News article:

City Attorney Dennis Herrera’s attempt to curtail Monster Beverage Corp. from marketing its highly caffeinated energy drinks to minors is getting heated, with the company going to federal court to try to stop Herrera’s investigation.

 In a lawsuit filed Monday in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, Monster says Herrera’s effort would “impose undue burdens on interstate commerce” and violate constitutionally protected “commercial speech” and other rights.

 The lawsuit also contends that “(Herrera) appears to be motivated by publicity rather than science.”

 Herrera has been investigating the Corona (Riverside County)-based maker of Monster Energy drinks since October under the state’s unfair competition law, targeting its marketing claims that the amount of caffeine in its products is “completely safe” and that consumers “can never get too much of a good thing!”

 In March, Herrera joined a group of 18 doctors from medical centers across the country in calling for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to regulate caffeine levels in energy drinks, saying the beverages pose health risks, particularly for youths.

 Under current FDA standards, caffeine in sodas can register no higher than about 71 milligrams per 12-oz. serving. Energy drinks often have between 100 and 300 milligrams of caffeine per 8-oz. serving and are often sold in much larger quantities per can, according to the doctors’ letter.

 “The best available scientific evidence demonstrates a robust correlation between the caffeine levels in energy drinks and adverse health and safety consequences, particularly among children, adolescents, and young adults,” according to the doctors’ letter, which included signatories from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, UC Berkeley’s School of Public Health and UCSF’s pediatric and cardiology divisions

 Monster markets to children as young as 6 years old, according to Herrera’s office, which produced screen shots from the beverage company’s “Monster Army” website listing an 11-year-old as a “Monster Army Major” and a 6-year-old as a “Reserve.”

 The company, in its lawsuit, maintains that its product has less than half the caffeine of a Starbucks coffee.

 “Today, any child can walk into a Starbucks and buy an unlimited number of ‘Grande’ (16-oz.) brewed coffee drinks-each one with more than twice the caffeine (330mg) as one of (Monsters’) 16-oz. energy drinks-with no restrictions or limitations,” the company’s attorneys wrote.

 That is not the same thing, according to Herrera’s office.

 “Starbucks isn’t marketing sweet drinks that are highly caffeinated to young people,” Herrera spokesman Matt Dorsey said. “The scientific consensus is these products are not safe for children.”

 Herrera, in a statement, vowed to aggressively fight what he termed “an apparently pre‐emptive lawsuit.”

 “Monster Energy is claiming an unfettered right to continue marketing its products to children and youth, even in the face of overwhelming evidence that its products pose serious risks to young people’s health and safety,” said Herrera. “I intend to litigate this case aggressively to reform their irresponsible marketing and business practices, which I believe clearly violate California’s consumer protection laws.” ||||| Dow Jones Reprints: This copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only. To order presentation-ready copies for distribution to your colleagues, clients or customers, use the Order Reprints tool at the bottom of any article or visit www.djreprints.com |||||
What is a shorter version of the above article?

– San Francisco's city attorney wants Monster Beverage to cut down on both the caffeine in its energy drinks and the marketing of them, and the company is fighting back in federal court. Monster sued the office of Dennis Herrera this week, arguing that its drinks are no more harmful than a cup of Starbucks coffee and making the case that only the FDA can regulate the market, reports the Wall Street Journal. One thing in particular that irritates Herrera is that the company has a Monster Army website for kids that shows an 11-year-old "Monster Army Major" and a 6-year-old "Reserve," reports the San Francisco Chronicle. So, yes, the energy drinks have less caffeine than a cup at Starbucks, but the coffee chain "isn’t marketing sweet drinks that are highly caffeinated to young people,” says a Herrera spokesperson. The legal fight comes amid heightened scrutiny of energy drinks not only by the FDA but by New York state in particular.


Article:

The chairwoman of the Senate Intelligence Committee says there's no evidence of terrorism with the missing Malaysia Airlines flight, which disappeared more than three weeks ago en route to Beijing.

 "So far, there's been none," Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) told CNN's Candy Crowley Sunday on "State of the Union." "There's speculation, but there's nothing."

 With the three-week search so far turning up only minor clues as to what happened to the airliner, the senator was hesitant to speculate on its fate or difficulties with the search.

 (WATCH: Sunday shows in 90 seconds)

 "This is a very difficult mission," she said. "The fact that so many nations are participating ... it also indicates that there is no method of calculation that's functioning" very well.

 Asked if more sophisticated satellites could be used in the area, she said she was not sure.

 "I'm not going to go in to what we do have or what we don't have," she said when asked about American capabilities. "You have to understand that American intelligence doesn't gear itself to be ready for plane crashes."

 Read more about: Dianne Feinstein, Malaysia, Flight 370 ||||| March 30, 2014, 3:33 AM |Gov. Jay Inslee, D-Wash., vows to "exhaust every possible avenue" in the search for survivors of the mudslide in his state. ||||| Russia's ambassador to the United States says Russia won't leave Crimea because it's now Russian territory again.

 Sergey Kislyak pushed back at a question on ABC's "This Week: from host George Stephanopoulos, asking him about recent developments.

 "What kind of pullback from Crimea are you talking about? We are now in the territory of the Russian Federation," Kislyak said.

 (WATCH: Sunday shows in 90 seconds)

 The ambassador made his point several times.

 "Crimea is a part of Russian Federation," he said, before Stephanopoulos moved on to the possibility of a Russian excursion into Ukraine.

 "We have said so many times that we have no intent, no interest in crossing the border," he said. "We have our forces conducting exercises in the territory of Russian Federation."

 The ambassador also had a retort to President Barack Obama's remark last week that Russia is a "regional power acting out of weakness."

 "If you consider Russia a regional power, look at the region we are in, from Europe to Asia," he said, noting Russia's importance in the world.

 "We certainly are not going to overstretch anyway."

 Kislyak expressed some hope about a diplomatic breakthrough, but repeated an answer that has given the U.S. pause.

 "We understand what can be of help to Ukrainian people, because the biggest problem ... is between Ukrainian temporary government and the rest of the country," he said, noting the need for a constitutional revision.

 Read more about: Russia, Ukraine, Crimea |||||
What is a summary?

– With dozens of people still missing in Washington state's devastating mudslide, Gov. Jay Inslee tells CBS today that "we're hoping for a miracle, and we're working for a miracle. We're doing everything humanly possible if that opportunity exists." Rescuers are "performing Herculean tasks right now. They're working beyond the point of exhaustion, and we intend to exhaust every possible avenue to look for that miracle. But we do know that these are going to be dark days ahead." Asked if his state missed warning signs, Inslee acknowledged "geologic instability" and said "we are going to get to the bottom" of that question. Elsewhere on your Sunday dial, as per Politico: Dianne Feinstein on the Malaysia jet: "So far, there's been" no indication that terrorism was involved. "There's speculation, but there's nothing." Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak on Crimea: "Crimea is a part of Russian Federation. We have said so many times that we have no intent, no interest in crossing the border. We have our forces conducting exercises in the territory of Russian Federation." NJ state Senate Majority Leader Loretta Weinberg on Chris Christie: "If Governor Christie comes before our committee under oath and brings all these documents with him, I’d be more than satisfied."


These crawls are part of an effort to archive pages as they are created and archive the pages that they refer to. That way, as the pages that are referenced are changed or taken from the web, a link to the version that was live when the page was written will be preserved.Then the Internet Archive hopes that references to these archived pages will be put in place of a link that would be otherwise be broken, or a companion link to allow people to see what was originally intended by a page's authors.The goal is to fix all broken links on the web . Crawls of supported "No More 404" sites. ||||| Salma Hayek is mourning the death of her beloved dog.

 The 49-year-old actress took to Instagram on Friday to reveal the sad news that her dog, Mozart, was found fatally shot last week.

 PICS: Stars and Their Adorable Pets

 "I haven't posted for a week as I [have] been mourning the death of my dog, Mozart who I personally delivered out of his mother's womb," Hayek wrote on Instagram, along with a sweet snap.

 "He was found dead in my ranch last Friday with a shot close to his heart," she continued. "I am hoping that the Washington State authorities do justice to this wonderful dog whom in 9 years never bit or attacked anyone. He loved his territory and never strayed away…he was the most loving and loyal companion."

 Hayek ended the note, which was also written in Spanish, with this declaration: "He didn't deserve a slow and painful death."

 RELATED: Salma Hayek Cut Off a Lot of Hair for Her New Movie 'Drunk Parents'

 The actress, whose Instagram is filled with adoring pics with her animals, shared a photo of her cuddling with one of the canine co-star on the set of Drunk Parents earlier this month.

 "I love dogs so much that I can't resist cuddling with them – even when they've helped arrest me in the movie we're shooting!" Hayek captioned, with the hashtags "#love," "#dogs" and "#cuddle."

 Last July, Hayek was one of several A-listers outraged over the killing of Cecil the Lion. Watch the video below to hear what she had to say exclusively to ET. |||||

Write a summary.

– Actress Salma Hayek has delivered sad and surprising news to her fans on Instagram: Someone shot and killed her 9-year-old dog, Mozart. "He was found in my ranch last Friday with a shot close to his heart," she writes. It's not clear what happened, and Hayek says she hopes authorities in Washington state can track down the shooter. Mozart had never attacked or bit anyone, writes Hayek, who adds that she "personally delivered" Mozart from his mother's womb. ETOnline notes that Hayek regularly fills her Instagram account with loving shots of Mozart and her other animals.


