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– More than 6.5 million pounds of ground beef and beef patties have been recalled due to a salmonella outbreak that has so far sickened at least 57 people from 16 states, the USDA announced Thursday. The affected beef comes from Arizona-based meat producer JBS Tolleson, Inc., and was packaged between July 26 and Sept. 7, CNN reports. It was sold nationwide under the brand names Walmart, Cedar River Farms Natural Beef, Showcase, Showcase/Walmart, and JBS Generic. Customers should check for products with "EST.267" inside the USDA mark of inspection, the AP reports. Full recall information can be found here.

EDITOR’S NOTE:

 -Details of this recall were updated Oct. 5, 2018 to reflect additional product codes and increases in the poundage of products being recalled;

 -Details of this recall were updated Oct. 4, 2018 to reflect increases in the poundage of products being recalled.

 WASHINGTON, Oct. 4, 2018 – JBS Tolleson, Inc., a Tolleson, Ariz. establishment, is recalling approximately 6,937,195 pounds of various raw, non-intact beef products that may be contaminated with Salmonella Newport, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced today.

 The raw, non-intact beef items, including ground beef, were packaged on various dates from July 26, 2018 to Sept. 7, 2018. The following products are subject to recall: [Products List (PDF) (or XLSX) | Product Labels (PDF only) | Distribution List (PDF)]

 The products subject to recall bear establishment number “EST. 267” inside the USDA mark of inspection. These items were shipped to retail locations and institutions nationwide.

 On September 5, 2018, FSIS was notified of an investigation of Salmonella Newport illnesses with reported consumption of several different FSIS-regulated products by case-patients. The first store receipt potentially linking the purchase of FSIS-regulated product to a case-patient was received on September 19, 2018; FSIS was then able to begin traceback of ground beef products. To date, eight case-patients have provided receipts or shopper card numbers, which have enabled product traceback investigations. FSIS, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and state public health and agriculture partners have now determined that raw ground beef was the probable source of the reported illnesses. Traceback has identified JBS as the common supplier of the ground beef products. The epidemiological investigation has identified 57 case-patients from 16 states with illness onset dates ranging from August 5 to September 6, 2018. FSIS will continue to work with public health partners and will provide updated information should it become available.

 Consumption of food contaminated with Salmonella can cause salmonellosis, one of the most common bacterial foodborne illnesses. The most common symptoms of salmonellosis are diarrhea, abdominal cramps, and fever within 12 to 72 hours after eating the contaminated product. The illness usually lasts 4 to 7 days. Most people recover without treatment. In some persons, however, the diarrhea may be so severe that the patient needs to be hospitalized. Older adults, infants, and persons with weakened immune systems are more likely to develop a severe illness. Individuals concerned about an illness should contact their health care provider.

 FSIS is concerned that some product may be frozen and in consumers’ freezers. Consumers who have purchased these products are urged not to consume them. These products should be thrown away or returned to the place of purchase.

 FSIS routinely conducts recall effectiveness checks to verify recalling firms notify their customers of the recall and that steps are taken to make certain that the product is no longer available to consumers. When available, the retail distribution list(s) will be posted on the FSIS website at www.fsis.usda.gov/recalls.

 FSIS advises all consumers to safely prepare their raw meat products, including fresh and frozen, and only consume ground beef that has been cooked to a temperature of 160°F. Other cuts of beef should be cooked to a temperature of 145 °F and allowed to rest for at least 3 minutes. The only way to confirm that ground beef or other cuts of beef are cooked to a temperature high enough to kill harmful bacteria is to use a food thermometer that measures internal temperature, http://1.usa.gov/1cDxcDQ.

 Consumers with questions regarding the recall can contact the JBS USA Consumer Hotline at (800) 727-2333. Members of the media with questions regarding the recall can contact Misty Barnes, Public Relations Specialist at JBS USA, at (970) 506-7805.

 Consumers with food safety questions can "Ask Karen," the FSIS virtual representative available 24 hours a day at AskKaren.gov or via smartphone at m.askkaren.gov. The toll-free USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline 1-888-MPHotline (1-888-674-6854) is available in English and Spanish and can be reached from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. (Eastern Time) Monday through Friday. Recorded food safety messages are available 24 hours a day. The online Electronic Consumer Complaint Monitoring System can be accessed 24 hours a day at: http://www.fsis.usda.gov/reportproblem. ||||| Story highlights 57 cases of salmonella illness linked to this outbreak were reported in 16 states

 Fourteen patients have been hospitalized

 (CNN) Arizona-based meat producer JBS Tolleson Inc. is recalling 6,500,966 pounds of "various raw, non-intact beef products" due to an outbreak of salmonella, the US Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service announced Thursday.

 The recalled products may be contaminated with salmonella.

 The recall was issued after health officials identified JBS as the common supplier of raw ground beef products found to be the "probable source" of reported salmonella illnesses.

 Fifty-seven cases of salmonella illness linked to this outbreak were reported in 16 states between August 5 and September 6.

 The Food Safety and Inspection Service was first notified of the possible outbreak in September. Receipts and shopper cards from eight patients helped investigators identify the source of the outbreak.

 Read More ||||| TOLLESON, Ariz. (AP) — An Arizona company has recalled more than 6.5 million pounds (2.9 kilograms) of beef that could be contaminated with salmonella.

 The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service announced the recall Thursday.

 An investigation traced products including ground beef and beef patties to JBS Tolleson, Inc. Federal officials say the raw beef was packaged between July 26 and Sept. 7 and shipped to retailers nationwide, including Walmart.

 Officials say an epidemiological investigation has identified 57 people from 16 states who have become ill.

