord a 'success', despite skirmishes Posted: 15 Dec 2018 11:55 AM PST  Huthi rebels on Saturday hailed a ceasefire accord for a vital Yemeni port agreed at UN-brokered peace talks in Sweden, although the deal's implementation remained fragile. The breakthrough agreement at the first round of negotiations since 2016 was a "success", said Daif Allah al-Shami, information minister for the rebels' unrecognised national salvation government. Reached Thursday between the Huthis and a delegation for the internationally recognised government, the accord called for an "immediate" ceasefire in Hodeida city and its lifeline port, a key gateway for aid and food imports in a country where 14 million people stand on the brink of famine.
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| The easiest way to keep your dog’s paws safe in cold winter weather Posted: 14 Dec 2018 01:58 PM PST ![The easiest way to keep your dog's paws safe in cold winter weather]( "The easiest way to keep your dog's paws safe in cold winter weather") Winter weather can be so, so dangerous for your pupper's paws. When it gets very cold out, the snow or even the cold pavement can give your dog frostbite on its paws in a matter of minutes. Your dog's paws absolutely need protection, but not all pups are willing to leave those little booties on their feet. There's another option called Musher's Secret Pet Paw Protection Wax, and we can't recommend it highly enough. Here's what you need to know from the Amazon page: * Protects paws from sand, hot pavement, ice and salt with all natural 100-percent wax-based cream * Perfect for mushing, hunting, walking or before any outdoor activity * Easy-to-apply formula contains vitamin E to moisturize and help heal wounds and keep paws healthy * Available in pack of 7-ounces * Measures 3-4/5-inch length by 3-4/5-inch width 3-4/5 height
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| Special report: J&J knew for decades that asbestos lurked in its Baby Powder Posted: 14 Dec 2018 07:06 AM PST  An examination shows that from at least 1971 to the early 2000s, products sometimes tested positive for small amounts of asbestos.
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| The Latest: Police say fiancé the last to see missing woman Posted: 14 Dec 2018 02:56 PM PST  DENVER (AP) — The Latest on a police investigation into a Colorado woman's disappearance (all times local):
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| You Can Now Build Your Own 2020 Jeep Gladiator without Any Regard to Price Posted: 14 Dec 2018 12:15 PM PST  We don't know how much the new Jeep pickup costs, which makes the online configurator even more fun to play with.
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| Egypt unearths tomb of ancient high priest Posted: 15 Dec 2018 09:47 AM PST  Egyptian archaeologists have discovered the tomb of a priest dating back more than 4,400 years in the pyramid complex of Saqqara south of the capital Cairo, authorities said Saturday. "Today we are announcing the last discovery of the year 2018, it's a new discovery, it's a private tomb," Antiquities Minister Khaled el-Enany told an audience of invited guests including reporters. "It is exceptionally well preserved, coloured, with sculpture inside. It belongs to a high official priest... (and) is more than 4,400 years old," he said. The tomb belongs to "Wahtye", a high priest who served during the fifth dynasty reign of King Neferirkare, the antiquities ministry said. A view of the newly-discovered tomb of 'Wahtye' Credit: Reuters His tomb is decorated with scenes showing the royal priest alongside his mother, wife and other members of his family, the ministry said in a statement. It also contains more than a dozen niches and 24 colourful statues of the cleric and members of his family, it said. In November archaeology officials announced the discovery in Saqqara of seven sarcophagi, some dating back more than 6,000 years, during excavation work started in April by the same archaeological mission. An external view of the site Credit: Anadolu Three of those tombs contained mummified cats and scarabs. The Saqqara necropolis south of Cairo is home to the famous Djoser pyramid, a more than 4,600-year-old construction which dominates the site and was Egypt's first stone monument. The tomb, built by the master architect Imhotep for the Pharoah Djoser, stood 62 metres tall originally and is considered the oldest building in the world built entirely of stone.
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| 7 Incredible Suites at Europe’s Top Ski Resorts Posted: 14 Dec 2018 01:30 PM PST |
| Now playing: Trump's latest defense — I never said 'to break the law' Posted: 14 Dec 2018 12:10 PM PST  The president keeps revising his explanation of hush-money payments made to two women who claimed to have had extramarital affairs with him.
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| Superintendent Praises Response of Students, Staff Day After Shooting at Indiana School Posted: 14 Dec 2018 03:57 PM PST  The superintendent of Richmond Schools said students and staff at Dennis Intermediate School did everything they`d been trained to do during a school shooting.
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| 6 Sandy Hook Survivors On Healing, Faith And Forgiveness, 6 Years Later Posted: 14 Dec 2018 09:51 AM PST  Dec. 14, 2018, marks six years since the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary
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| Warren seeks to solidify backing of African Americans Posted: 14 Dec 2018 09:44 PM PST  WASHINGTON (AP) — Sen. Elizabeth Warren is seeking to solidify her connection with African-American voters as she prepares to launch a potential presidential campaign amid criticism of her approach to race and identity.