Write an article based on this summary:

– Two people from Syria were arrested on terror charges Friday in Geneva and traces of explosives were found in their vehicle, AFP reports. The arrests come after Swiss authorities received a tip from US intelligence that indicated an ISIS cell was active in Geneva, according to the BBC. ABC News reports Geneva raised its terror threat level Thursday in response to the tip. According to AFP, the arrested men have been accused of the "manufacture, concealment, and transport of explosives and toxic gases" and of supporting "groups like Al-Qaeda, Islamic State, and similar organizations." The arrests were announced as part of a "terror probe" by Swiss authorities Saturday, AFP reports. Police have been deployed around Geneva as the city remains on alert. In addition to being the UN's European headquarters, many international organizations active in Syria—including the International Organization for Migration and UN High Commissioner for Refugees—are also based in Geneva, according to ABC. The BBC reports the same source who claims US intelligence found an active ISIS cell in Geneva also states two more were identified in Chicago and Toronto.

Geneva (AFP) - Swiss authorities on Saturday said two Syrians had been arrested in Geneva after traces of explosives were found in their car, as police continued to hunt for several suspected jihadists with links to the Islamic State group.

 Geneva prosecutor Olivier Jornot told a news conference that the two men had Syrian passports and only "recently arrived" in Switzerland. They spoke Arabic, he added.

 They were arrested after police were alerted about "their behaviour".

 He sidestepped questions on whether the pair were on visas allowing them to circulate freely through the visa-free Schengen zone.

 But Jornot said they were not among the four men being searched as suspected jihadists planning attacks following the Paris carnage on November 13 and whose photographs have been released by the police.

 Jornot said the two arrested men said they had recently bought the car they were travelling in and clarified that it only bore traces of explosives and not toxic gases.

 View gallery Geneva's attorney general Olivier Jornot speaks during a press conference on December 12, 2015 ( …

 He said they were arrested on the day they arrived in Switzerland.

 The federal prosecutor's office had said in a statement earlier Saturday that the two men were arrested on suspicion of the "manufacture, concealment and transport of explosives and toxic gases" and of violating Swiss law prohibiting "groups like Al-Qaeda, Islamic State and similar organisations".

 Jornot later clarified that "the vehicle was at one point used to transport explosives" but that it did not necessarily mean it was the two suspects who did so.

 The arrests come with the city on edge after Swiss authorities on Thursday opened a probe relating to a "terrorist threat in the Geneva region", prompting the region to raise its alert level to three on a five-point scale.

 Armed police were deployed at sensitive locations across Geneva, which borders France and is home to the United Nations' European headquarters.

 The Le Temps daily on Friday cited an unnamed source close to the case as saying the Swiss had received a tip-off from US intelligence about a jihadist cell in Geneva.

 Pictures of four individuals suspected of links to the Islamic State group, which claimed last month's Paris attacks, were published by media across the country.

 Authorities in Geneva had said that the search for possible extremists was being conducted "in the context of the investigation following the Paris attacks".

 But multiple sources, who requested anonymity, said there did not appear to be a direct link with the coordinated November 13 gun and suicide bombing attacks that left 130 dead in the French capital. ||||| Image copyright AFP Image caption With Geneva on high alert, the city's airport was evacuated after a suspect package was found

 Two people of Syrian origin have been arrested in Geneva on suspicion of making, concealing and transporting explosives, the Swiss attorney general says.

 The two are also suspected of violating a law prohibiting groups such as al-Qaeda and the so-called Islamic State (IS), the statement added.

 Geneva's prosecutor said traces of explosive had been found in their car.

 Geneva has been on high alert this week amid fears an IS cell was in the area.

 Swiss President Simonetta Sommaruga said on Friday that a "foreign authority" had provided the information about "a potential IS cell in the Geneva area" but there was no indication that "a concrete attack" was planned.

 Image copyright AP Image caption Checks have been increased on the French-Swiss border near Geneva

 Image copyright AP Image caption Security was tightened outside France's consulate in Geneva

 Geneva's Prosecutor Olivier Jornot told a news conference that the two Syrians had just arrived in the Swiss city and could not speak French when they were arrested on Friday.

 They "were stopped by Geneva police... because of the increased vigilance required from the police force," he said. "These people, because of their behaviour and nationality, were subject to more careful checks, and these checks revealed traces of explosives in the car they were using."

 He confirmed no evidence of toxic gas was found.

 An earlier statement from the prosecutor's office said criminal proceedings had been opened against them under Switzerland's law against the manufacture and transport of explosives and toxic gases.

 The tip-off about a terror cell in Geneva had originally come from the United States, Swiss media reported on Friday.

 Daily newspaper Le Temps, quoting a source close to the investigation, said US intelligence had identified three jihadist cells in Chicago, Toronto and Geneva.

 On Thursday, security was stepped up outside synagogues, the UN building and the French ambassador's home, as well as train stations, the airport and similar places.

 The number of police on Geneva's streets has been increased.

 UN spokesman Michele Zaccheo said there was "no specific threat to the UN in Geneva or its personnel".

 The border with France runs through the outskirts of Geneva.

 IS said it carried out the attacks in Paris on 13 November which killed 130 people.

 Two men linked to the attacks - Salah Abdeslam and Mohammed Abrini - are still on the run and investigations have been launched in several European countries. |||||


According to a Fairfax County Police Department spokesperson, the investigation into the slaying of a 17-year-old girl in Virginia is not being investigated as a hate crime at this time. "Based on the information that detectives have, there's no indication that this was a hate or bias crime," FCPD spokesperson Don Gotthardt tells Bustle of the investigation into the murder allegedly committed by a 22-year-old man. Gotthardt declined to identify the victim, but media reports have named the deceased teenage girl as Nabra Hassanen.

 Early Sunday morning, after she attended a Dulles-area mosque's midnight Ramadan prayers, Hassanen and her friends were confronted by a motorist as they walked back to the mosque from a nearby IHOP. The motorist confronted the group and all but one — Hassanen — ran back to the mosque. Remains believed to belong to the girl were later found in a nearby pond.

 After reports spread that the Hassanen's murder may be under investigation as a hate crime, the FCPD tweeted, "We are NOT investigating this murder as a hate crime"; however, Gotthardt says that if, as the investigation progresses, the murder does seem to have been motivated by bias, detectives will "exhaust all investigative leads." Under the Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2009, hate crimes are defined as "crimes in which the perpetrators acted based on a bias against the victim's race, color, religion, or national origin," as well as "those based on biases of actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, or gender," according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's website.

 According to the Southern Poverty Law Center's 2016 hate census, last year saw a dramatic increase in the number of anti-Muslim hate groups in the U.S: from 34 in 2015 to 101 in 2016. Overall, the SPLC report notes, the number of hate groups in the U.S. rose from 892 in 2015 to 917 in 2016. The Pew Center's analysis of the FBI's anti-Muslim hate crime statistics showed that in 2015, American Muslims faced the same level of bias-related violence as they did in the post-9/11 era.

 Members of the Fairfax County Muslim community said they were taken aback by the killing. "We are devastated and heartbroken as our community undergoes and processes this traumatic event," Rizwan Jaka, chairman of the All Dulles Area Muslim Society, the mosque where Hassenen attended prayers, said in a statement. "It is a time for us to come together to pray and care for our youth." ||||| Tweet with a location

 You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more ||||| (Update: Killing of a Muslim teenager in Virginia is being investigated as a road-rage incident, police say)

 The death of a Virginia teenager who police say was assaulted and then disappeared after leaving a mosque in the Sterling area isn't being investigated as a hate crime, authorities said Monday.

 On Sunday, police found the girl’s remains and a 22-year-old man has been charged with murder in connection with the case.

 The mosque, the All Dulles Area Muslim Society (ADAMS) in Sterling, and relatives identified the girl as 17-year-old Nabra Hassanen of Reston.

 Fairfax County police identified the man charged with murder in her death as Darwin Martinez Torres of Sterling. On Monday, they did not release any explanation as to why they weren’t investigating the murder as a hate crime.

 Relatives identified the slain teen as Nabra Hassanen, 17, right, of Reston, seen in a social media post with a filter. (All Dulles Area Muslim Society Center)

 According to accounts from police and a mosque official, a group of four or five teens were walking back from breakfast at IHOP early Sunday when they were confronted by a motorist. All but one of the teens ran to the mosque, where the group reported that the girl had been left behind, according to Deputy Aleksandra Kowalski, a spokeswoman for the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office.

 “Immediately thereafter, the ADAMS’ personnel notified both Loudoun County and Fairfax County authorities who immediately began an extensive search to locate the missing girl,” the mosque said in a statement.

 Loudoun and Fairfax police jointly conducted an hours-long search around Dranesville Road and Woodson Drive in Herndon, which is in Fairfax. Remains thought to be the girl’s were found about 3 p.m. Sunday in a pond in the 21500 block of Ridgetop Circle in Sterling. During the search, an officer spotted a motorist driving suspiciously in the area and arrested Torres, police said.

 Police said they collected several articles of evidence but declined to provide further details.

 The girl’s mother said detectives told her that Nabra was struck with a metal bat.

 “I can’t think of a worse instance to occur than the loss of a 17-year-old on Father’s Day, as the father of a 17-year-old myself,” Loudoun County Sheriff Michael L. Chapman said.

 Detectives think the remains are those of the girl, but the chief medical examiner’s office will confirm the identity and manner of death, Fairfax police spokeswoman Tawny Wright said.