 Officials are asking people to check for products with "EST.267" inside the USDA mark of inspection.

 Symptoms of salmonellosis include diarrhea, abdominal cramps and fever, and can last up to a week. Most people recover without treatment. |||||


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– Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says officials from Saudi Arabia, the United States, Germany, France, and Britain have listened to audio recordings related to the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul, the AP reports. Erdogan's comments on Saturday were the first public confirmation of the existence of recordings of the Oct. 2 killing of the Washington Post columnist at the consulate where he'd gone to get papers to marry his fiancee. "We gave the tapes," Erdogan said Saturday before departing for Paris, where he'll attend events with other world leaders marking the armistice that ended World War I, per Al Jazeera. "They have listened to all the conversations in them. They know." NBC News notes that a State Department rep had previously denied that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had heard any such audio or seen any audio transcript when he visited Turkey last month. President Trump, meanwhile, has said that the US has asked for any audio "if it exists." Erdogan called on Saudi Arabia to rid itself of the "stain" by cooperating with Turkey over the investigation. Erdogan said a 15-member team that Turkey says was sent to kill Khashoggi know who's behind the killing, as well as the location of his remains. (Saudis are boycotting Amazon over coverage of Khashoggi's murder.)

Turkey has shared recordings related to the killing of Jamal Khashoggi with Saudi Arabia, the United States, Germany, France and Britain, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday.

 Turkish sources have said previously that authorities have an audio recording purportedly documenting the murder of the Saudi journalist.

 The existence of such a recording has never been officially confirmed.

 Speaking before his departure for France to attend commemorations to mark the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I, Erdogan said Saudi Arabia knows Khashoggi's killer is among a group of 15 people who flew into Istanbul hours before the October 2 killing.

 "We gave the tapes. We gave them to Saudi Arabia, to the United States, Germans, French and British, all of them. They have listened to all the conversations in them," Erdogan said.

 "They know."

 Sources told Al Jazeera on Saturday that Turkish police ended the search for Khashoggi's body, but that the criminal investigation into the 59-year-old's murder would continue.

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 Al Jazeera learned on Friday that traces of acid were found at the Saudi consul-general's residence in Istanbul, where the body was believed to be disposed of with the use of chemicals.

 The residence is at walking distance from the Saudi consulate, where Khashoggi - a Washington Post columnist critical of the Saudi government and the all-powerful Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman - was killed by a team of Saudi officers and officials.

 Saudi Arabia has changed its narrative about the murder several times amid international outcry and intensifying scepticism over its account.

 After insisting for more than two weeks that Khashoggi had left the consulate, it then admitted the journalist had died in a fistfight inside the building. Later, Riyadh conceded Khashoggi was killed in a premeditated murder, but that the murder was an unplanned "rogue operation".

 However, Erdogan has accused the "highest levels" of the Saudi government of ordering the hit, while some officials have pointed the finger at the crown prince - a charge Riyadh denies.

 Meeting with Trump

 Speaking before his departure, Erdogan also said he might meet with US President Donald Trump in Paris during the commemorations.

 "When we go to Paris, we will try to secure an opportunity and we will realise a bilateral meeting," Erdogan said.

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 Al Jazeera's Jamal Elshayyal, reporting from Istanbul, said the timing of Erdogan's comments was "very significant".

 "It happened as he was getting on the plane to go to Paris to meet with Trump. Erdogan is making it very clear that everyone knows what has happened, everyone who is a significant player in the region has the evidence."

 Osman Sert, research director at Ankara Institute, said that Ankara will now attempt to "put pressure" on Washington, a major Saudi ally, but added that "there is a good atmosphere for the Turkish-American relations to go forward during this case".

 "The public's priority should be to find out who committed this crime and who ordered this crime," he said.

 "What should be done right now is Turkey shouldn't be left alone against the Saudis. The Europeans and Americans should stand with Turkey."

 Joint investigations

 Elshayyal also said that Erdogan's remarks marked the first time Turkey's president "had spoken directly about those audio recordings", adding that the move raised doubts on claims that the taps might have obtained "in some kind of clandestine tapping by the Turkish authorities".

 Turkish and Saudi officials have carried out joint inspections of the consulate and the consul-general's residence, but Erdogan said some Saudi officials were still trying to cover up the crime.

 {articleGUID}

 Elshayyal said that Saudi officials, despite officially claiming that they would cooperate with their Turkish counterparts, so far have not only refused to do that but possibly tried to tamper with the ongoing investigation.

 "They namely did this by sending in chemical experts [in the consulate and consul-general's home] to destroy evidence," he said.

 "They also denied Turkish requests to once again search the consul-general's home, after Turks found samples of chemicals in the garden of the residence."

 Istanbul's chief prosecutor said on October 31 that Khashoggi was strangled as soon as he entered the consulate and that his body was dismembered, in the first official comments on the case.

 Saudi Arabia has said it arrested 18 people and dismissed five senior government officials as part of an investigation into Khashoggi's killing

 Ankara also seeks extradition of the suspects. ||||| Breaking News Emails Get breaking news alerts and special reports. The news and stories that matter, delivered weekday mornings.

 / Updated By Reuters

 ISTANBUL — Turkey has given recordings on the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi to Saudi Arabia, the United States, Germany, France and Britain, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday.

 "We gave the tapes... They have listened to all the conversations in them. They know," Erdogan said.

 NBC News has not verified his claims.

 Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist who was critical of the Saudi government and its de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, was killed after he entered the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2.

 Turkish sources have said previously that authorities have an audio recording purportedly documenting the murder.

