In Brief | Nation & World | 12-15-15

FAA to require most drones to be registered and marked

Spurred by numerous reports of drones flying near jets and airports, the federal government will require that the aircraft be registered to make it easier to identify owners and educate amateur aviators.

The move, announced Monday by the Federal Aviation Administration, comes at a time when the agency is receiving more than 100 reports per month about drones flying near manned aircraft. The FAA prohibits drones and model airplanes from flying higher than 400 feet or within 5 miles of an airport.

Drones have become increasingly popular with hobbyists. The FAA estimates that 1.6 million small unmanned aircraft will be sold this year, with half during the last three months of the year.

The drones must be marked with the owner’s unique registration number. The FAA said that would let authorities track down owners if they violate the rules. But registration also gives the agency a vehicle to educate owners just as thousands get drones as presents for Christmas and other holidays.

The requirement covers aircraft weighing from more than half pound up to 55 pounds, including any payload such as a camera. Drone owners who are 13 and older will have to register on an FAA website that becomes available starting Dec. 21. The FAA expects parents to register for younger children.

Registration will cost $5 and must be renewed every three years, but the fee will be waived for the first 30 days, until Jan. 20. Owners will have to mark aircraft with an identification number. Recreational fliers can register as many aircraft as they want on one registration number.

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Americans want to get tougher with the Islamic State

WASHINGTON — After terrorist attacks at home and abroad, more Americans than ever — but still less than half — support sending U.S. ground troops to fight the Islamic State, according to a new Associated Press-GfK Poll. A large majority also want a clearer explanation from President Barack Obama about his strategy to defeat the group.

The percentage of Americans who favor deploying U.S. troops to fight IS militants has risen from 31 percent to 42 percent over the past year in AP-GfK polling, although it isn’t clear whether those respondents favor a small contingent or a larger ground force that might engage in another protracted Middle Eastern war. Other national surveys in recent weeks have found similar or greater support for American ground troops.

Obama recently dispatched about 50 special operations forces to coordinate the fight in Syria, adding to the more than 3,000 troops already in Iraq. But he and most other politicians oppose sending a large American contingent to augment the U.S.-led coalition air campaign. Most Republicans running for president have not called for that, either, although Donald Trump recently said he would support 10,000 troops, a figure originally floated by South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham.

Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton has pledged to keep American troops out of Syria, saying she would resist sending forces to fight Islamic militants even if there’s another terrorist attack within the U.S.

In the poll, 56 percent of Americans said the U.S. military response to the Islamic State group has not gone far enough, up from 46 percent since October 2014.

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Trump at center stage, but Cruz in spotlight at GOP debate

WASHINGTON — Donald Trump will be standing at center stage, but Ted Cruz will be in the spotlight at Tuesday night’s Republican presidential debate.

The Texas senator is challenging Trump’s lead in the kickoff Iowa caucuses, and he has the money, campaign infrastructure and conservative appeal to compete deep into the GOP primary season. Those assets now make him a target for his rivals, most notably Trump and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio.

Trump and Cruz have been getting along for months, and that has protected the senator from the harsh criticism the businessman has flung against other opponents. But signs of a split have emerged in recent days, with Cruz appearing to question Trump’s judgment at a private fundraiser, according to audio obtained by The New York Times, and Trump calling Cruz “a little bit of a maniac.”

“Looks like tedcruz is getting ready to attack,” Trump wrote on Twitter last week. “I am leading by so much he must. I hope so, he will fall like all others. Will be easy!”

Another intriguing dynamic in Tuesday’s prime-time debate in Las Vegas involves Cruz and Rubio. Both are first-term senators and Cuban Americans who see themselves as alternatives to Trump, who has baffled Republican leaders with his political durability.

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Bergdahl to face desertion charge in general court-martial

WASHINGTON — Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, who was held captive by the Taliban for five years and freed in exchange for five detainees in Guantanamo Bay, will face charges of desertion and misbehavior before the enemy in a general court-martial, the Army announced on Monday.

If convicted, Bergdahl could get life in prison on the misbehavior charge and up to five years for desertion. He also could be dishonorably discharged, reduced in rank and made to forfeit all pay.

Bergdahl, 29, of Hailey, Idaho, walked off his post in eastern Afghanistan’s Paktika province on June 30, 2009. He was released in the prisoner swap in late May 2014 that touched off a firestorm of criticism, with some in Congress accusing President Barack Obama of jeopardizing the safety of a nation for a deserter.

A date for an arraignment hearing at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, will be announced later.