 Darwin Martinez Torres, 22, of Sterling, has been charged in the teen’s death. (Fairfax County Police)

 Shoyeb Hassan, the co-chair of ADAMS, said that during the last 10 days of Ramadan, the mosque has extra prayers at midnight and 2 a.m., and members frequently go to McDonald’s or the 24-hour IHOP to eat before they start their fast at sunrise, as Nabra and her friends were doing.

 The killing rattled a Muslim community in the midst of celebrating Ramadan, a month of religious observance in which adherents fast from dawn to sunset for about a month. The period culminates in the feast-like celebration Eid al-Fitr, which is expected to fall next weekend.

 “We are devastated and heartbroken as our community undergoes and processes this traumatic event,” Rizwan Jaka, chairman of ADAMS, said in a statement. “It is a time for us to come together to pray and care for our youth.”

 ADAMS is Northern Virginia’s largest mosque and, with 11 chapters around the District and Northern Virginia, is among the nation’s most well-known congregations. According to ADAMS’s website, the Sterling location is 25,000 square feet and can accommodate more than 700 people. It includes a youth weekend school, a gymnasium and multipurpose hall, the site says.

 Arsalan Iftikhar, an international human rights lawyer and commentator, said that he and his wife were at the mosque for evening prayers, which ended about 12:30 a.m. Sunday. As they were pulling out of the parking lot, he said, he saw a group of teenagers congregating and talking loudly about going out to eat. The girls, he said, were wearing the abaya, a full-length dress many Muslim women wear.

 [Van strikes crowd near mosque in London; one person is arrested]

 Police said Monday they aren’t investigating the death as a hate crime, but the issue was on the minds of many Muslims on Sunday.

 Last month, two men on a Portland train were stabbed and killed after they intervened to protect two girls who were being harassed with anti-Muslim threats, according to authorities.

 Sunday night, a van struck a crowd of pedestrians, including worshipers leaving a pair of mosques in London. Witnesses said the pedestrians were struck as they departed late-night prayers.

 The ADAMS Center has a paid armed security guard at the Sterling site, according to Iftikhar. He said many mosques have increased security since six Muslim worshipers were killed at a mosque in Quebec earlier this year.

 [‘Brave and selfless’ Oregon stabbing victims hailed as heroes for standing up to racist rants

 Nabra’s slaying sent a chill through the community when news spread Sunday.

 “People are petrified, especially people who have young Muslim daughters,” Iftikhar said.

 Virginia officials condemned the killing Sunday night and expressed condolences to Nabra’s family.

 Rep. Barbara Comstock (R-Va.) said she visited ADAMS Sunday and met with leadership and law enforcement officials.

 “We are heartbroken and horrified by the news of the brutal murder of a beautiful 17-year old girl,” Comstock said in a statement.

 The congresswoman represents Virginia’s 10th District, where the mosque is located. “We know there is no greater pain for any parent and Chip and I extend our prayers to her family and loved ones at this difficult time and the entire ADAMS Center community,” she said. “We commend the Fairfax County Police Department and the Loudoun County Sheriff’s office for their diligent work in apprehending the perpetrator. This case should be investigated and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

 Virginia Lt. Gov. Ralph Northam (D) said he and his wife, Pam, were “deeply disturbed” by the assault and killing.

 “There is absolutely no place for this kind of violence in our Commonwealth,” Northam said in a statement. “Every Virginian should feel safe and welcome in our communities, and no parent should ever have to experience such a heartbreaking tragedy. As the police investigation continues, I urge all Virginians to keep Nabra’s friends and family in their hearts.”

 Virginia Attorney General Mark R. Herring (D) echoed Northam, urging Virginians to show compassion and kindness.

 “The ADAMS Center has always welcomed me and so many in Northern Virginia like family,” Herring said. “This unspeakable attack feels like an assault on our entire community. Words fail at a time like this, so we’ll all have to do the best we can to surround them with the love and support they’ve always shown each of us.”

 On a crowdfunding page to support Nabra’s family, donations surged Sunday night, jumping from $10,000 to nearly $18,000 in less than an hour. Shortly before 10 p.m., the fundraising page had met its $25,000 goal.

 In a neighborhood full of Muslim immigrant families, the Hassanens’ modest Reston apartment was the one overflowing with friends and laughter most days, friends said Sunday.

 “It’s a family where if you’re feeling down and you need to laugh, this is where you go,” said Samar Ali, 26, who grew up in the Hassanens’ apartment complex.

 On Sunday night, that apartment normally filled with laughter was crammed with more than 30 women in traditional Muslim garb, sobbing and comforting one another. At the center of the crowded, dimly lit living room was Nabra’s mother, Sawsan Gazzar.

 “Please pray for me, please pray for me,” Gazzar sobbed in Arabic. Her phone rang constantly. To her brother and sister in her native Egypt, she said, “Pray for me that I can handle this . . . I lost my daughter, my first reason for happiness.”

 The night before, Gazzar had cooked a feast for Nabra, the oldest of her four daughters, who wanted to host a big iftar break-the-fast dinner for all her friends from ADAMS and South Lakes High School, where she just finished 10th grade.

 The iftar was packed — Nabra was always popular and sociable. And when it ended, a friend’s mom drove some of the teens to ADAMS for the midnight prayers that mark the last 10 days of Ramadan. Family members said she frequented the mosque during Ramadan.

 And during the holy month, the mosque was filled with teens like her.

 Gazzar said she thought Nabra and her friends would eat at the mosque after the prayers, and she would have forbidden her from walking to IHOP in the middle of the night. But she also wasn’t surprised that the girl went out; she and other teens had done it safely last year.

 Other mothers in the apartment Sunday night echoed the same thought repeatedly — they and their children had always felt safe taking the sidewalk path to IHOP or McDonald’s for a fun meal on those final Ramadan nights.

 Gazzar loaned her daughter an abaya to wear to the mosque Saturday night, since Nabra didn’t typically wear traditional Muslim clothes. She heard from a detective that when the man in the car started shouting at the teens, Nabra tripped over the long garment and fell to the ground, just before she was struck.

 “I think it had to do with the way she was dressed and the fact that she’s Muslim,” Gazzar said. “Why would you kill a kid? What did my daughter do to deserve this?”

 Nabra was a diligent student, so much so that although she was extremely proud to get her first job ever at a McDonald’s, she quit when her manager didn’t understand that studying for a school exam took priority over a work shift. Family members were quick to note her interest in fashion and makeup, and her recently acquired nose ring.

 All four Hassanen girls were born in the United States — the younger ones are 11, 10 and 3. Ali described Nabra as a “daddy’s girl” who was close with her father, a bus-and-limo driver. Her father spent Sunday at the mosque, Ali said, beside himself with worry all day.

 Gazzar’s phone rang yet again, and this time she didn’t answer. She turned instead to the hundreds of photos stored on it, scrolling through them until she landed on one of Nabra visiting her parents’ homeland in Egypt, laughing as she embraced two of the teen’s little sisters.

 “They’d all be laughing. They used to be really happy.”

 She gazed into the girls’ eyes, and cried harder.

 Correction: An earlier version of this report incorrectly stated the number of Muslim girls who were being harassed in Portland. One of the two girls identifies as Muslim.The story has also been updated to clarify earlier information. ||||| See more of Mindy Kaling on Facebook ||||| FAIRFAX, VA (WUSA9) - Fairfax Police believe they found the body of a 17-year-old girl who they think went missing from The ADAMS Center Mosque early Sunday morning.

 The girl was walking from The ADAMS Center toward a shopping center to get food with a group of friends around 3 a.m., police said.

 That is when a man driving a red car got out of his car and confronted the teens. Her friends said the man assaulted her. Police said her friends ran back to the ADAMS Center and said the girl had been left behind.

 RELATED: Road rage suspected in Muslim Va. teen’s death

 Friends and the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors Chairwoman Phyllis Randal identified the girl as Nabra. She was a sophomore at South Lakes High School in Reston, Virginia, and would have been starting her junior year this fall, friends said.

 Our hearts are heavy with grief. I stand with the ADAMS Community. Loudoun, please hold her family close to our hearts. Loudoun, she was us. pic.twitter.com/29cT6xnD7b — Phyllis Randall (@PRandallcares) June 19, 2017

 Fairfax Police began searching at 4 a.m. Sunday. The body was found Sunday around 3 p.m. floating in a pond in the 21500 block of Ridgetop Circle in Sterling, Virginia.

 Police noticed a car driving suspiciously in the area and stopped it, arresting the driver, who was taken into custody and identified as 22-year-old Darwin Martinez Torres, of Sterling. He has been charged with murder.

 Chairwoman Randall said police found a bat near the scene.

 Police are not investigating her murder as a hate crime. They said the “tragic case appears to be the result of a road rage incident involving the suspect, who was driving and who is now charged with murder, and a group of teenagers who was walking and riding bikes in and along a roadway.”

 Authorities also said their investigation no way indicates the victim was targeted because of her race or religion.

 We are NOT investigating this murder as a hate crime. https://t.co/f6TegmdKMR pic.twitter.com/mlGzrQfiMk — Fairfax Co. Police (@fairfaxpolice) June 19, 2017

 The chief medical examiner will confirm the identity of the victim and determine the exact cause and manner of her death.

 A vigil is expected to be held Wednesday evening in the Reston area. More information about the exact time and location will be announced in the coming days.

 Muslim leaders across the country have been sharing this GoFundMe page that has raised more than $20,000 to help support the family.