 However, a State Department spokesperson previously denied that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo heard an audio recording or saw a transcript of the recording after he held emergency meetings in Saudi Arabia and Turkey last month. A senior Turkish official similarly denied the reports.

 "Turkey has not given a voice recording to Pompeo or any other American official," Turkish foreign minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said.

 Speaking ahead of his departure for France to attend commemorations to mark the 100th anniversary of the end of World War One, Erdogan said Saudi Arabia knows the killer of Jamal Khashoggi is among a group of 15 people who arrived in Turkey one day ahead of the Oct. 2 killing.

 "There's no need to distort this issue," he said. "Saudi Arabia's government can disclose this by making these 15 people talk."

 Erdogan said he may meet with President Donald Trump, who is also in Paris for the ceremonies this weekend.

 "When we go to Paris, we will try to secure an opportunity and we will realize a bilateral meeting," Erdogan said.

 Trump himself previously cast doubt on a leaked recording, telling reporters he was “not sure yet that it exists,” but that if it does, the U.S. had asked Turkey to share it.

 But following a meeting in Paris on Saturday between Trump and French leader Emmanuel Macron, a French presidency source said the pair agreed that the Saudi authorities needed to shed full light on Khashoggi's murder.

 They also agreed that the matter should not be allowed to cause further destabilization in the Middle East and that it could create an opportunity to find a political resolution to the war in Yemen, according to the official. ||||| ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says officials from Saudi Arabia, the United States, Germany, France and Britain have listened to audio recordings related to the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul.

 Erdogan's comments on Saturday were the first public confirmation of the existence of recordings of the Oct. 2 killing of The Washington Post columnist at the consulate where he had gone to get papers to marry his fiancee.

 Erdogan said: "They also listened to the conversations and they know."

 He called on Saudi Arabia to rid itself of the "stain" by cooperating with Turkey over the investigation.

 Erdogan said a 15-member team that Turkey says was sent to kill Khashoggi know who is behind the killing as well as the location of his remains. |||||


Skip in Skip x Embed x Share CLOSE Harry Potter grows up in a new original play, 'Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.' As Leigh Scheps (@LeighTVReporter) explains, it's the first official Harry Potter story to be presented on stage. Buzz60

 Daniel Radcliffe in 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2.' (Photo: Jaap Buitendijk, Warner Bros. Pictures)

 Harry Potter is about to get a little Cursed.

 The upcoming play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, which J.K. Rowling announced in June, will follow an adult Harry and his youngest son, Albus, making it officially the eighth story in the Harry Potter series and the first to be told onstage. The play, running next summer at the Palace Theater in London, is in two parts due to the "epic nature of the story," Rowling said on her Pottermore site.

 So now you know it really isn't a prequel: Harry Potter & the #CursedChild starts #19yearslater! Go to @HPPlayLDN for more information. — J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) October 23, 2015

 "19 years later" is significant to Potter fans. The epilogue to the final book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, takes place 19 years after the events of the book, and sees Harry, along with his friends Ron and Hermione, dropping their children off at the Hogwarts Express.

 The play also debuted its official artwork, which features a child hunched inside a nest that appears to have black wings.

 Sneak peek! See our brand new artwork for Harry Potter and the #CursedChild! pic.twitter.com/wEaPOELgvF — Harry Potter Play (@HPPlayLDN) October 22, 2015

 Fans may speculate that the boy in the image is Albus, but it was not made clear whether the youngest Potter is in fact the titular cursed child. Here's the official synopsis, via Pottermore:

 It was always difficult being Harry Potter and it isn’t much easier now that he is an overworked employee of the Ministry of Magic, a husband and father of three school-age children. While Harry grapples with a past that refuses to stay where it belongs, his youngest son Albus must struggle with the weight of a family legacy he never wanted. As past and present fuse ominously, both father and son learn the uncomfortable truth: sometimes, darkness comes from unexpected places.

 Rowling also revealed that Cursed Child will feature a company of over 30 actors, but casting will be announced at a later date.

 Tickets for the play go on sale at 11am GMT on Wed. Oct. 28 to those who have registered for priority booking, and 11am GMT on Friday Oc. 30 for the general public (full ticketing information is available here).

 Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1LRnjFc ||||| Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is the official eighth Potter story and the first to be presented on stage.

 It’s official. The Cursed Child is the eighth story in the Harry Potter series and we have the synopsis to share with you:

 It was always difficult being Harry Potter and it isn’t much easier now that he is an overworked employee of the Ministry of Magic, a husband and father of three school-age children. While Harry grapples with a past that refuses to stay where it belongs, his youngest son Albus must struggle with the weight of a family legacy he never wanted. As past and present fuse ominously, both father and son learn the uncomfortable truth: sometimes, darkness comes from unexpected places.

 When we last saw Harry he was waving off his eldest children, James Sirius and Albus Severus, at platform nine and three-quarters. This next exciting chapter in the story will explore Harry’s life after that moment for the very first time.

 Written by Jack Thorne and directed by Olivier and Tony award-winner John Tiffany, the play is a brand new story written in collaboration with J.K. Rowling.

 The play is in two parts, due to the ‘epic nature of the story’, and will feature a cast of more than 30 actors, to be announced later.

 J.K. Rowling, Jack Thorne and John Tiffany say: ‘It is very exciting to explore Harry’s world in a brand new way through the live form of theatre. Collaborating on this story is exhilarating for all of us and we can’t wait to present the eighth story at the Palace Theatre next summer.’

 ‘The story only exists because the right group of people came together with a brilliant idea about how to present Harry Potter on stage,’ continues J.K. Rowling. ‘I’m confident that when audiences see Harry Potter and the Cursed Child they will understand why we chose to tell this story in this way.’