Bergdahl’s attorney, Eugene Fidell, said the convening authority — a high-ranking officer charged with deciding whether evidence warrants a court-martial — did not follow the advice of a preliminary hearing officer.

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AP: Global supermarkets selling shrimp peeled by slaves

SAMUT SAKHON, Thailand — Every morning at 2 a.m., they heard a kick on the door and a threat: Get up or get beaten. For the next 16 hours, No. 31 and his wife stood in the factory that owned them with their aching hands in ice water. They ripped the guts, heads, tails and shells off shrimp bound for overseas markets, including grocery stores and all-you-can-eat buffets across the United States.

After being sold to the Gig Peeling Factory, they were at the mercy of their Thai bosses, trapped with nearly 100 other Burmese migrants. Children worked alongside them, including a girl so tiny she had to stand on a stool to reach the peeling table. Some had been there for months, even years, getting little or no pay. Always, someone was watching.

No names were ever used, only numbers given by their boss — Tin Nyo Win was No. 31.

Pervasive human trafficking has helped turn Thailand into one of the world’s biggest shrimp providers. Despite repeated promises by businesses and government to clean up the country’s $7 billion seafood export industry, an Associated Press investigation has found shrimp peeled by modern-day slaves is reaching the U.S., Europe and Asia.

The problem is fueled by corruption and complicity among police and authorities. Arrests and prosecutions are rare. Raids can end up sending migrants without proper paperwork to jail, while owners go unpunished.

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AP report on slave-peeled shrimp spurs calls for boycott

NEW YORK — U.S. officials and human rights activists called on Americans to stop buying fish and shrimp tied to supply chains in Thailand, where The Associated Press has found slaves are forced to work in the seafood industry.

“All of us may find ourselves eating a slave made product without knowing it, but once we know it, we all have a moral obligation, I believe, to make a personal decision to boycott it,” said New Jersey Republican Congressman Chris Smith, a member of the House Foreign Relations Committee.

Said Mark Lagon, president of the group Freedom House: “This isn’t a matter of low pay or crummy working conditions. This isn’t a matter of saving lots of money to choose the product that is made by cutting corners. This is the flagrant abuse of fellow human beings … Americans won’t stand for that.”

The AP reported Monday that it found enslaved workers who were forced to peel shrimp in Thailand for up to 16 hours a day for little or no pay, and many were locked inside for months or even years on end. Journalists followed trucks from an abusive factory to major Thai distributors. U.S. customs records show the shrimp made its way into the supply chains of major U.S. food stores and retailers such as Wal-Mart, Kroger, Dollar General and Petco, along with restaurants such as Olive Garden.

It also entered the supply chains of some of America’s best-known seafood brands and pet foods, including Chicken of the Sea and Fancy Feast, which are sold in grocery stores from Safeway and Schnucks to Piggly Wiggly and Albertsons. AP reporters went to supermarkets in all 50 states and found shrimp products from supply chains tainted with forced labor.

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Fatal police shooting in LA suburb was different from others

LYNWOOD, Calif. — When deputies confronted a man carrying a handgun in a Los Angeles suburb, the fatal shooting that unfolded was notably different from other recent flashpoints in the debate over police use of force: The suspect was armed and in an area crowded with people.

Friends and relatives of Nicholas Robertson quickly questioned the police tactics that led to his death, particularly why officers fired at a person who was apparently moving away from them and why they kept firing even after he crumpled to the ground.

But law-enforcement professionals said Monday that the shooting did not immediately appear to share much, if anything, in common with other police shootings that have resulted in criminal charges against officers.

Robertson was killed by officers Saturday after witnesses reported seeing a man firing a handgun into the air six or seven times and briefly going inside a car wash and a pizza parlor.

Video of the shooting, released by the sheriff’s department the next day, showed deputies firing at Robertson more than 30 times. In a close-up image, he can be seen stretched out on the pavement holding a gun.

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Egypt’s finding on Russian jet crash conflicts with others

CAIRO (AP) — Egypt said Monday it has not yet found any sign of terrorism in the deadly Oct. 31 crash of a Russian passenger jet in the Sinai desert, a preliminary finding that conflicts with Russian, U.S. and British statements that they believed a bomb on the aircraft probably was to blame.

The vaguely worded Egyptian statement reflected the deep reluctance among government authorities to point to the possibility of a bomb, and the implication of lax security at the Sharm el-Sheikh airport, where the Metrojet plane took off.

The Airbus A321-200 broke apart 23 minutes after departing the Red Sea resort for St. Petersburg, killing all 224 people aboard. The crash led Russia to halt all flights to and from Egypt, while Britain suspended flights to and from the resort. The actions inflicted a heavy blow to Egypt’s vital tourism industry.