 Heartbreaking. Mahmoud Hassanen, father of #NabraHassanen, 17, killed on her way to mosque. She was big sis to three younger siblings @wusa9 pic.twitter.com/vcbSg2GS8Z — Peggy Fox (@PeggyTV) June 19, 2017

 Nabra was a sophomore at South Lakes High School in Reston, Va., and would have been starting her junior year this fall, friends said. The slaying occurred during the holy month of Ramadan, when Muslims abstain from eating from dawn to sunset. Many mosques hold late night prayers, and people eat a pre-dawn meal called suhoor before they begin fasting.

 The ADAMS Center Mosque released the following statement:

 On Sunday, June 18th 2017, at approximately 4 a.m., according to Fairfax County Police, a dispute occurred between a group of teens who were walking along Dranesville Road in Sterling and a man driving a car. It appears the man got out of his car and assaulted one of them, a 17-year-old girl. Community members came across the group and directed them to ADAMS Center. Immediately thereafter, the ADAMS’ personnel notified both Loudon County and Fairfax County authorities who immediately began an extensive search to locate the missing girl. The search continued until around 3 p.m. when the body of a female were found in a pond in Sterling. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner will conduct an autopsy to confirm the identity of the body and determine the exact cause and manner of death. The joint county investigation has led to an individual being taken into custody as a suspect. Charges are pending further investigation. We thank both Fairfax County Police and Loudoun County Sheriff’s departments for their diligent efforts in investigating and apprehending a suspect. We call on law enforcement to investigate and determine the motive of this crime and prosecute to the full extent of the law. We are devastated and heartbroken as our community undergoes and processes this traumatic event. It is a time for us to come together to pray and care for our youth. ADAMS has licensed counselors on site to assist anyone in need of counseling during these difficult times. We would also like to thank our community, government officials and interfaith partners for their prayers and support during these tough times. For further questions, we ask that you please contact the Fairfax County Police Media Relations Bureau, 703-246-2253. Due to the nature of the ongoing investigation we have been advised not to discuss this matter further.

 © 2018 WUSA-TV |||||

Write a summary.

– The death of a Muslim teenager in Virginia whose body was found in a pond some 12 hours after she and a group of friends got into an altercation with a driver while walking back to a mosque from an IHOP is "NOT" being investigated as a hate crime, per a tweet from Fairfax County police on Monday. No elaboration was given. But that hasn't kept a religious bent out of discussion of and reactions to Nabra Hassanen's killing. As the Washington Post puts it, "the issue was on the minds of many Muslims on Sunday." The latest: A police press release on the arrest of Darwin Martinez Torres, 22, says that as Nabra and her friends were walking "they got into a dispute with a man in a car." Torres allegedly exited his car and assaulted Nabra. "Her friends could not find her and police were called to help." The Washington Post talks to Nabra's mother, who says a detective said her daughter was beaten with a metal bat. "I lost my daughter, my first reason for happiness,” she said Sunday night. WUSA9 reports police did recover a bat. "What investigators told the father and the mother, he hit her in the head and put her in the car and he threw her in the water," the Richmond Times-Dispatch quotes a rep for the family as saying. It reports Martinez Torres directed officers to the pond, which it says is near the apartment he lives in. The Post fills in some details on the girls' movements, reporting that during the final 10 days of the holy month of Ramadan, the All Dulles Area Muslim Society (ADAMS) in Sterling, Va., holds extra prayers at midnight and 2am. The mosque is one of the largest in the US, and ADAMS' co-chair says it is commonplace for members to have a meal at McDonald’s or IHOP in advance of the day's fast, which runs from sunrise to sunset. Nabra, a rising high school junior, was not particularly religious and did not usually wear Muslim dress, according to her mother, who lent Nabra an abaya to wear to the mosque Saturday night. She tells the Post a detective told her that during the fateful encounter, Nabra tripped over the long garment and fell. Bustle reports that while this may not be a hate crime, the number of anti-Muslim hate groups did spike in 2016 to 101, about triple the number the Southern Poverty Law Center recorded in 2015. Mindy Kaling was one of the celebrities to post about Nabra (in this case, before police specified it was not a hate crime investigation), writing on Facebook, "Nabra Hassanen, I won't forget you and what happened to you. Another innocent Muslim person targeted for their faith. Please read about her if you can." A crowdfunding campaign for Nabra's family has raised more than $178,000 as of this writing.


– The number of pregnant women in the US and its territories with the Zika virus has nearly tripled, according to a report from the CDC released Friday. USA Today reports 157 pregnant women in the continental US and another 122 in US territories tested positive for the virus, which can cause miscarriages and birth defects. It's unclear how much of the reported increase is due to the spread of Zika and how much is due to the CDC now counting women who tested positive but don't show symptoms, according to CNN. So far, none of the women were infected by mosquitoes in the US. Most got it while traveling to other countries, while a handful contracted Zika through sex. President Obama is meeting with health officials Friday to discuss a response to the virus.

Expand this summary.

CLOSE The CDC reports hundreds of women in the United States and its territories have shown signs of infection from the Zika virus. This is what health officials want you to know so that you can defend yourself and your unborn baby. Florida Today

 President Obama delivers remarks beside Vice President Biden after receiving a briefing on the response to the Zika virus in the Oval Office Friday. (Photo: MICHAEL REYNOLDS, EPA)

 WASHINGTON — President Obama told Congress not to leave town before passing a Zika funding bill amid new reports that 279 pregnant women from the United States and its territories have shown signs of infection from the Zika virus.

 "Here's the upshot: This is something that is solvable. This is not something we need to panic about. But this is something we have to take seriously," Obama said. "Congress needs to get me a bill. They should not be going off on recess before this is done."

 Obama spoke after meeting with his top public safety advisers in the Oval Office Friday. He said scientists are still learning about the scope and effects of the virus, which can cause severe birth defects and miscarriages in pregnant women.

 The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday that 157 pregnant women in the continental United States — and 122 in its territories — have tested positive for the virus,

 Less than a half-dozen of those women have reported adverse outcomes, but most are still pregnant and it's not yet known whether those numbers will increase over time, said Dr. Margaret Honein, chief of the CDC's Birth Defects Branch.

 The new numbers are as of May 12 and, for the first time, count women who have tested positive for Zika even if they haven't shown symptoms, so they're not comparable to previously reported numbers. Previously, just 47 pregnant women in the continental United States, and 65 in the territories, were reported to have Zika symptoms.

 "I think it’s a combination of both — both increasing numbers of pregnant women with a Zika infection, and also a recent change in how we’re reporting out the numbers on a weekly basis," Honein said.

 In all, 544 cases of Zika have been reported in the continental United States. But because pregnant women are most closely monitored for the disease, that might be the best indicator of how quickly the disease is spreading. As of Wednesday, none of the cases in the mainland were caused by local mosquitoes, and instead involved people who had recently traveled to Zika-prone areas. There are also 10 confirmed cases of sexual transmission, but the CDC would not say how many of them involved pregnant women.

 Even more concerning, Obama said, in Puerto Rico, where the virus is quickly spreading through mosquitoes.

 "This is not something we can build a wall to prevent. Mosquitoes don't go through customs," Obama said.

 Obama met with Vice President Biden, Secretary of Health and Human Services Sylvia Burwell, Director of National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Anthony Fauci and Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Tom Frieden.

 The meeting comes as Congress debates how much emergency funding to approve for Zika response before going on recess after Memorial Day, when the summer season heats up and mosquitoes become more active. The Senate has approved $1.1 billion; the House has approved $622 million. The White House has threatened to veto the House bill if it's sent to the president's desk. Obama said Friday the problem with the House bill is that it "robs Peter to pay Paul."

 The White House has asked for $1.9 billion.

 "We didn't just choose $1.9 billion from the top of our heads. This was based on a public health assessment of all the work that needs to be done," Obama said.

 That work includes vaccine development — "You don't get a vaccine overnight," Obama said — and mosquito eradication. "That's a tough piece of business, because we've been using insecticides for a long time that have become less and less effective," he said.

 And Obama said that cost is modest in comparison to the human and financial toll of caring for the babies born with smaller heads because of microcephaly, a birth defect linked to Zika.

 "If I'm a young family right now, or thinking about starting a family, this is a piece of insurance I'd want to have," he said.

 Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1TrMGjq ||||| Story highlights There are 279 pregnant women with Zika virus infections in the U.S. and its territories

 The CDC's tracking of pregnant women with Zika includes those who don't have symptoms

 (CNN) The number of pregnant women in the United States reported to have the Zika virus has more than tripled, increasing from 48 to 157, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday.

 Dr. Margaret Honein, chief of the CDC's birth defects branch, said the agency is aware of "less than a dozen" babies or fetuses who have suffered the consequences of Zika infection, which can include devastating neurological birth defects. However, she emphasized that most of the 157 pregnancies are ongoing, so it's not known how many babies will suffer.

 "The CDC's top priority in the Zika response is protecting pregnant women and their fetuses," Honein said.

 Not a single person is known to have contracted Zika from a mosquito bite in the U.S. They've gotten it while traveling to a country where Zika is endemic, or they've contracted it sexually from a male partner who's traveled to one of those areas.

 Just this week, the CDC's website reported that there 48 pregnant women with Zika in the U.S.

 Read More ||||| This report launches the weekly reporting of pregnant women with laboratory evidence of possible Zika virus infection in U.S. states and territories. Monitoring all pregnant women with possible Zika virus infection during pregnancy, whether asymptomatic or symptomatic, will enhance understanding of possible adverse outcomes and allow better estimates of the number of pregnancies at risk for adverse outcomes. This information will assist health care providers who counsel pregnant women and will facilitate planning services for affected families.

