North America

13 Nov 2018; AP - An internet traffic diversion rerouted data through Russia and China and disrupted Google services on Monday, including search, cloud-hosting services and its bundle of collaboration tools for businesses.

Service interruptions lasted for nearly one and a half hours and ended about 5:30 p.m. EST., network service companies said. In addition to Russian and Chinese telecommunications companies, a Nigerian internet provider was also involved.

11 Nov 2018; AFP: Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Sunday the US will hold accountable all involved in the killing of a dissident Saudi journalist in a wide-ranging telephone call that also took in the conflict in Yemen.

Jamal Khashoggi, a US resident, was murdered in Saudi Arabia's consulate in Istanbul on October 2 and the crown prince has been accused of orchestrating the killing, which has strained the decades-old alliance between Washington and Riyadh.

United Nations, Nov 11 (PTI) UN chief Antonio Guterres has expressed concern over Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena's decision to dissolve the nation's Parliament, underlining the "utmost importance" of respecting democratic processes and resolving differences in accordance with the rule of law.

11 Nov 2018; AP: As U.S. Catholic bishops gather for their national assembly next week, the clergy sex abuse crisis dominates their agenda amid calls from critics that church leaders finally bring about meaningful reforms to root out misbehaving priests.

The three-day assembly that starts Monday in Baltimore comes after a series of abuse scandals this year that have been stunning in their magnitude and number.

PARADISE, Calif. (AP) — The few residents of the burned-out Northern California city of Paradise who were able to inspect their property on Saturday saw nothing but disappointment.

Nearly the entire city of 27,000 residents lay in ruins and most were still barred from returning to the still hazardous town where small fires continued to flare.

MEXICO CITY (AP) — About 900 Central American migrants headed out of Mexico City on Friday to embark on the longest and most dangerous leg of their journey to the U.S. border, while thousands more were waiting one more day at a massive improvised shelter.

The group that got a head start bundled their few possessions and started off, taking a subway to the north part of the city and then hiking down an expressway with a police escort.

WASHINGTON (AP) — China bluntly told the United States to stop sending ships and military aircraft close to islands claimed by Beijing in the South China Sea, during talks that set the stage for a meeting between President Donald Trump and President Xi Jinping later this month.

The U.S. pushed back Friday, insisting it will continue to “fly, sail and operate wherever international law allows.” In late September, U.S. and Chinese vessels nearly collided near a disputed reef.

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. (AP) — Authorities trying to make sense of why a gunman killed 12 people at a Southern California bar are not publicly discussing what they’ve learned, but at least one Instagram post he made after beginning the massacre has emerged as an early focus.

Social media platforms have scrubbed that and any other posts following Wednesday night’s massacre. But one law enforcement official said Ian David Long, a 28-year-old former Marine, posted about his mental state and whether people would believe he was sane.

MOSCOW, November 10. /TASS/. /TASS/. American celebrities were among thousands of people evacuated from their homes because of the wildfires that engulfed Ventura County in California. Among the celebrities who had to leave their Malibu houses are reality TV star and model Kim Kardashian West; singers Lady Gaga, Iggy Azalea and Cher; and director Guillermo del Toro.

WASHINGTON, Nov. 9 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Secretary of Defense James Mattis announced Friday that Pentagon backs Saudi Arabia's decision to use the Saudi-led coalition's own military capabilities to refuel aircraft engaged in Yemen.

"We support the decision by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, after consultations with the U.S. Government, to use the Coalition's own military capabilities to conduct inflight refueling in support of its operations in Yemen," said Mattis in a statement released Friday night.