Underwater search for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 resumes in the Indian Ocean
Underwater search for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 resumes in the Indian Ocean
SYDNEY — The hunt for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 resumed Monday in a desolate stretch of the Indian Ocean, more than six months after the jet vanished.
The GO Phoenix, the first of three ships that will spend up to a year hunting for the wreckage far off Australia’s west coast, is expected to spend 12 days hunting for the jet before heading to shore to refuel.
Crews will use sonar, video cameras and jet fuel sensors to scour the seabed for the Boeing 777, which vanished for reasons unknown on March 8 during a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 239 people on board.
The search has been on hold for four months so crews could map the seabed in the search zone, about 1,100 miles west of Australia. The 23,000-square mile search site lies along what is known as the “seventh arc” — a stretch of ocean where investigators believe the aircraft ran out of fuel and crashed. Officials analyzed transmissions between the plane and a satellite to estimate where it entered the water.
28 bodies found in Mexico clandestine grave, but too damaged for quick ID
IGUALA, Mexico — Mexican forensic experts recovered 28 charred bodies from a clandestine grave on the outskirts of this city where police engaged in a deadly clash with student protesters a week ago, Guerrero state’s chief prosecutor said Sunday.
State Prosecutor Inaky Blanco said the corpses were too badly damaged for immediate identification and he could not say whether any of the dead could be some of the 43 college students reported missing after the confrontation with police. He said genetic testing of the remains could take two weeks to two months.
Blanco said one of the people detained in the case had told investigators that 17 students were taken to the grave site and killed there. But he stressed that investigators had not confirmed the person’s story.
State police and prosecutors have been investigating the Iguala city police for misconduct during a series of violent incidents last weekend that resulted in six shooting deaths and more than two dozen people injured. Investigators said video showed police taking away an undetermined number of student protesters after a confrontation.
Missouri’s 72-hour abortion waiting period to take effect; no challenge planned
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — A new Missouri law requiring a 72-hour abortion waiting period is set to take effect this week, and the state’s only licensed abortion clinic isn’t planning to try to stop it.
Although Planned Parenthood officials have denounced the Missouri law as “onerous” and “burdensome” for women, the organization isn’t planning to file a lawsuit before the measure takes effect Friday. That’s because abortion-rights groups have determined that their chances of success aren’t that good.
An attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union, which has challenged other abortion laws, said it also has no plans to try to block the Missouri law from taking effect.
Missouri’s law will impose the second longest abortion waiting period in the nation behind only South Dakota, where the 72-hour period can sometimes extend longer because it doesn’t count weekends and holidays. Utah also has a 72-hour requirement, but unlike Missouri, Utah allows exceptions for rape, incest and other circumstances.
Denzel Washington appeal no mystery as ‘Equalizer’ tops cinemas
LOS ANGELES — Oscar-winner Denzel Washington, playing a mysterious action hero, demonstrated again he’s one of Hollywood’s most bankable stars by carrying Sony’s “The Equalizer” to the top of the box office in its debut.
The film, based on a former TV show, posted weekend sales of $35 million in the U.S. and Canada, Rentrak Corp. said Sunday in an e-mailed statement. The other new release of the week, “The Boxtrolls,” placed third with $17.3 million in sales for Universal Pictures’ Focus Features. Last weekend’s leader, 21st Century Fox’s young adult fantasy drama “The Maze Runner,” fell to second place with $17.5 million.
Washington, who won Academy Awards for his roles in “Training Day” and “Glory,” is one of the most consistent box-office draws in Hollywood. His films have produced more than $2 billion in receipts domestically since 1990, according to Rentrak. The 2007 release “American Gangster” is his top picture in U.S. sales, with $130.2 million, Rentrak said.
By wire sources