 In February 2016, CDC, in collaboration with state, local, tribal, and territorial health departments, launched comprehensive surveillance systems to report and actively monitor pregnancies and congenital outcomes among symptomatic and asymptomatic women with laboratory evidence of possible Zika virus infection. As of May 12, 2016, there were 157 and 122 pregnant women with laboratory evidence of possible Zika virus infection residing in U.S. states and U.S. territories, respectively.

 Zika virus is a cause of microcephaly and brain abnormalities (1), and it is the first known mosquito-borne infection to cause congenital anomalies in humans. The establishment of a comprehensive surveillance system to monitor pregnant women with Zika virus infection will provide data to further elucidate the full range of potential outcomes for fetuses and infants of mothers with asymptomatic and symptomatic Zika virus infection during pregnancy. In February 2016, Zika virus disease and congenital Zika virus infections became nationally notifiable conditions in the United States (2). Cases in pregnant women with laboratory evidence of Zika virus infection who have either 1) symptomatic infection or 2) asymptomatic infection with diagnosed complications of pregnancy can be reported as cases of Zika virus disease to ArboNET* (2), CDC’s national arboviral diseases surveillance system. Under existing interim guidelines from the Council for State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE), asymptomatic Zika virus infections in pregnant women who do not have known pregnancy complications are not reportable. ArboNET does not currently include pregnancy surveillance information (e.g., gestational age or pregnancy exposures) or pregnancy outcomes. To understand the full impact of infection on the fetus and neonate, other systems are needed for reporting and active monitoring of pregnant women with laboratory evidence of possible Zika virus infection during pregnancy. Thus, in collaboration with state, local, tribal, and territorial health departments, CDC established two surveillance systems to monitor pregnancies and congenital outcomes among women with laboratory evidence of Zika virus infection† in the United States and territories: 1) the U.S. Zika Pregnancy Registry (USZPR),§ which monitors pregnant women residing in U.S. states and all U.S. territories except Puerto Rico, and 2) the Zika Active Pregnancy Surveillance System (ZAPSS), which monitors pregnant women residing in Puerto Rico. As of May 12, 2016, the surveillance systems were monitoring 157 and 122 pregnant women with laboratory evidence of possible Zika virus infection from participating U.S. states and territories, respectively. Tracking and monitoring clinical presentation of Zika virus infection, all prenatal testing, and adverse consequences of Zika virus infection during pregnancy are critical to better characterize the risk for congenital infection, the performance of prenatal diagnostic testing, and the spectrum of adverse congenital outcomes. These data will improve clinical guidance, inform counseling messages for pregnant women, and facilitate planning for clinical and public health services for affected families.

 Zika virus disease and congenital Zika virus infection are defined by the interim CSTE case definition and include confirmed and probable cases with laboratory evidence of infection (2). The clinical criteria for Zika virus disease include the presence of one of four symptoms (fever, rash, arthralgia, and conjunctivitis), or Guillain-Barré syndrome, or an adverse pregnancy outcome (fetal loss, or in utero findings of microcephaly or intracranial calcifications) in a symptomatic or asymptomatic mother with compatible illness or epidemiologic risk factors for Zika virus infection. Clinical criteria for Zika virus congenital infection in infants include microcephaly, intracranial calcifications, or other central nervous system abnormalities (2). Jurisdictions report cases meeting these criteria to ArboNET. Although jurisdictions can report asymptomatic infection in pregnant women without pregnancy complications to ArboNET, this reporting is at the discretion of the local jurisdiction and is not universal. Current ArboNET reporting includes cases of Zika virus disease that meet the interim CSTE case definition.

 For the purposes of the USZPR and ZAPSS, laboratory evidence of possible Zika virus infection is defined as a positive Zika virus real-time reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction (rRT-PCR) test result (i.e., a confirmed case of Zika virus infection) or an equivocal or presumptive positive Zika virus immunoglobulin M (IgM) antibody capture enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) test result (3–5).¶ Plaque reduction neutralization testing (PRNT) performed in conjunction with the IgM ELISA must have Zika PRNT titers ≥10 for inclusion. Pregnant women who meet laboratory criteria are included in the surveillance systems whether they report symptoms or not. Women are included retrospectively if laboratory evidence of congenital Zika virus infection is identified in fetal tissues, the placenta, or the infant.

 The USZPR was initiated primarily to monitor outcomes in pregnant women returning from travel to areas with local Zika virus transmission (6). To date the majority of cases in pregnant women reported to USZPR are associated with travel, but it also includes cases of sexual transmission (7) and local transmission from the U.S. territories. ZAPSS was developed separately for Puerto Rico to conduct enhanced surveillance in pregnant women at risk for Zika virus infection as a result of ongoing local Zika virus transmission. Using USZPR and ZAPSS, CDC will report the number of pregnant women with laboratory evidence of possible Zika virus infection weekly on its website. Data reported by noon Eastern Standard Time each Thursday (for this report, May 12, 2016) will be verified and reported in aggregate the following Thursday. Reporting is subject to a lag of 1 week to verify data from each participating jurisdiction. Reports from Arizona and Idaho have not yet been verified and are excluded from the current report.

 As of May 12, 2016, combined data from USZPR and ZAPSS include 279 reports of pregnant women with laboratory evidence of possible Zika virus infection, including 157 pregnant women residing in U.S. states and the District of Columbia (Figure 1) and 122 residing in U.S. territories (Figure 2). As of May 11, 2016, 113 pregnant women meeting clinical criteria for Zika virus disease were reported to CDC through ArboNET, 48 in U.S. states, and 65 in U.S. territories.

 Among the 157 pregnant women from U.S. states and the District of Columbia monitored through USZPR, 73 (49%)** reported clinical symptoms consistent with Zika virus disease. Among these symptomatic pregnant women, 64 (88%) reported rash, 36 (49%) arthralgia, 37 (51%) fever, and 17 (23%) conjunctivitis. Among all pregnancies included from U.S. states, Zika virus nucleic acid detection by rRT-PCR was reported in 39 (25%).

 Among 122 pregnant residents of the U.S. territories†† being monitored in USZPR or ZAPSS, 80 (66%)§§ reported clinical symptoms consistent with Zika virus disease. Among these symptomatic women, 60 (75%) reported rash, 29 (36%) arthralgia, 27 (34%) fever, and 15 (19%) conjunctivitis. Among all women included from U.S. territories, Zika virus nucleic acid detection by rRT-PCR in serum was identified in 67 (55%). |||||


Al Qaeda sees him as an American operative, but ordinary Pakistanis saw his helping hand.

 A Pakistani police officer stands guard at the house of kidnapped American development expert Warren Weinstein in Lahore, Pakistan, in August.

 Al Qaeda chief Ayman al- Zawahiri announced in a recording that the terror outfit is holding hostage an American development worker abducted in August.

 Unidentified gunmen nabbed Warren Weinstein from his home in Lahore, Pakistan, just days before he planned to move back to the US. The case quickly went cold, with an unusually long period of silence until Mr. Zawahiri’s message. During that time, Mr. Weinstein may have been passed up a chain of criminal and terrorist outfits before winding up with Al Qaeda.

 Weinstein headed up the Pakistan office for consulting firm J.E. Austin Associates, Inc. The company was working on US Agency for International Development (USAID) projects – part of the major investment American taxpayers have made in Pakistan.

 "Just as the Americans detain all whom they suspect of links to al Qaeda and the Taliban, even remotely, we detained this man who is neck-deep in American aid to Pakistan since the seventies," Zawahiri said, according to a translation from the monitoring group SITE.

 In August, the Monitor spoke with several Pakistanis who had worked with Weinstein, a man in his 70s, to enhance Pakistan’s dairy and gem trades.

 “I am really shocked to hear” of his kidnapping, said Ehtesham Ullah Khan, a gemologist who knew Weinstein. “He was a very nice person and, to me, he made many friends as compared to no enemies.”

 Mr. Khan explained how Weinstein helped him set up scholarships for Pakistanis living in tribal areas to study the gem trade. Twenty students received US scholarships and now have jobs or have started their own businesses, he said.

 Weinstein's work also included importing dairy chillers to boost the productivity of Pakistan’s milk industry. His company boasted that the dairy development work resulting in $63 million in new investment to Pakistan, at least 2,150 new jobs, and a 25 percent boost in producer productivity.

 “He helped the university in the establishment of dairy facilities, negotiating with colleagues in the Netherlands,” said Dr. Muhammad Abdullah, chair of livestock at the University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences in Lahore. “We had quite a professional interaction with him.” ||||| Al-Qaida claimed responsibility Thursday for the kidnapping of a 70-year-old American aid worker in Pakistan in August, and issued a series of demands for his release.

 In a video message posted on militant websites, al-Qaida leader Ayman al-Zawahri said Warren Weinstein would be released if the United States stopped airstrikes in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen. He also demanded the release of all al-Qaida and Taliban suspects around the world.

 "Just as the Americans detain all whom they suspect of links to al-Qaida and the Taliban, even remotely, we detained this man who is neck-deep in American aid to Pakistan since the 1970s," al-Zawahri said, according to a translation provided by the SITE Intelligence Group, which monitors militant messages.

 Weinstein was abducted by armed men from his house in the eastern city of Lahore on Aug. 13. Police and U.S. officials have not publicly said who they believed was holding him, but Islamist militant groups were the main suspects.

 Weinstein, who has a home in Rockville, Maryland, worked in Pakistan for several years and spoke Urdu.