 Harry Potter and the Cursed Child comes to London’s West End summer 2016. |||||
What is a one-paragraph summary of the above article?

– JK Rowling announced back in June that Harry Potter was coming to the London stage, but until now, there was much speculation the stage play's plot would be a prequel to the books. Rowling debunked that today: "So now you know it really isn't a prequel," she tweeted. "Harry Potter & the #CursedChild starts #19yearslater!" Harry Potter and the Cursed Child opens at the Palace Theater in the summer of 2016, and tickets go on sale next week, USA Today reports. Rowling's site Pottermore has more details on the plot, which involves Potter and his youngest son, Albus Severus. "It was always difficult being Harry Potter and it isn't much easier now that he is an overworked employee of the Ministry of Magic, a husband and father of three school-age children," reads the official synopsis. "While Harry grapples with a past that refuses to stay where it belongs, his youngest son Albus must struggle with the weight of a family legacy he never wanted. As past and present fuse ominously, both father and son learn the uncomfortable truth: sometimes, darkness comes from unexpected places." The play's official Twitter account has artwork and more info. (Albus' older brother, James Sirius, started at Hogwarts last month.)


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Interminable car chases, disgustingly cute animals, blunt-force pleas to patriotism: These are a few of Anchorman 2’s favorite targets. A silly sequel to the 2004 Will Ferrell breakout comedy, this new chapter manages to make some smart satirical hay in the course of its stupidity.

 The year is 1980, and Ferrell’s Ron Burgundy, the fatuous, egomaniacal co-anchor of a local San Diego newscast, is on the outs. Ron’s boss, played by Harrison Ford, has finally realized how dumb the guy is. Luckily there’s a brand-new medium perfect for his IQ level: 24-hour cable news.

 After a Blues Brothers-like sequence of rounding up the old team — childlike weatherman Brick Tamland (Steve Carell), narcissistic reporter Brian Fantana (Paul Rudd) and racist/sexist sports guy Champ Kind (David Koech- ner) — Ron heads to New York to make his name in the brave new world of nonstop blather.

 The team behind the original Anchorman was reluctant to tackle a sequel, and it’s easy to see why. Anchorman 2 indulges the mandate to dip into the well of old bits over and over again, from the jazz flute solo to the gangland rumble between rival news organizations, which bursts into a supernova of cameo appearances and is, frankly, very funny.

 Then there’s the need for a transformative life experience to shake up Ron’s world, which lingers far too long and smacks of desperation. At times, Anchorman 2 blurs the line between depicting stupid and being stupid.

 At other times, it’s a spot-on parody, not just of cable news’ dawn but also its current incarnation. “Why don’t we just tell them what they want to hear?” Ron asks of his GNN bosses, and proceeds to do just that. The screen becomes a perpetual mélange of impenetrable graphics and data.

 One segment features puppies frolicking in a field of American flags. Ron coins a new sign-off: “Don’t just have a great night. Have an American night.” Wall-to-wall coverage of a frantic police chase scores huge ratings, with narration placing speculation over fact. That segment leads to one of the funniest lines in the movie, shouted by an appreciative barfly: “When did the news get awesome?!”

 For every tiresome patch of shoehorned plot, most of it concerning Ron and his estranged wife, Veronica (Christina Applegate, underused), Anchorman 2 offers a healthy slab of satire. It’s not quite kin to Network or A Face in the Crowd; the need for easy laughs precludes genuine outrage, which in its own way can become a burden. No one really wants a scolding Ron Burgundy.

 But it’s still fun to see him channel a little Howard Beale when conscience comes a-calling. Like its predecessor, Anchorman 2 is at its best when it abandons story contrivance in favor of comic anarchy. At one point, Brick, who gets an equally dense love interest in Kristen Wiig’s network receptionist, seizes the anchor chair and gets a chance to show his stuff. He responds by reciting “Itsy Bitsy Spider.”

 As the climactic gang rumble reaches fever pitch, Ron realizes the danger. “We’ve gotta get out of here!” he shouts. “There’s too much news!” True indeed, Ron. And yet, so little.

 Follow Chris Vognar on Twitter at @chrisvognar.

 Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues (B)

 Directed by Adam McKay. PG-13 (crude and sexual content, drug use, language and comic violence).119 mins. In wide release. ||||| Ron Burgundy’s Boob Tube Goes 24 Hours a Day ‘Anchorman 2,’ Starring Will Ferrell and Steve Carell

 “Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues” is in danger of being overshadowed by its own marketing campaign . The recent media appearances by Ron Burgundy — impersonated, if you need reminding, by Will Ferrell — have the quality of commercial performance art. He has been ubiquitous, hawking Dodge Durango trucks , accepting a tribute from a journalism school and matching wits with members of the profession he exists to lampoon. That television news has so eagerly embraced Ron Burgundy may be evidence that the “Anchorman” movies don’t go far enough, satirically speaking. The man may be a vain, ethically obtuse, generally clueless buffoon, but it would not occur to him to allow a fictional character on his air to sell a product. He’s no George Stephanopoulos.

 The new movie, meanwhile, recaptures the silly, sloppy spirit of its predecessor, minus the crucial element of surprise. It’s a frequently amusing, occasionally hilarious, rarely unpleasant grab bag of mild mockery and inspired lunacy, decked out with cameos from beloved comic performers and random celebrities. There is jazz flute-playing and a big news-team rumble, which fans will be glad to see but which don’t have quite the same impact the second time around.

 The first “Anchorman,” released in the summer of 2004, marked a watershed in the emergence of what French critics (who take such things very seriously) have declared a new golden age of American comedy. Directed, like the sequel, by Adam McKay and produced by Judd Apatow, it combined aggressive, obnoxious humor with disarming, childish sweetness and gave the world a handful of immortal catchphrases.

