C/NET
To date, 19 states have voted to legalize marijuana for recreational use. In those states, marijuana production and distribution are making for a fast-growing, multibillion-dollar industry, providing tax revenue and jobs.
Meanwhile, more than 30 states and four territories have legalized pot for medical use. But in the remaining states and one territory, and under federal law, cannabis is still illegal, meaning people possessing marijuana can be incarcerated. The result is a confusing patchwork of laws and a legal minefield when you cross state lines. How do we as a nation address this problem on the federal level and create a fair playing field for all?
BBC
While no one is sure exactly why these ingenious islets were were constructed, they provide a unique window on human life all the way back to Neolithic times in Britain.
It was simple curiosity that prompted retired Royal Navy diver Chris Murray a decade ago to plunge into the icy waters around a mysterious islet in a small loch on his home island of Lewis in the Scottish Hebrides. But when the extraordinarily well-preserved pottery he found in the islet's silty surround was radiocarbon dated to 3600 BC, it pushed our awareness of civilisation on the British Isles back to a time before both Stonehenge and the first pyramids in Egypt.
The piece of land poking out of the Hebridean loch is an example of a remarkable form of a man-made island known as a crannog, which were created in multitudes via an inspiring blend of ingenuity and effort. Nearly 600 of these artificial islands have so far been recorded across mainland Scotland and its islands, built big enough to support large communal roundhouses or clusters of smaller dwellings, and linked by slender causeways or piers to the shorelines of myriad lochs in often stunning locations of wild beauty.
BBC
The UK, US and EU have accused China of carrying out a major cyber-attack earlier this year.
The attack targeted Microsoft Exchange servers, affecting at least 30,000 organisations globally.
Western security services believe it signals a shift from a targeted espionage campaign to a smash-and-grab raid, leading to concerns Chinese cyber-behaviour is escalating.
The Chinese Ministry of State Security (MSS) has also been accused of wider espionage activity and a broader pattern of "reckless" behaviour.
China has previously denied allegations of hacking and says it opposes all forms of cyber-crime.
The unified call-out of Beijing shows the gravity with which this case has been taken. Western intelligence officials say aspects are markedly more serious than anything they have seen before.
It began in January when hackers from a Chinese-linked group known as Hafnium began exploiting a vulnerability in Microsoft Exchange. They used the vulnerability to insert backdoors into systems which they could return to later.
Al Jazeera
Haiti’s acting Prime Minister Claude Joseph, whose leadership of the nation has been disputed since the July 7 assassination of President Jovenel Moise, told the Washington Post newspaper Monday he will cede power.
Ariel Henry, who was appointed as prime minister by Moise two days before the assassination and who was recently recognised as the “designated prime minister” by the international community, will take over.
Joseph, who served as foreign minister under Moise and was serving as acting prime minister before Henry’s appointment, had to date refused to recognise Henry as the designated prime minister, arguing that Henry had not been sworn in at the time of Moise’s killing.
Joseph told the Washington Post that he and Henry had met privately over the past week, adding that he agreed to step down on Sunday “for the good of the nation”.
Al Jazeera
Forces from Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region have mounted attacks in neighbouring Afar region, marking an expansion of an eight-month-old conflict into a previously untouched area.
Tigrayan fighters crossed into Afar on Saturday and Afar forces and allied militias were still fighting them on Monday, Afar spokesman Ahmed Koloyta said.
“Now [Ethiopian military forces] are on their way and we will work with them to eliminate [the Tigrayan forces],” he said.
Getachew Reda, a spokesman for the Tigrayan forces, confirmed they had been fighting over the weekend in Afar.
“We are not interested in any territorial gains in Afar, we are more interested in degrading enemy fighting capabilities,” he said via satellite phone.
DW News
The German military is deploying soldiers to help with relief efforts in the flood regions of western Germany. The country has tight constitutional restrictions on how the Bundeswehr is used within its borders.
The German army has sent personnel and heavy equipment to parts of Rhineland-Palatinate and North Rhine-Westphalia as cleanup and rescue efforts continue following some of the worst flooding the country has ever recorded.
Over a thousand soldiers and over 200 military vehicles have been deployed in western Germany over the last few days, after widespread flooding left over 160 people dead and countless homes destroyed or damaged.
DW News
A Tokyo court on Monday sentenced a father and son from the United States to jail time for helping former Nissan chairman Carlos Ghosn escape the country.
The court handed down the first sentence in Japan over the case since Ghosn was arrested in 2018 on charges of financial fraud.
Former US special forces operative Michael Taylor received a two-year sentence and his son Peter was sentenced to 20 months in prison.
"This case enabled Ghosn, a defendant of serious crime, to escape overseas," said Hideo Nirei, the chief judge of the Tokyo district court. "One year and a half has passed, but there is no prospect of the trial being held."
AP
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — The monstrous wildfire burning in Oregon has grown to a third the size of Rhode Island and spreads miles each day, but evacuations and property losses have been minimal compared with much smaller blazes in densely populated areas of California.
The fire’s jaw-dropping size contrasted with its relatively small impact on people underscores the vastness of the American West and offers a reminder that Oregon, which is larger than Britain, is still a largely rural state, despite being known mostly for its largest city, Portland.
The 476-square-mile (1,210-square-kilometer) Bootleg Fire is burning 300 miles (483 kilometers) southeast of Portland in and around the Fremont-Winema National Forest, a vast expanse of old-growth forest, lakes and wildlife refuges.
Reuters
NEW YORK, July 19 (Reuters) - A surge in Delta variant infections sparked a broad sell-off on Wall Street on Monday as investors feared renewed COVID-19 shutdowns and a protracted economic recovery.
All three major U.S. stock indexes ended the session sharply lower, with the S&P and the Nasdaq suffering their largest one-day percentage drop since mid-May.
The blue-chip Dow had its worst day in nearly nine months.
The risk-off sentiment also sent U.S. 10-year Treasury yields sliding, pulling rate sensitive banks stock prices with them. The S&P 500 Banks index (.SPXBK) dropped 3.3%.
NPR
A Florida crane operator who walked onto the Senate floor during the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol has been sentenced to eight months in federal prison and two years of supervised release.
Paul Hodgkins' sentencing is the first in a felony case stemming from the deadly assault on the U.S. Capitol by a mob of Trump supporters. It is viewed as a potential bellwether for how other Capitol defendants charged with similar offenses are likely to be treated.
Hodgkins pleaded guilty last month to a single count of obstructing an official proceeding. On Jan. 6, he marched from then-President Donald Trump's rally near the White House to the Capitol, where he walked inside and onto the floor of the Senate while carrying a red "Trump 2020" flag.
NPR
A federal judge has blocked a challenge to Indiana University's requirement that students get vaccinated against COVID-19 before returning to campus this fall. Indiana University is one of hundreds of colleges mandating COVID-19 vaccinations this year.
According to university policy, students and staff must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19, unless they qualify for a medical, religious or ethical exemption, or unless a student is attending a fully online program. Students who qualify for an exemption will need to take extra precautionary measures on campus by wearing masks, taking additional coronavirus tests and either heading home or quarantining in the case of an outbreak.