Several officials involved in Egypt’s investigation told The Associated Press that security gaps at the Sharm el-Sheikh airport were making finding a culprit more difficult, including poor video surveillance and the number of people who could enter the facility with only limited searches.

Soon after the crash, the U.S. and Britain said the plane probably was brought down by a bomb, in part citing chatter among militants in Sinai. On Nov. 17, Moscow also announced a bomb was to blame, saying its tests had founds traces of TNT on luggage, personal effects and fragments of the plane. In response, Egyptian Prime Minister Sherif Ismail said only that his country would “bear in mind” the Russian conclusion.

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In schools, on streets and TV, children feel Muslim backlash

A backlash against American Muslims is leaving a mark on some of the nation’s youngest minds.

After seeing presidential candidate Donald Trump call on television for barring Muslims from entering the country, 8-year-old Sofia Yassini checked the locks on her family’s home in Plano, Texas, imagining the Army would take them away. She raced to her room and stuffed a pair of Barbie dolls, a tub of peanut butter and a toothbrush into a bag. She insisted on bringing boots for the long boat ride she imagined was coming.

When her mother, Melissa, arrived home from her work as a human resources manager, Sofia ran into her arms and cried.

“I want people to understand the impact that their words have on these children,” said Melissa Yassini, who described the experience in a Facebook post that had been shared more than 21,000 times as of Monday. “We often forget, we’re waging war on one another with words, and we’re adults. We can take it. The kids are suffering with this. They go to school every day and they’re afraid to tell people they’re Muslim. This has to stop.”

Anti-Muslim sentiment was building in the days before 14 people were killed Dec. 2 in the massacre at a disability center in Southern California by a Muslim couple investigators say were inspired at least in part by the Islamic State group. Some governors had already said they wouldn’t allow Syrians fleeing civil war into their states because of extremist fears. Experts say Trump’s call Dec. 7 to keep all Muslims from entering the United States — a plan he said would apply only temporarily and to non-citizens — only fanned the flames.

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Obama vows to hit IS harder, says commandos now in Syria

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama on Monday vowed to accelerate the U.S.-led military campaign against the Islamic State in both Syria and Iraq, implicitly acknowledging that progress has been too slow as the extremist group expands its reach with deadly attacks beyond the Middle East.

Speaking at the Pentagon after meeting with his National Security Council, Obama revealed that a group of American special operations commandos has begun working with local fighters in Syria to “tighten the squeeze” on Raqqa, the extremists’ nominal capital. He cited this as an example of aggressive new action, in addition to an intensified bombing of the oil infrastructure in Syria that provides much of the Islamic State’s revenue.

The administration announced in late October that Obama had approved sending up to 50 special operations troops to Syria on the first open-ended mission by U.S. ground forces in Syria. Until now, U.S. officials had refused to say whether the American commandos had begun their mission.

Obama said his strategy is moving ahead with “a great sense of urgency,” an assertion that critics say belies the slow pace of progress in Iraq and Syria. Drawing an implied contrast with military prescriptions offered by Republican presidential candidates, including Ted Cruz’s call to “carpet bomb them into oblivion,” Obama said, “We have to be smart, targeting ISIL surgically, with precision” airstrikes while local forces do the ground combat.

As national security takes center stage in the presidential race, Obama also is hoping to counter Donald Trump and his inflammatory remarks about Muslims, which Obama believes endangers U.S. national security.

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Hollywood ready for world premiere of “The Force Awakens”

LOS ANGELES — Stormtrooper mannequins lined the red carpet as “Star Wars” made its highly-anticipated return to Hollywood Monday after a decade-long absence from the big screen.

A giant opaque tent shrouded the red carpet — lined with the mannequins and neon lights that resembled giant lightsabers — and workers put the finishing touches on the setup hours before the film’s first showings to a select group of Hollywood elite.

Disney took over a half-mile section of Hollywood Boulevard for the premiere for “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” complete with fan bleachers and spotlights everywhere. The film will screen at three theaters, allowing more than 5,000 invited guests the chance to see the characters Luke Skywalker, Leia Organa and Han Solo reunite for the first time on the big screen since 1983’s “Return of the Jedi.”

Security around the site was high, with metal detectors screening pedestrians and police dogs checking the area.

Access to journalists covering the premiere restricted until just before the event began. Once they were allowed in the giant, four-block tent, they were treated to displays of some of the film’s newest characters, including the evil Captain Phasma and the droid BB-8.