 It has all stayed classy, even if it’s not such a big deal anymore. This time, as the ’70s shade into the ’80s, offering new wardrobe and song-cue opportunities, Ron and his pals find themselves present for the birth of 24-hour cable news. Ron and his wife, Veronica Corningstone (Christina Applegate), have a young son (named Walter, as in Cronkite, played by Judah Nelson), but their relationship hits a snag when she is promoted over him at the network that moved them out of San Diego. Ron, his male pride wounded and his professional dignity challenged, goes into a tailspin that is halted when a cable producer (Dylan Baker) recruits him for a new all-news-all-the-time venture. “That’s the stupidest idea I’ve ever heard,” Ron exclaims. That may be the smartest thing he has ever said.

 The movie traces the mythic origins of the worst of modern cable news — the mindless jingoism, the split-screen shouting, the cluttered graphics, the breathless coverage of car chases and celebrity nonsense — to Ron’s initiative. “I’m the one who opened the bottle and let the genie out,” he says proudly. But the whole point of the “Anchorman” franchise has always been that you can’t stay mad at this guy. You can almost imagine — or at least wish — that the real people responsible for the coarsening of civic discourse are just dumb and lovable, rather than greedy and evil. Ron may be sexist, pompous, politically insensitive and hideously dressed, but Mr. Ferrell, with his lumbering frame and twinkling eyes, always tugs him back toward cuddliness.

 He is joined by the sidekicks from “Anchorman” — David Koechner, Steve Carell and Paul Rudd — and a few new faces. Meagan Good shows admirable gameness as Ron’s designated straight man, his temporary love interest and the occasion for some pretend-provocative bouts of racial humor. The clueless, nervous white guy at an African-American family dinner is one of the oldest jokes in the book, and Mr. Ferrell and Mr. McKay don’t exactly write a new page. But again, no one is likely to get too mad at Ron’s jive talking or his old-school male chauvinism. You might as well object to his mustache.

 Some viewers may be bored, however, as this legend meanders down a few comic blind alleys. A movie like “Anchorman 2,” in essence a very long character-based sketch, is always a hit-and-miss affair. The sheer density of the jokes guarantees a few laughs for every taste, though, and the loose, improvisational energy of the performers keeps things lively. The original cast members show the passage of time in their faces and bodies, with the uncanny exception of Mr. Rudd, the Dorian Gray of the New American Comedy.

 The sillier “Anchorman 2” gets, the better it works. In other words, it pretty much belongs to Mr. Carell, as the transcendently dim weatherman Brick Tamland, and to Kristen Wiig, as Chani, a co-worker who turns out to be Brick’s soul mate. Their romance lifts the movie into a realm of pure nonsense, and their graceful, inventive idiocy makes the rest of it look labored and overdone.

 Which is not to say that Brick and Chani should have their own movie. Too much of any one thing would spoil the fun of the whole, which depends on quick transitions from one setup to the next and an overall sense of anarchic busyness. “Anchorman 2” supplies that, as expected, even as it also feels like old news.

 “Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues” is rated PG-13 (Parents strongly cautioned). Just naughty enough for cable.

 Anchorman 2

 The Legend Continues

 Opens on Wednesday.

 Directed by Adam McKay; written by Will Ferrell and Mr. McKay; director of photography, Oliver Wood; edited by Brent White and Melissa Bretherton; music by Andrew Feltenstein and John Nau; production design by Clayton Hartley; costumes by Susan Matheson; produced by Judd Apatow, Mr. Ferrell and Mr. McKay; released by Paramount Pictures. Running time: 1 hour 59 minutes.

 WITH: Will Ferrell (Ron Burgundy), Steve Carell (Brick Tamland), Paul Rudd (Brian Fantana), David Koechner (Champ Kind), Christina Applegate (Veronica Corningstone), Meagan Good (Linda Jackson), James Marsden (Jack Lime), Josh Lawson (Kench Allenby), Kristen Wiig (Chani), Dylan Baker (Freddie Shapp) and Judah Nelson (Walter Burgundy). ||||| Every time I see Ron Burgundy, a.k.a. Will Ferrell, hawking Dodge Durangos on TV — which seems like a million times a day — what strikes me is how brilliant the "Anchorman" conceit is in small bits. The carefully manicured hair, the flashy suits, all just window dressing for that marvelously bloated ego, the absurd made irresistible in 60-second increments.

 That, I'd suggest, should be the recommended dosage.

 At nearly two hours, the nonsense of Ron and the news game, which Ferrell and co-writer and director Adam McKay skewered so effectively in 2004, is harder to sustain the second time around. "Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues," does continue the legend of the original "Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy."

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 But the reality that Ron Burgundy did indeed become a legend is part of the film's difficulty. Waiting nearly a decade before the sequel came allowed time for "Anchorman" to reach cult status — "stay classy" joined the lexicon of the knowingly sarcastic. So revered is the original, the film's legions of fans have likely watched it about as many times as I've seen those Dodge ads. Between the history and the hype, expectations are high for a Burgundy redux to deliver.

 That presents its own set of challenges. A comedy sequel always carries the risk that the joke was stretched to the limits in the first. We did not, for example, need another slice of "American Pie," anymore than we needed a "Hangover 2" or "3," a clear case of overindulging.

 While I'm glad "Anchorman" is back — we need a little levity in this year of heavy films — I do wish it were better. With so many sight gags and nearly every living comic in the world making an appearance at some point, the entire operation, like Ron's ego, feels a bit bloated.

