In High School, Airman Charged With Leak Was Focused on the Military
For his high school senior yearbook, Jack Teixeira got to pick a quote to appear below the photo showing him smiling in a green hoodie. His choice: “Actions speak louder than words.” On Friday, Teixeira, a 21-year-old airman in the Massachusetts Air National Guard, was charged with two counts under the Espionage Act because, federal prosecutors say, his actions caused harm to the country he had devoted himself to serving. He did not enter a plea. They said he repeatedly shared classified documents on the internet through a gaming group he belonged to that focused on war, guns and, sometimes, racist and antisemitic memes.
Bans on Transition Care for Young People Spread Across U.S.
Ten states in the past three months have passed laws prohibiting what is known as gender-affirming care for young people, in a rapid effort by Republican lawmakers across the country. The laws ban or significantly limit the use of puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones and transition surgery for people younger than 18. Last week, Indiana and Idaho became the most recent states to pass bans. Before this year, just three state legislatures had enacted full or partial bans. In addition to the 10 signed into law, bans have passed at least one chamber of seven more state legislatures on the path toward enactment this year.
Youngkin Gives 2024 Presidential Run the Cold Shoulder
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, a Republican whose surprising election in a blue-trending state set off instant talk of a presidential run, has tapped the brakes on 2024, telling advisers and donors that his sole focus is on Virginia’s legislative elections in the fall. Youngkin hopes to flip the state Legislature to a Republican majority. That could earn him a closer look from rank-and-file Republicans nationwide, who so far have been indifferent to the presidential chatter surrounding him in the news media, and among heavyweight donors he would need to keep pace alongside more prominent candidates. He has yet to crack 1% in polls about the potential Republican field.
Tulsa Reaches ‘Breakthrough’ in Search for Massacre Victims
Officials in Tulsa, Oklahoma, announced a “major scientific breakthrough” this past week in a search for the graves of people who were killed in the Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921, saying that six sets of exhumed remains had yielded DNA profiles that could be traced to living relatives. “At every stage of the search, the city’s primary objective has been to identify missing victims and reunite their remains with their families,” Tulsa Mayor G.T. Bynum said at a news conference Wednesday. The analysis of the genetic genealogy profiles, and possible links to 19 surnames, represented a critical step in that process, he said.
Rutgers University Faculty Members Suspend Strike
Unions representing an estimated 9,000 faculty members at Rutgers University suspended a nearly weeklong strike Saturday morning after reaching a consensus with the university on critical provisions, including a significant pay raise for adjunct professors. A union official called the progress a “huge win.” Classes are expected to resume Monday, according to university and union officials. The strike was the university’s first in its 257-year history and had shut down most classes and research at New Jersey’s flagship public university since Monday. The strike followed almost a year of unsuccessful bargaining.
1 Dead and Nearly 100 Sickened in Fungal Outbreak at Paper Mill
At least one person has died and nearly 100 people have gotten sick in a rare fungal outbreak at a paper mill in Michigan, health authorities said, prompting the plant to temporarily close as local and federal investigators try to identify the source.The outbreak of blastomycosis at the Billerud paper mill in Escanaba, Michigan, has escalated since February. Local health authorities initially identified about 15 likely cases. By mid-April, that number had grown to 21 confirmed cases and 76 probable cases. Twelve people have been hospitalized and one person has died.
Rival Generals Unleash Fighting in Sudan
Fighting raged Saturday across the capital of Sudan and in a handful of other cities as rising tensions between rival factions of the armed forces spiraled into an all-out battle for control of the country. An internal U.N. report cited about 27 dead and 400 injured. Sudan’s military was supposed to hand back power to civilian leaders this month, as part of a Western-backed deal. But any hopes for a peaceful transition were shattered early Saturday when strained relations between the most powerful military leaders — the army chief, Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan, and Lt. Gen. Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, the commander of the powerful Rapid Support Forces paramilitaries — turned violent.
Why China’s Leader Hasn’t Called the President of Ukraine
The last time President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine and China’s top leader, Xi Jinping, spoke, they celebrated 30 years of diplomatic ties. That was in January 2022. Less than two months later, Russia, one of China’s closest partners, invaded Ukraine. Xi has not spoken since to Zelenskyy, despite the latter’s repeated requests. And the “sound and stable” relationship they touted seems like a distant memory. The question of when and whether Xi will speak with Zelenskyy reflects their countries’ uncertain state of relations amid Russia’s war in Ukraine. Before the war, trade and cultural exchanges had been growing. Now both sides are juggling goals that sometimes conflict.
Death Toll From Russian Missile Attack in Eastern Ukraine Climbs to 11
Rescue workers pulled more bodies from the rubble Saturday after a Russian missile attack on a residential neighborhood in the eastern Ukrainian city of Sloviansk killed at least 11 people. On Saturday, emergency workers retrieved two bodies from the remains of a five-story apartment building. Russia sent a barrage of missiles into a residential area of Sloviansk on Friday, according to Ukrainian officials. The head of the regional military administration said that 21 others had been injured. He added that 34 apartment buildings were damaged in the barrage, along with an administrative building and shops.
At Christianity’s Holiest Site, Rival Monks Struggle to Turn Other Cheek
As Orthodox Christians descended on Jerusalem this Easter week to visit the holiest site in their religion, a more earthly concern hovered over the holiday: Would rival monks keep the peace this year or again engage in clashes? In a centurieslong conflict, Egyptian Coptic monks and Ethiopian Orthodox monks have competed for control of a small monastery located on the roof of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, built at the site where Christians believe Christ was crucified, entombed and resurrected. Despite the monastery’s sacred location, it has become a site of petty quarrels that occur on a near-annual basis, and sometimes even boil over into violence.
Japan’s Prime Minister Safely Evacuated After Blast
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan was safely evacuated Saturday from a site where he had been scheduled to give a speech and shortly before an explosion was heard, according to police. An object was thrown, prompting Kishida’s removal. By the time of the explosion, the prime minister had been taken away from the area, according to the police department in Wakayama. It is not clear what the explosive object was, but it did not result in serious damage or injuries, police said. A spokesperson for the police department in Wakayama said Saturday that a suspect had been arrested in the case and was in custody.
Boy’s Suicide in Poland Spurs Backlash Against State Media Tactics
When he arrived at the studio of Radio Szczecin last month before dawn, morning show host Grzegorz Piepke found red paint splattered over the entrance and a message to staff members: “You have blood on your hands.” He quit on air the same day. A fellow presenter did the same. The radio station, part of a public broadcasting system controlled by Poland’s right-wing governing Law and Justice party, had become the target of public fury over what many see as its role in a political hit job that helped identify a 15-year-old sex abuse victim, the son of a local opposition politician. The boy later killed himself.
By wire sources