 He was the country director in Pakistan for J.E. Austin Associates, a U.S.-based firm that advises a range of Pakistani business and government sectors. The company has said Weinstein is in poor health and provided a detailed list of medications, many of them for heart problems, that it implored the kidnappers to give him. |||||
What is a one-paragraph summary of the above article?

– More than three months after gunmen kidnapped a 70-year-old American development worker in Pakistan, some news has finally emerged: al-Qaeda says it has Warren Weinstein, reports the Christian Science Monitor. Weinstein, who has a home in Rockville, Maryland, was captured at his residence in Lahore. In a new video, al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri says he won't be released until the US stops airstrikes in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia, and Yemen, and releases terror suspects, notes AP. "Just as the Americans detain all whom they suspect of links to al-Qaeda and the Taliban, even remotely, we detained this man who is neck-deep in American aid to Pakistan since the 1970s," says al-Zawahri in the video. Weinstein ran the Pakistani office of the consulting firm JE Austin Associates, which worked on USAID projects, notes the Monitor.


Summarize this article:

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Obama statement

 Russian President Vladimir Putin has challenged the US to present to the UN evidence that Syria attacked rebels with chemical weapons near Damascus.

 Mr Putin said it would be "utter nonsense" for Syria's government to provoke opponents with such attacks.

 US President Barack Obama says he is considering military action against Syria after intelligence reports that 1,429 people were killed on 21 August.

 UN weapons inspectors have now left Syria and arrived in the Netherlands.

 They are taking the evidence they gathered during four days of site visits to the Organisation for the Prevention of Chemical Weapons, in The Hague.

 Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption The BBC's security correspondent Frank Gardner examines what we know about the Syria attack on 21 August

 The samples are thought to include soil, swabs from munitions, blood and hair from the victims and, experts say, possibly even flesh from dead bodies.

 The UN has said its inspectors had been able to carry out a "wide range of fact-finding activities". However, their mandate is limited to determining the use of chemical weapons and not who used them.

 UN spokesman Martin Nesirky refused to set a timeframe for the results of lab tests and the inspectors' full report.

 He described as "grotesque" the suggestion that the departure of inspectors from Syria "somehow opens the window for military action".

 The UN's humanitarian work in Syria would continue, he said.

 Obama statement

 The US says hundreds of children were among those killed in the suspected chemical weapons attacks, which it blames on the Syrian government.

 Syria says the US claim is "full of lies" and says rebels carried out the attacks.

 Mr Obama is to make a statement on Syria at 17:15 GMT but will not announce any imminent military action, the White House says.

 Senior officials are holding conference calls on Saturday about Syria with both Republican and Democratic senators.

 Mr Obama said on Friday the US was planning a "limited, narrow" military response that would not involve "boots on the ground".

 'Trump card'

 The inspectors' departure from Syria removes both a practical and a political obstacle to the launch of US-led military action, correspondents say.

 At the scene There are those in Syria who will cheer on the US action and those who will be quite worried by it, but I think everyone is making some preparation. People are trying to buy what they can, stockpile things, get water, bread, food that lasts, because they don't know what's going to happen. They don't know what President Obama means by a limited attack and what consequences that may have for their lives and the degree to which it would stay limited. Damascus holds its breath

 The BBC's Jeremy Bowen in Damascus says people are worried and are making preparations.

 They do not know what Mr Obama meant by a limited attack and what consequences it will have, he adds.

 Speaking to journalists in the Russian far-eastern city of Vladivostok, Mr Putin urged Mr Obama - as a Nobel Peace Prize laureate - to think about future victims in Syria before using force.

 He said it was ridiculous to suggest the Syrian government was to blame for the attack, calling it a "provocation by those who want to drag other countries into the Syrian conflict".

 "Syrian government troops are on the offensive and have surrounded the opposition in several regions," he said.

 "In these conditions, to give a trump card to those who are calling for a military intervention is utter nonsense."

 Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Russia's Vladimir Putin challenges US on Syria claims

 He said that the US failure to present evidence to the international community was "simply disrespectful".

 "If there is evidence it should be shown. If it is not shown, then there isn't any," he said.

 The main findings of the unclassified US evidence state that:

 the attack killed 1,429 people, including 426 children

 Syrian military chemical weapons personnel were operating in the area in the three days before the attack

 Satellite evidence shows rockets launched from government-held areas 90 minutes before the first report of chemical attack

 100 videos attributed to the attack show symptoms consistent with exposure to a nerve agent

 Communications were intercepted involving a senior Damascus official who "confirmed chemical weapons were used" and was concerned about UN inspectors obtaining evidence

 'Completely unexpected'

 Russia - a key ally of Syria - has previously warned that "any unilateral military action bypassing the UN Security Council" would be a "direct violation of international law".

 Moscow, along with China, has vetoed two previous draft resolutions on Syria.

 Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Barack Obama: "We're not considering any boots on the ground approach"

 Mr Putin also expressed surprise at a vote in the British parliament on Thursday ruling out participation in military action.

 "I will be honest: this was completely unexpected for me," he said.

 "This shows that in Great Britain, even if it is the USA's main geopolitical ally in the world... there are people who are guided by national interests and common sense, and value their sovereignty."

 Meanwhile in France - seen as the main US ally since the UK vote - an opinion poll suggested that 64% opposed the use of force.

 Neither France nor the US needs parliamentary approval for military action.

 Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has said his country will defend itself against any Western "aggression".

 Forces which could be used against Syria:

 •Four US destroyers - USS Gravely, USS Ramage, USS Barry and USS Mahan - are in the eastern Mediterranean, equipped with cruise missiles. The missiles can also be fired from submarines, but the US Navy does not reveal their locations

 •Airbases at Incirlik and Izmir in Turkey, and in Jordan, could be used to carry out strikes

 •Two aircraft carriers - USS Nimitz and USS Harry S Truman are in the wider region

 •French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle is currently in Toulon in the western Mediterranean

 •French Rafale and Mirage aircraft can also operate from Al-Dhahra airbase in the UAE ||||| Story highlights Syrian official: Obama climbed to the top of the tree, "doesn't know how to get down"

 Obama sends a letter to the heads of the House and Senate

 Obama to seek congressional approval on military action against Syria

 Aim is to determine whether CW were used, not by whom, says U.N. spokesman

 It's official: U.S. President Barack Obama wants lawmakers to weigh in on whether to use military force in Syria.

 Obama sent a letter to the heads of the House and Senate on Saturday night, hours after announcing that he believes military action against Syrian targets is the right step to take over the alleged use of chemical weapons.

 The proposed legislation from Obama asks Congress to approve the use of military force "to deter, disrupt, prevent and degrade the potential for future uses of chemical weapons or other weapons of mass destruction."

 It's a step that is set to turn an international crisis into a fierce domestic political battle

 There are key questions looming over the debate: What did U.N. weapons inspectors find in Syria? What happens if Congress votes no? And how will the Syrian government react?

 In a televised address from the White House Rose Garden earlier Saturday, the president said he would take his case to Congress, not because he has to -- but because he wants to.

 "While I believe I have the authority to carry out this military action without specific congressional authorization, I know that the country will be stronger if we take this course, and our actions will be even more effective," he said. "We should have this debate, because the issues are too big for business as usual."

 Obama said top congressional leaders had agreed to schedule a debate when the body returns to Washington on September 9. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee will hold a hearing over the matter on Tuesday, Sen. Robert Menendez said.

 U.N. inspectors leave Syria

 Obama's remarks came shortly after U.N. inspectors left Syria, carrying evidence that will determine whether chemical weapons were used in an attack early last week in a Damascus suburb.

 "The aim of the game here, the mandate, is very clear -- and that is to ascertain whether chemical weapons were used -- and not by whom," U.N. spokesman Martin Nesirky told reporters on Saturday.

 But who used the weapons in the reported toxic gas attack in a Damascus suburb on August 21 has been a key point of global debate over the Syrian crisis.

 Top U.S. officials have said there's no doubt that the Syrian government was behind it, while Syrian officials have denied responsibility and blamed jihadists fighting with the rebels.

 British and U.S. intelligence reports say the attack involved chemical weapons, but U.N. officials have stressed the importance of waiting for an official report from inspectors.

 The inspectors will share their findings with U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon Ban, who has said he wants to wait until the U.N. team's final report is completed before presenting it to the U.N. Security Council.

 The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, which nine of the inspectors belong to, said Saturday that it could take up to three weeks to analyze the evidence they collected.

 "It needs time to be able to analyze the information and the samples," Nesirky said.

 He noted that Ban has repeatedly said there is no alternative to a political solution to the crisis in Syria, and that "a military solution is not an option."

 Obama: 'This menace must be confronted'

 Obama's senior advisers have debated the next steps to take, and the president's comments Saturday came amid mounting political pressure over the situation in Syria. Some U.S. lawmakers have called for immediate action while others warn of stepping into what could become a quagmire.

 Some global leaders have expressed support, but the British Parliament's vote against military action earlier this week was a blow to Obama's hopes of getting strong backing from key NATO allies.

 On Saturday, Obama proposed what he said would be a limited military action against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Any military attack would not be open-ended or include U.S. ground forces, he said.

 Syria's alleged use of chemical weapons earlier this month "is an assault on human dignity," the president said.

 A failure to respond with force, Obama argued, "could lead to escalating use of chemical weapons or their proliferation to terrorist groups who would do our people harm. In a world with many dangers, this menace must be confronted."

 Obama decision came Friday night

 What will happen if they vote no?

 It's unclear. A senior administration official told CNN that Obama has the authority to act without Congress -- even if Congress rejects his request for authorization to use force.