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 Still, "Anchorman 2" has its distinct pleasures, chief among them its characters. And chief among its characters is Steve Carell. Back as the mentally challenged weathercaster Brick, his scenes are hysterically saturated with the eternal sunshine of a spotless mind. Double the fun when Kristen Wiig's socially inept Chani enters the picture. Together they create some of the strangest romantic chemistry the big screen has seen in a while — maybe ever.

 As the legend picks up, Ron and Veronica Corningstone (Christina Applegate) are married with a young son named Walter (Cronkite?). The former competitors have joined forces, co-anchoring a weekend network newscast in New York. They are happy enough, but pining for prime time.

 A series of unfortunate events align to split up the couple — on air and off. It begins when she gets that prime-time spot and he does not — the good news/bad news delivered in a very funny cameo by Harrison Ford. Veronica's success is more than Ron can stomach so it's back to San Diego for the fallen star.

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 Besides, there had to be some excuse to send Ron on a downward spiral — wedded bliss and career satisfaction don't suit him. It also allows the filmmakers to reunite the anchorman with his former news team: correspondent Brian Fantana (Paul Rudd), sportscaster Champ Kind (David Koechner) and Brick.

 Like an incredibly slow windup, "Anchorman 2" spends a lot of time getting us caught up on their lives; basically some are better off than others. These segments struggle for traction and Ron's job as an emcee at SeaWorld has drawn sharp criticism from real-world animal rights activists who see absolutely nothing funny in the captivity of killer whales (see the documentary "Blackfish" for a very good recap of the issues).

 Rescuing Ron from San Diego, and us from a dearth of the solid silly nonsense we expect from "Anchorman," is the very dry Dylan Baker. As Freddie Shapp, a TV producer trying to sell Ron on the idea of a 24-hour cable news operation, you can tell if the TV gig doesn't pan out he's got a future in used cars.

 On the set: movies and TV

 With the plasticized all-news-all-the-time culture in the film's sights, the fun begins in earnest. Burgundy has a new nemesis in Jack Lime (James Marsden). Though it hardly seems possible, Lime has better hair than Ron. And he may not understand what is actually going on in the world, but he's a smooth news reader and he knows exactly when to flash that megawatt smile. Marsden is a crack-up in the role.

 The competition to keep up ratings and newsroom infighting provides a good setup for many of the best jokes. The birth of the slow-speed car chase during Ron's watch is a hoot. The funniest gag involves Brick, but to say more would be to spoil the fun.

 There are a few bizarre detours that seem contrived to allow the filmmakers to keep a gag they loved but couldn't quite figure out how to make it fit. One involves blindness and a lighthouse and is actually hilarious. But at times like this, it feels as if the concept has outrun the comedy and "Anchorman 2" stops making sense.

 betsy.sharkey@latimes.com

 ---------------------------

 'Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues'

 MPAA rating: PG-13 for crude and sexual content, drug use, language and comic violence

 Running time: 1 hour, 59 minutes

 Playing: In general release ||||| CLOSE BackStage host Carly Mallenbaum reveals some of the best lines from new movie 'Anchorman 2.'

 Nearly anyone who is anybody in contemporary comedy — and even drama — makes an appearance in this sequel.

 The gang is back! Left to right: David Koechner as Champ Kind, Paul Rudd as Brian Fantana, Will Ferrell as Ron Burgundy and Steve Carell as Brick Tamland in 'Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues.' (Photo: Gemma LaMana, Paramount Pictures) Story Highlights USA Today Review: * * * out of four

 Stars: Will Ferrell, Christina Applegate, Steve Carell, Paul Rudd, Meagan Good, James Marsden, Kristen Wiig

 Rated: PG-13; runtime: 1 hour, 59 minutes; opens Wednesday nationwide

 When did the news get awesome?

 It's a question a viewer asks while watching blowhard newsman Ron Burgundy narrate a live car chase in Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues (* * * out of four; rated PG-13; opening today nationwide). But it could also be applied to this sequel, which is nearly as silly-funny as its 2004 predecessor.

 It's not unusual for comedies to sink to silly-stupid depths. A rare few are bona fide silly-funny. Anchorman, and now its follow-up, fall into the latter category of inspired lunacy.

 The movie cleverly spoofs the 24-hour TV news cycle, as well as sexism and racism in the workplace. Not every scene is equally funny, of course, but most of the comic antics generate laughs.

 STORY: Five things creating 'a whole new world' for Ron Burgundy

 MORE: 'Anchorman 2' bulletin: Ron Burgundy is everywhere

 MORE: Meet the inspiration for Anchorman

 REVIEWS: The latest movie reviews from USA TODAY

 TRAILERS: Coming soon to theaters

 It's 1980 in this follow-up to the '70s-era Anchorman, and Ron Burgundy (Will Ferrell) is no longer the top newsman in San Diego (pronounced San De-ahh-go by the lame-brained Burgundy). He's been run out of the business and works as a SeaWorld announcer.

 He is, however, as inappropriate and boorish as ever, prompting a kid to yell: "Children and animals hate you, Ron Burgundy!"

 His inept former news team, dim-witted weatherman Brick Tamland (Steve Carell), inanely slick reporter Brian Fantana (Paul Rudd) and bigoted sportscaster Champ Kind (David Koechner) also have gone on to non-journalistic pursuits.

 The chemistry and improvisational energy of this comic quartet fuel the comedy. They inhabit their motley crew of characters with outrageous flair. And Ferrell is spot-on as the buffoonish Burgundy.

 Burgundy is offered an on-air gig by a news start-up — GNN (Global News Network), the first 24-7 news organization. He rounds up his team, vowing: "I'm gonna go do what God put Ron Burgundy on this Earth to do: have salon-quality hair and read the news."