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| Texas judge who approved plea deal for alleged Baylor University rapist faces public backlash Posted: 13 Dec 2018 07:49 PM PST ![Texas judge who approved plea deal for alleged Baylor University rapist faces public backlash]( "Texas judge who approved plea deal for alleged Baylor University rapist faces public backlash") By Thursday night, more than 25,000 people had signed a petition for Judge Ralph Strother of McLennan County, Texas, to either resign or be removed from the bench after he accepted on Monday a deal that allowed Jacob Anderson to plea to lesser charges.
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| First new Mustang Shelby GT500 to be sold by Barrett-Jackson Posted: 14 Dec 2018 08:41 AM PST  The buyer gets to pick the color and the options for their special muscle car
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| What the New Court Ruling Striking Down the ACA Means for Your Health Insurance Posted: 15 Dec 2018 06:20 AM PST  Just as the sign-up window for individual health insurance for 2019 is closing, a legal ruling is creating new uncertainty about the future of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and could potentially ...
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| Indiana State University group to honor Jamal Khashoggi Posted: 14 Dec 2018 04:30 PM PST  TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (AP) — A journalism group at Indiana State University is taking steps to honor alumnus and slain Saudi columnist Jamal Khashoggi.
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| Mick Mulvaney will be just the acting chief of staff 'because that's what the president wants,' White House says Posted: 14 Dec 2018 04:01 PM PST  President Trump's search for a new chief of staff is over, at least for now.
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| Angry protests after Somalia arrests jihadist-politician Posted: 14 Dec 2018 11:46 AM PST  Demonstrators took to the streets of Baidoa in southwest Somalia for a second day Friday protesting the arrest of a former Islamist militant leader who was vying for the regional presidency. Tyres burned, roads were blocked and shots fired as police tried to break up crowds of hundreds of angry protesters in the city where regional presidential elections are due to be held on 19 December. Muktar Robow, who defected from the jihadist Shabaab movement last year, was detained by the government on Thursday, accused of "organising a militia" and seeking to "undermine stability", and flown to the capital Mogadishu.
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| Our Plastic Addiction Has Reached A New Crisis Level Posted: 15 Dec 2018 02:45 AM PST  This is not a good look. Humans are using more oil-based plastic than ever,
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| Iraq summons Turkish envoy over air strikes: foreign ministry Posted: 14 Dec 2018 09:06 AM PST ![Iraq summons Turkish envoy over air strikes: foreign ministry]( "Iraq summons Turkish envoy over air strikes: foreign ministry") Iraq's foreign ministry on Friday summoned Turkey's ambassador in Baghdad to protest over what it called repeated airspace violations, after Turkish warplanes earlier carried out strikes against Kurdish militants in northern Iraq. Hours earlier, the Turkish military said on Twitter it had killed eight militants from the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in air strikes targeting the Zap, Hakurk and Haftanin regions of northern Iraq. Turkey has regularly carried out air strikes on PKK bases in northern Iraq, as President Tayyip Erdogan pursues his stated aim of ending the militant group's presence near Turkey's borders.
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| The 2019 BMW X5 Is the Brand's Most Accomplished SUV Yet Posted: 14 Dec 2018 09:31 AM PST  Its G05 codename may never rank with E46 or E39, but the latest X5 is still plenty good.
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| Fiat 500 earns place in New York's Museum of Modern Art Posted: 14 Dec 2018 04:37 AM PST  Fiat's iconic 500 F city car has been selected by the Museum of Modern Art as a primary exhibit for its The Value of Good Design exhibit next year
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| Florida tale of infidelity and homicide ends with conviction Posted: 14 Dec 2018 07:07 PM PST  TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — After a spellbinding five-day trial that featured tales of infidelity and a multimillion dollar insurance payout, a jury on Friday convicted a Florida woman of helping mastermind the killing of her husband nearly two decades ago.
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| Nearly $300,000 missing after truck spilled money on New Jersey highway Posted: 14 Dec 2018 02:15 PM PST  The incident led to several crashes as motorists exited their vehicles and scrambled to pick up the cash.
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| Australia warns citizens ahead of expected Jerusalem move Posted: 13 Dec 2018 08:32 PM PST  Australia on Friday warned citizens to take care while travelling in neighbouring Muslim-majority Indonesia, ahead of an expected but contentious move to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital. Prime Minister Scott Morrison is expected to announce -- as soon as Saturday -- that his government will follow US President Donald Trump's lead and recognise the contested city as Israel's capital. Scores of Australians preparing to jet off to Bali and other tropical island destinations for upcoming summer holidays should "exercise a high degree of caution", the Department of Foreign Affairs warned.
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| Want your gifts by Christmas? Order by these dates Posted: 14 Dec 2018 12:17 PM PST  Order your gifts from retailers like Nordstrom, Target, Amazon, Sephora and more by these dates to ensure they arrive by Christmas.
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