 Obama on Saturday continued to shore up support for a strike on the al-Assad government.

 He spoke by phone with French President Francois Hollande before his Rose Garden speech.

 "The two leaders agreed that the international community must deliver a resolute message to the Assad regime -- and others who would consider using chemical weapons -- that these crimes are unacceptable and those who violate this international norm will be held accountable by the world," the White House said.

 Meanwhile, as uncertainty loomed over how Congress would weigh in, U.S. military officials said they remained at the ready.

 Reactions mixed to Obama's speech

 A spokesman for the Syrian National Coalition said that the opposition group was disappointed by Obama's announcement.

 "Our fear now is that the lack of action could embolden the regime and they repeat his attacks in a more serious way," said spokesman Louay Safi. "So we are quite concerned."

 Some members of Congress applauded Obama's decision.

 House Speaker John Boehner, Majority Leader Eric Cantor, Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy and Conference Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers issued a statement Saturday praising the president.

 "Under the Constitution, the responsibility to declare war lies with Congress," the Republican lawmakers said. "We are glad the president is seeking authorization for any military action in Syria in response to serious, substantive questions being raised."

 More than 160 legislators, including 63 of Obama's fellow Democrats, had signed letters calling for either a vote or at least a "full debate" before any U.S. action.

 British Prime Minister David Cameron, whose own attempt to get lawmakers in his country to support military action in Syria failed earlier this week, responded to Obama's speech in a Twitter post Saturday.

 "I understand and support Barack Obama's position on Syria," Cameron said.

 An influential lawmaker in Russia -- which has stood by Syria and criticized the United States -- had his own theory.

 "The main reason Obama is turning to the Congress: the military operation did not get enough support either in the world, among allies of the US or in the United States itself," Alexei Pushkov, chairman of the international-affairs committee of the Russian State Duma, said in a Twitter post.

 In the United States, scattered groups of anti-war protesters around the country took to the streets Saturday.

 "Like many other Americans...we're just tired of the United States getting involved and invading and bombing other countries," said Robin Rosecrans, who was among hundreds at a Los Angeles demonstration.

 Syria's government unfazed

 After Obama's speech, a military and political analyst on Syrian state TV said Obama is "embarrassed" that Russia opposes military action against Syria, is "crying for help" for someone to come to his rescue and is facing two defeats -- on the political and military levels.

 Syria's prime minister appeared unfazed by the saber-rattling.

 "The Syrian Army's status is on maximum readiness and fingers are on the trigger to confront all challenges," Wael Nader al-Halqi said during a meeting with a delegation of Syrian expatriates from Italy, according to a banner on Syria State TV that was broadcast prior to Obama's address.

 An anchor on Syrian state television said Obama "appeared to be preparing for an aggression on Syria based on repeated lies."

 A top Syrian diplomat told the state television network that Obama was facing pressure to take military action from Israel, Turkey, some Arabs and right-wing extremists in the United States.

 "I think he has done well by doing what Cameron did in terms of taking the issue to Parliament," said Bashar Jaafari, Syria's ambassador to the United Nations.

 Both Obama and Cameron, he said, "climbed to the top of the tree and don't know how to get down."

 The Syrian government has denied that it used chemical weapons in the August 21 attack, saying that jihadists fighting with the rebels used them in an effort to turn global sentiments against it.

 British intelligence had put the number of people killed in the attack at more than 350.

 On Saturday, Obama said "all told, well over 1,000 people were murdered." U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Friday cited a death toll of 1,429, more than 400 of them children. No explanation was offered for the discrepancy. |||||

– John Kerry says he has "high confidence" in US intelligence reports that Syria used chemical weapons. Vladimir Putin has two much different words on the subject: "utter nonsense." The Russian leader used the phrase in urging the US to hold off on any military action until the UN has completed its investigation, reports the BBC. The clock is ticking on that: UN inspectors left Syria today and will brief Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, but their full report to the Security Council might take a week or so to complete, reports CNN. Kerry and Obama have suggested that the US won't wait that long, in part because the UN inspectors are charged only with determining whether chemical weapons were used, not who employed them. The US says it already is sure that Bashar al-Assad is the culprit. Putin, though, told reporters that it would have been foolish for Assad to order the Aug. 21 attack because his troops have the upper hand in the war. "In these conditions, to give a trump card to those who are calling for a military intervention is utter nonsense."


News article:

Lejeune Marine dies skydiving in Australia with his wife

 A 33-year-old Camp Lejeune Marine died Saturday afternoon while skydiving with his wife in Australia — a trip she won in a competition on The Ellen DeGeneres Show in January.

 He crashed into the ground after a flawless descent that ended with unexplained complications that remain under investigation.

 Brandon McGraw, 33, of Hampstead died in Euroa, Australia — which is in Melbourne, Victoria — while skydiving with his wife, Cherilyn McGraw, a special education teacher at Topsail Elementary School.

 McGraw recently had returned from Afghanistan, and while his rank was not known at press time, photos on his Facebook page depict a man fond of extreme sports who was skilled at climbing and skydiving.

 The couple was jumping with members of Euroa Skydive, an Australian skydiving school.

 Ian Matthews, who works at Euroa Skydive, told The Daily News that Brandon was an experienced skydiver with more than “a few jumps under his belt.”

 “McGraw watched his wife do a tandem jump before exiting the plane,” Matthews said. “He floated for three or four minutes with a good canopy. ||||| A Marine died in a freak parachute accident during a dream vacation to Australia his wife had won on The Ellen DeGeneres Show.

 Brandon McGraw, 33, was killed in Euroa on Saturday afternoon when, on coming down for a landing, he suddenly veered left and right and slammed into the ground.

 The last image of Brandon McGraw before his jump that ended with his shocking death. (Cherilyn McGraw via Facebook)

 The Afghan and Iraq war veteran, who’d watched his wife Cherilyn safely perform a tandem jump with an instructor seconds before, went into cardiac arrest.

 Brandon McGraw takes a photo of himself on the plane just before his jump. (Cherilyn McGraw via Facebook)

 He was pronounced dead at the scene 12:30 p.m.

 Cherilyn McGraw on the Ellen show. (Cherilyn McGraw via YouTube/NBC)

 Gunnery sergeant McGraw was based at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. The couple was from Huntington and married in Nov. 2011.

 Cherilyn McGraw competed and went on to win a contest that earned her the trip to Australia. (Cherilyn McGraw via YouTube/NBC)

 His wife won the “Stuff Your Down Under Pants” contest on The Ellen DeGeneres Show on Jan. 16 last year, the Jacksonville Daily News reported. She took home a trip for two to Australia.

 Cherilyn McGraw and husband Brandon McGraw were married in 2011. (Brandon McGraw via Facebook)

 The duo finally took advantage of the prize this month, flying to the southern hemisphere — with a stop-over in New York City — at the weekend.

 Cherilyn McGraw with her late husband, who was a Marine who served in both Afghanistan and Iraq, as he returned home from his military service.

 Capt. Barry Morris, of Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command, told WTKR McGraw was an extreme sports enthusiast with “many” skydive jumps under his belt.

 Undated photo of Brandon McGraw in Afghanistan.

 McGraw’s special education teacher Cherilyn wife paid tribute to her husband on Facebook.

 Cherilyn McGraw with her husband Brandon McGraw on their wedding day.

 Calling him her “hero” and “angel,” she uploaded the haunting final photo of him smiling on board the plane just moment before jumping.

 “These are truly such symbolic photos,” she wrote.

 “He was happy and doing what he loved. It’s amazing all that photos can capture in a moments time … I love you more than anything in the world, honey. You are the most amazing man,” she added.

 The Euroa Skydive school, based near Melbourne, Victoria, is now investigating the incident - the first fatality in its 30-year history. |||||
What is a shorter version of the above article?

– A Marine and his wife were in Australia last week on a trip they won on Ellen DeGeneres' show in January, but it ended in tragedy when the Marine was killed in a skydiving accident. Cherilyn McGraw made a tandem jump in Euroa, north of Melbourne, on Saturday, but husband Brandon had skydiving experience and jumped solo, the Daily News reports. Something went wrong with his parachute 300 feet from the ground, causing him to twist and turn and ultimately crash; he went into cardiac arrest and died at the scene. An employee of Euroa Skydive says Brandon had more than "a few jumps under his belt," as well as training and documentation, and that most of his jump went flawlessly. Australian media have cited high winds as a possible factor. McGraw, 33, had recently come back from a deployment in Afghanistan, and was also an Iraq war veteran, the New York Daily News reports. His wife, a special education teacher in their home state of North Carolina, won the trip by competing in a "Stuff Your Down Under Pants" contest on Ellen, managing to stuff the most balls into a large pair of pants. McGraw's Facebook page shows he was a fan of extreme sports including skydiving, and a Marine Corps captain confirms to confirms to WCTI that McGraw was highly trained. Following his death, Cherilyn posted pictures to Facebook taken moments before her husband's jump, saying he "was happy and doing what he loved" when he died.


Article:

Ryan Seacrest began E!’s red carpet coverage with the announcement that “it promises to be a very special evening.” But the burning question was: would it be a lonely one for him?

 Though there was speculation that the stars – especially the female ones – would snub Seacrest in light of allegations that he sexually harassed a former stylist, the E! host wasn’t left holding the mic. Nominees Allison Janney and Mary J. Blige stopped to chat with Seacrest, who kept the attention focused on their projects and not what they were wearing. The only times things got personal was when presenter Taraji P. Henson grabbed his chin to say “the universe has a way of taking care of the good people” as she was waxing on about Blige while Baby Driver’s Eiza Gonzalez told Seacrest to “be good” at the end of her interview.