 The mustachioed Burgundy takes an ultra-patriotic stance in his first newscast and reports upbeat news. ("Don't just have a great night," he tells viewers. "Have an American night.") The approach quickly wins the hearts of TV watchers.

 Burgundy and former co-anchor Veronica Corningstone (Christina Applegate) have married and had a son, Walter (Judah Nelson). Greg Kinnear figures into their dynamics in a comical subplot. Supporting players are absurdly funny: Kristen Wiig as a daft secretary, Meagan Good as Burgundy's tough boss and James Marsden as Burgundy's swaggering nemesis.

 Screenwriters Ferrell and Adam McKay, who also directs, reprise the wackier elements from the first movie. Burgundy indulges in a jazz flute solo and his canine sidekick Baxter is still on hand, lively as ever, despite the passing of the years.

 In the original, one of the funniest segments was a rumble between competing news teams. (The few rules to this nasty fight entail not touching the face or hair, though outright annihilation is fine.) A similar, but more elaborate, gag here is boisterously humorous.

 As a bonus, the comedy, produced by Judd Apatow, has an abundance of starry cameos. Clocking in at two hours, however, the movie is about 20 minutes too long and a skit involving Burgundy's temporary blindness grows tiresome.

 While it may not be as quotable as its predecessor, Anchorman 2 still is wacky fun. And who can resist brave little Baxter tackling yet another predator and saving the day once more?

 Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1bNIqkP |||||

– Anchorman 2 brings the "legendary" Ron Burgundy into the 1980s and a new medium: 24-hour news. The sequel brings back the absurdity of the first and even takes a few swings at satire, and while it may not equal its predecessor, critics say it's worth a watch. "It's not unusual for comedies to sink to silly-stupid depths. A rare few are bona fide silly-funny. Anchorman, and now its follow-up, fall into the latter category of inspired lunacy," writes Claudia Puig in USA Today. "The chemistry and improvisational energy of this comic quartet"—Will Ferrell, Steve Carell, Paul Rudd, and David Koechner—"fuel the comedy." Meanwhile, "nearly anyone who is anybody in contemporary comedy ... makes an appearance." Anchorman 2 "recaptures the silly, sloppy spirit of its predecessor, minus the crucial element of surprise. It’s a frequently amusing, occasionally hilarious, rarely unpleasant grab bag of mild mockery and inspired lunacy," observes AO Scott in New York Times. The film "manages to make some smart satirical hay in the course of its stupidity," writes Chris Vognar in the Dallas Morning News. "At times, Anchorman 2 blurs the line between depicting stupid and being stupid. At other times, it’s a spot-on parody, not just of cable news’ dawn but also its current incarnation." "While I'm glad Anchorman is back," notes Betsy Sharkey in the Los Angeles Times, "I do wish it were better. With so many sight gags and nearly every living comic in the world making an appearance at some point, the entire operation, like Ron's ego, feels a bit bloated." But Carell and Kristen Wiig "create some of the strangest romantic chemistry the big screen has seen in a while—maybe ever."


Write a summary based on this article:

Donald Trump said Sunday that in the wake of the mass shooting in Orlando, it's time for the United States to start looking at racial profiling as a preventative tactic.

 "Well I think profiling is something that we're going to have to start thinking about as a country," the presumptive GOP nominee said in a phone interview with CBS' "Face the Nation. "Other countries do it, you look at Israel and you look at others, they do it and they do it successfully. And I hate the concept of profiling but we have to start using common sense and we have to use our heads."

 "It's not the worst thing to do," he added.

 Trump's comments come one week after 49 people were shot and killed in a gay nightclub in Orlando, the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history. Following the massacre, Trump renewed his calls for a temporary ban on Muslims entering the U.S., saying it would have prevented the attack despite the fact that shooter Omar Mateen was born in the U.S.

 Trump on gun reform: NRA "wants to make the right decision"

 On Sunday, the GOP politician also said attacks like Orlando would stop if those in the Muslim community would "report" suspicious things.

 "When you look at, when you look at people within the Muslim community and where people are living and they don't report, and a good example of that would be San Bernardino," he said. "I mean, they had bombs all over their apartment floor and people saw it and nobody reported them, and 14 people were killed, many injured."

 Mateen, Trump added, had definite "red flags" before the attack. "You look at his past, I mean? I've never seen a past quite like that," he said of Mateen. "You look at his record in school, you look at a lot of other things. There were a lot of red flags, this was not a very good young man."

 Trump said he's working with the National Rifle Association on the details of a policy that would ban people on the no-fly list from purchasing guns.

 "We understand there are problems with that because some people are on the terror watch list that shouldn't be on," he said. "So I'm working with the NRA, we're discussing it and again the NRA has the best interests of our country, it just has the absolute best interests of our country."

 Asked about GOP leaders' criticism of him in recent days, especially over his renewed focus on the Muslim ban, Trump said those Republicans should stop "talking so much" and just "do their job." The issue is compounded, he added, when the media focuses more on his detractors in the GOP than his supporters.

 "I think that honestly they should go about their business and they should do a wonderful job and work on budgets and get the budgets down and get the military the kind of money they need and lots of other things, and they shouldn't be talking so much," he said. "They should go out and do their job, let me do my job." ||||| Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, left, shouts to Secret Service agents that supporter Diana Brest, right, had been waiting in line since 2 a.m. to see the candidate speak at a rally Saturday,... (Associated Press)

 Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, left, shouts to Secret Service agents that supporter Diana Brest, right, had been waiting in line since 2 a.m. to see the candidate speak at a rally Saturday, June 18, 2016, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin) (Associated Press)

 Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, left, shouts to Secret Service agents that supporter Diana Brest, right, had been waiting in line since 2 a.m. to see the candidate speak at a rally Saturday, June 18, 2016, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin) (Associated Press) Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, left, shouts to Secret Service agents that supporter Diana Brest, right, had been waiting in line since 2 a.m. to see the candidate speak at a rally Saturday,... (Associated Press)

 WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump says the country should "seriously" consider profiling Muslims in the United States as a terrorism-fighting tool.

