ECM WORLD WATCH: NATIONAL AND GLOBAL NEWS

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July 16, 2014 (San Diego's East County)-- ECM 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.

WORLD

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

U.S.

Parts of  Yellowstone National Park closed as supervolcano beneath it melts roads (RawStory)

“It basically turned the asphalt into soup. It turned the gravel road into oatmeal,” Yellowstone spokesman Dan Hottle said. In particular, Hottle said that the road between the park’s most popular attraction, Old Faithful, and Madison Junction has been dangerously compromised. Park officials also asked tourists not to hike into the affected areas, as the danger of stepping through what appears to be solid soil into boiling-hot water was “high.”

Buyers line up as pot shops open in Washington state (Washington Post)

Eager customers lined up before dawn Tuesday as Washington became the second U.S. state to allow the sale of marijuana for recreational use, although shortages and high prices were likely to accompany any euphoria.

In NSA-intercepted data, those not targeted far outnumber the foreigners who are (Washington Post)

Ordinary Internet users, American and non-American alike, far outnumber legally targeted foreigners in the communications intercepted by theNational Security Agency from U.S. digital networks, according to a four-month investigation by The Washington Post. Nine of 10 account holders found in a large cache of intercepted conversations, which former NSA contractor Edward Snowden provided in full to The Post, were not the intended surveillance targets but were caught in a net the agency had cast for somebody else.

Virus plagues the health industry (NY Times)

The bodies are piling up fast. A deadly virus, porcine epidemic diarrhea, or PEDv, is estimated to have killed, on average, more than 100,000 piglets and young hogs each week since it first showed up in Iowa in May 2013, wreaking havoc on the pork industry.

NSA 'targets' Tor dark web servers (BBC)

 The US surveillance agency NSA has been targeting the Tor anonymising system to spy on its users, suggests a report. / Citing information given by official sources, ARD said almost anyone searching for Tor or installing it could be watched by the NSA.

New Numbers Show Significant Drop In Deportations Of Minors (NPR) 

Using a Freedom of Information Act request, Brian Bennett of the Los Angeles Times recently obtained data on deportations. As Bennett explains to Robert Siegel, the numbers show that deportations of minors have dropped significantly since 2008.

The Life And Death Of 'The Internet's Own Boy' (NPR)

Aaron Swartz was a programmer, a hacker, a freedom of information activist — and a casualty of suicide.

WORLD

Iraq forces executed 255 prisoners in revenge for Islamic State killings: HRW (Reuters)

 Iraqi security forces and government affiliated militias appear to have unlawfully executed at least 255 prisoners over the past month in apparent revenge for killings by Islamic State fighters, according to a rights group on Saturday.

ISIS is about to destroy Biblical history in Iraq (Daily Beast

Iraqi antiquities officials are calling on the Obama administration to save Nineveh and other sites around jihadist-occupied Mosul. But are drone strikes really the answer?

Thieves in Mexico steal truck with dangerous radioactive load (Reuters)

 Thieves in central Mexico on Thursday stole a pick-up truck carrying dangerous radioactive material, authorities said.

Exclusive: Iraq tells U.N. that 'terrorist groups' seized nuclear materials (Reuters)

 Insurgents in Iraq have seized nuclear materials used for scientific research at a university in the country's north, Iraq told the United Nations in a letter appealing for help to "stave off the threat of their use by terrorists in Iraq or abroad

Two 'abandoned' cylinders seized in Syria contained sarin - U.N. (Reuters)

Two cylinders reportedly seized by Syrian government troops in an area controlled by armed opposition groups contained deadly sarin, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said in a letter to the U.N. Security Council published on Monday.

Iran connection: Why are Gaza rockets reaching so deep into Israel? (CS Monitor)

A recent United Nations report, still classified, confirms that Iran is implicated in exporting longer-range missiles to the region, such as the M-302 rockets launched from Gaza.

United Nations: Most Gaza Casualties Were Warned by IDF to Leave Targeted Buildings in Advance (Algemeiner)

 A new United Nations document says that in most cases where Palestinians have been killed or injured during Israel’s ongoing Gaza campaign, the Israeli army alerted civilians ahead of time who were occupying buildings, that they planned to bomb in Gaza, to leave the premises.... / Hamas, however, has officially urged residents to ignore the Israeli warnings to evacuate prior to Air Force air strikes, and, instead, called on them to serve as human shields....

What if terrorist rockets could reach your country? (IDF)

Imagine if Gaza terrorists were your neighbors and could shoot the deadly M-302 rocket at your home. We created an app to help you put the Hamas threat in perspective.  

Bedouin attack in Negev town shocks residents (JPost)

 Negev residents expressed shock and dismay following a stormy Sunday night when Beduin Arabs threw Molotov cocktails and stones at cars in the town of Omer, near Beersheba, blowing up the car of a district judge.... Badash said that around 150-200 Beduin youths came and threw rocks and fire bombs at cars. “People here are in shock,” he said.

Six Jewish suspects arrested over death of Palestinian teenager (Reuters)

Israel has arrested six Jewish suspects in the abduction and killing of a Palestinian teenager whose death sparked violent protests in Jerusalem and Israeli Arab towns, a security source said on Sunday.

Mother of dead Jewish teen condemns Abu Khdeir killing (Jerusalem Post)

Rachel Fraenkel, the mother of Naftali Fraenkel, who was buried last week, says she shares the pain of the Palestinian youngster's parents

Islamic State seizes oil field and towns in Syria's east (Reuters)

 Militants from the Islamic State group seized control of Syria's largest oil field from rival Islamist fighters on Thursday, strengthening its advance across the eastern Deir al-Zor province, an opposition monitoring group said.

In Iraq's Sacred City Of Najaf, Clerics Call On Shiites To Fight (NPR)

Senior Shiite Muslim clerics usually stay out of politics. But they've broken with tradition and issued a call to arms. Shiites are now volunteering — and dying — in the fight against Sunni Muslims.

Iraqi Kurdish president asks parliament to prepare for independence vote (Reuters)

 The president of Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region asked its parliament on Thursday to plan a referendum on Kurdish independence, signaling his impatience with Baghdad, which is fighting to repel Sunni insurgents and struggling to form a new government.

Saudi Arabia deploys 30,000 soldiers to border with Iraq: al-Arabiya TV (Reuters)

 Saudi Arabia deployed 30,000 soldiers to its border with Iraq after Iraqi soldiers abandoned the area, Saudi-owned al-Arabiya television said on Thursday, but Baghdad denied this and said the frontier remained under its full control.

Nicaragua approves route for $40 billion canal linking oceans

(Reuters) - A Nicaraguan committee approved a proposed route on Monday for a $40 billion shipping channel across the Central American country that would compete with the Panama Canal.

Central African Republic fighters attack church sheltering civilians

(Reuters) - Rebel fighters and armed Muslim civilians killed "many" people in an attack on a church compound in the Central African Republic on Monday where thousands of civilians had taken refuge, Catholic Church officials said.

Switzerland: From Banking Paradise To Data Safe Zone (NPR)

Swiss vaults have held treasures ranging from Nazi gold to Wall Street fortunes. Now they're becoming the guardians of the 21st century's most precious asset: digital information.

Strong earthquake hits Japan, triggers tsunami near Fukushima (CS Monitor)

A magnitude-6.8 earthquake hit Japan's northern coast early Saturday morning, triggering an 8-inch tsunami and shaking buildings in Tokyo, but reportedly causing no damage.

 


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