 There were compliments, too: Kelly and Ryan co-host Kelly Ripa stopped to tell him how good he was doing and Tiffany Haddish said she was proud of him. And he was never truly alone with the E! coverage: Giuliana Rancic and other network hosts towed a lot of the line from the nearby Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel.

 Seacrest has denied the sexual misconduct allegations leveled against him by former E! stylist Suzie Hardy, claiming his accuser asked him for money on multiple occasions.

 Here’s who stopped to talk to him on the carpet:

 Diane Warren, nominee for original song

 Miguel

 Gael García Bernal

 Kelly Ripa and her husband Mark Consuelos

 Allison Janney, nominee for I, Tonya

 Christopher Plummer, nominee for All the Money in the World

 Andy Serkis

 Richard Jenkins, nominee for The Shape of Water

 Bradley Whitford, Lil Rel Howery, Betty Gabriel from Best Picture nominee Get Out

 Donald Sutherland, honorary Oscar winner

 Rita Moreno, presenter

 Eiza Gonzalez (Baby Driver)

 Mary J. Blige, nominated for Mudbound

 Andra Day and Common, nominated for original song from Marshall

 Taraji P. Henson, presenter

 Whoopi Goldberg

 Tiffany Haddish

 Around 4:54 p.m. PT, he joined Rancic and the others at the Roosevelt Hotel. ||||| Tweet with a location

 You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more ||||| Starting in 1996, Alexa Internet has been donating their crawl data to the Internet Archive. Flowing in every day, these data are added to the Wayback Machine after an embargo period. ||||| There's a sexual misconduct elephant in the room on E!'s Oscars Live From the Red Carpet, and his name is Ryan Seacrest.

 After Variety recently published a report detailing ex-E! stylist Suzie Hardy's serious harassment and assault allegations against Seacrest, the network doubled down, stating their long-time anchor would still fulfill his duties on Sunday. Awkwardness ensued, as the #MeToo and Time's Up continued to be a central topic of discussion.

 The night's major stars responded to E!'s stance with a cold shoulder, simply avoiding interviews with Seacrest. Earlier in the week, actresses like Jennifer Lawrence expressed doubts about interviewing with him.

 And indeed, the most talked-about celebrities of the evening were conspicuously absent from his list of interviewees. Out of the twenty people Seacrest interviewed, only two were actual Oscar nominees, with Allison Janney up for supporting actress and Christopher Plummer up for supporting actor.

 But the spectre of allegations hung even over those interviews.

 Seacrest asked Christopher Plummer about the difficulty of only having nine days to shoot his part in Ridley Scott's All the Money in the World. Though it was on everyone's mind, neither of the men addressed the fact that Plummer was on a time crunch because his scenes were reshoots to replace accused predator Kevin Spacey.

 Holy shit Taraji just put a curse on Ryan Seacrest 😂 pic.twitter.com/GSknn3NozF — Sara Jean Hughes (@sarajeanhughes) March 5, 2018

 Empire's Taraji P Henson gave him a very pointed smile and message, saying, "You know what, the universe has a way of taking care of the good people, you know what I mean?" Seacrest paused, before replying with a meager, "I agree."

 But mostly, E! filled up time with cuts to co-anchor Gulianna Rancic's roundtable discussion, while Seacrest took what he could get.

 Certainly, the #MeToo discussions on the Oscars red carpet were much more tame than at previous carpets this awards season. During the Golden Globes red carpet, Debra Messing called out E! during her E! interview about its Catt Sadler pay gap controversy.

 Reportedly, this is by design. Hollywood Reporter published an article with unnamed sources claiming that E! was planning to run the red carpet live broadcast on a 30-second delay, in order to avoid those kind of ambushes again. These reports made it extra awkward when Rancic boasted that, "The unexpected moments happen quickly on this red carpet and you'll see them live only on E!" ||||| All five women competing in this year’s Oscar race for Best Actress avoided what is typically the “must do” interview of the red carpet — a chat with Ryan Seacrest.

 Amidst accusations of sexual misconduct against the busy E! News host — which he vehemently denies — his traffic at Hollywood’s Dolby Theater was noticeably lighter this year, especially when it came to stars nominated in key awards categories.

 Margot Robbie (“I, Tonya”), Frances McDormand (“Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri”), Saoirse Ronan (“Lady Bird”), Sally Hawkins (“The Shape of Water”) and Meryl Streep (“The Post”) all skipped the E! spot on the Oscar carpet.

 Also Read: Oscars: Adam Rippon's Bondage Tux Has Social Media Swooning

 Seacrest also declined to walk the red carpet before he began his hosting duties, breaking with his tradition of several years. He did land interviews with nominees like Mary J. Blige (“Mudbound”) and Richard Jenkins (“The Shape of Water”) as well as high-profile presenters and attendees like Tiffany Haddish.

 During his segments on the broadcast, cohosted by Giuliana Rancic, Seacrest avoided any talk of the sweeping #MeToo and #TimesUp movements that have blanketed awards-season conversation since the Harvey Weinstein scandal erupted.

 Hours before the carpet commenced, Deadline reported that Seacrest would be afforded a 30- second delay from the network in case he was rejected live by talent, or in the event that anyone confronted him about the accusation on the air. The network denied it, saying no such measures would be taken and the show would be “business as usual.”

 Less than a week ago, Seacrest’s accuser, former stylist Suzie Hardy, came forward with the specifics of a harassment claim she raised with E! owner NBCUniversal last November — including accusations that Seacrest groped her genitals and pressed his erection against her.

 A formal investigation from the network said Seacrest was innocent of any wrongdoing. His lawyer also said Hardy sought $15 million in exchange for her silence. Hardy hit back and said Seacrest was pushing a “false narrative.” ||||| Taraji P. Henson appeared to throw more salt in Ryan Seacrest‘s wounds Sunday night.

 While chatting with E!’s embattled host about best supporting actress nominee Mary J. Blige, the “Hidden Figures” actress had a few choice words for Seacrest, 43, who was accused of sexual misconduct by former stylist Suzy Hardy.

 “The universe has a way of taking care of taking care of good people,” Henson, 47, said, touching his chin. “Know what I mean?”

 Henson immediately doubled down on the Seacrest shade as she moved on to her next interview.

 “I’m great now that I’m in your company,” Vulture’s Mark Harris tweeted as Henson spoke with ABC’s Wendi Mclendon-Covey.

 Seacrest was first accused of misconduct by Hardy in November, alleging he grabbed her crotch multiple times. E! concluded its investigation last month, noting they had found “insufficient evidence to support the claims against Seacrest.” The “American Idol” host has vehemently denied the claims against him.

 “I have no choice but to again deny the claims against me, remind people that I was recused of any wrongdoing, and put the matter to rest,” Seacrest said in a statement.

 The show did go on for Seacrest Sunday night, amid speculation he would be snubbed by A-listers on the red carpet. He found an ally Blige, 47, who said he is “fighting for his life right now.”

 This article originally appeared in the New York Post's Page Six. ||||| As Ryan Seacrest took to the red carpet tonight at the Oscars, observers wondered whether time would be up for the TV personality who is confronting a renewed allegation of sexual misconduct.

 Speculation swirled about whether E!’s red carpet host would endure snubs after his former stylist, Suzie Hardy, went public with her allegations against Seacrest — charges he has repeatedly denied. There were no awkward #MeToo moments Sunday, but in a sign of the network’s nervousness, it mulled implementing a 30-second delay in the live broadcast from the Dolby Theatre. The network released a statement saying, in effect, nothing to see here.

 “It’s business as usual,” said an E! spokesperson. “As always, we tape multiple sources of content simultaneously to deliver the best possible show, and there are often brief delays between interviews.”

 Seacrest did snag interviews with Oscar nominees Allison Janney and Mary J. Blige, who kept the conversation focused on their film projects (as opposed to who they were wearing). Presenter Taraji P. Henson made things a bit more pointed when she remarked to Seacrest, “The universe has a way of taking care of good people — do you know what I mean?”

 LIVE With Kelly and Ryan’s Kelly Ripa even extended her co-host an arms-length hug from the red carpet and complimented his performance. A number of musicians dropped by to share the mike, including Common and Oscar-nominated songwriters Diane Warren and Mary J. Blige.

 Still, E!’s Oscar coverage leaned heavily on co-host Giuliana Rancic’s interviews with celebrities from The Roosevelt Hotel. Those A-listers who didn’t stop by to chat with Seacrest from the red carpet turned up in fashion commentary from celebrity stylist Jason Bolden, and Elaine Welteroth, former editor-in-chief of Teen Vogue. |||||
What is a summary?

– Amid allegations that he groped a stylist, E! host Ryan Seacrest was sure to have an awkward time attempting to interview celebrities at Sunday night's Academy Awards. Mashable says "practically no celebrities" talked to him and the Kansas City Star, which rounds up social media reactions to Seacrest's evening, says E!'s coverage "flopped." None of the five actresses nominated for Best Actress spoke to him, the Wrap notes. Still, Deadline reports Seacrest was "not exactly snubbed"; he did score interviews with 21 people—and Entertainment Weekly has a list of names. Among them was Taraji P. Henson, who, Fox News reports, appeared to slam Seacrest to his face during their interview. "The universe has a way of taking care of taking care of good people," she said, while reaching out to touch Seacrest's chin. "Know what I mean?" She reportedly told the next person who interviewed her, "I'm great now that I'm in your company."