 The presumptive Republican presidential nominee says other countries use profiling and "it's not the worst thing to do."

 In an interview with CBS' "Face the Nation," Trump said, "I hate the concept of profiling, but we have to start using common sense" and "look at it seriously."

 Profiling is the government practice of targeting people for investigation based factors such as their race, religion or nationality. Civil libertarians have decried the practice as discriminatory.

 Trump says that in the age of international terrorism, it's a matter of choosing "common sense" over "political correctness."

 He's also proposed a temporarily ban on foreign Muslims from entering the United States. |||||

– In the wake of the Orlando shooting one week ago, Donald Trump says the country should do what it has to do to prevent future such attacks, and he's putting racial profiling squarely on the table. "Well I think profiling is something that we're going to have to start thinking about as a country," Trump tells CBS News' Face the Nation on Sunday. "Other countries do it, you look at Israel and you look at others, they do it and they do it successfully. And I hate the concept of profiling but we have to start using common sense and we have to use our heads. It's not the worst thing to do." Civil libertarians have decried profiling as discriminatory, notes the AP. But Trump maintains that in the age of international terrorism, it's a matter of choosing "common sense" over "political correctness." Of the Orlando gunman, Trump added, "You look at his past, I've never seen a past quite like that. You look at his record in school, you look at a lot of other things. There were a lot of red flags, this was not a very good young man." He's also proposed a temporary ban on foreign Muslims from entering the United States.


Summarize this article:

Story highlights U.S. makes another drop of food and water to Iraqis stranded on mountain

 Fighter jets and drones targeted an ISIS mortar position and a convoy, Pentagon says

 The warplanes targeted an ISIS convoy near Irbil, the Pentagon says

 ISIS militants capture dam north of Mosul, Kurdish official says

 U.S. fighter jets and drones repeatedly bombed Sunni Islamic extremists in northern Iraq on Friday, targeting what officials described as ISIS artillery units and convoys advancing on the Kurdish regional capital of Irbil.

 The airstrikes ramped up America's involvement in Iraq where ISIS, which calls itself the Islamic State, is seizing control of towns and key infrastructure in an advance that has forced hundreds of thousands to run for their lives.

 The critical Mosul Dam is now in the hands of ISIS fighters, authorities said, while 150 hundred miles to the east tens of thousands of Iraq's minority Yazidis were trapped on a mountain by ISIS fighters below who vowed to kill them.

 News of the second round of U.S. airstrikes came just after the governor of Irbil told CNN that ISIS may be as close as 30 kilometers (just over 18 miles) from the city of more than a million people.

 The airstrikes began just hours after President Barack Obama authorized "targeted airstrikes," saying in a televised address late Thursday that the United States had an obligation to protect its personnel in Iraq and prevent a potential genocide of minority groups by ISIS.

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 Obama said there will be no buildup of U.S. combat troops in Iraq. "As commander in chief, I will not allow the United States to be dragged into fighting another war in Iraq," the President said.

 Hitting ISIS

 Two U.S. F/A 18 fighters first struck an ISIS artillery unit outside of Irbil, dropping two 500-pound laser-guided bombs at about 6:45 a.m. ET Friday, Pentagon spokesman Navy Rear Adm. John Kirby said.

 Later, a drone targeted an ISIS mortar position, Kirby said. When ISIS fighters returned to the site a short time later, the drone struck the target again, he said.

 That was followed a short time later by a second round of airstrikes, carried out by four U.S. fighter jets, that targeted an ISIS convoy of seven vehicles and another mortar position, Kirby said.

 The F/A 18s made two passes, dropping a total of eight laser-guided bombs, he said.

 Before the ISIS onslaught, the region had been the most stable in Iraq and a cooperative ally of the United States. U.S. military advisers and consular personnel are stationed in Irbil.

 At this point, the United States has hundreds of military personnel in Iraq, including advisers sent in recent weeks to coordinate with Iraqi and Kurdish military officials in response to the ISIS rampage. The USS George H.W. Bush and other Navy ships also are in the region, and the FA/18s in Friday's initial strike came from the aircraft carrier, officials said.

 Airstrikes are "very important" because ISIS fighters are well-armed and are outgunning the Kurdish forces, thanks to the weapons the militants seized from the Iraqi military in Mosul, Irbil Gov. Nawzad Hadi said.

 Even as the airstrikes were under way, there was news that ISIS militants captured Iraq's largest hydroelectric dam, just north of Mosul, Iraq's second-largest city. According to a senior Kurdish official, the militant fighters have been using U.S.-made weapons seized during fighting from the Iraqi army, including M1 Abrams tanks.

 There had been conflicting reports about who controlled the dam on the Tigris River, with heavy fighting under way between ISIS fighters and Kurdish forces, known as peshmerga. U.S. officials have warned that a failure of the dam would be catastrophic, resulting in flooding all the way to Baghdad.

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 In other fighting, an Iraqi airstrike killed 45 ISIS fighters and injured 60 Friday in the northern town of Sinjar, the country's state-run National Media Center said.

 Sinjar is the town that ISIS overran last weekend, forcing tens of thousands of Yazidis to flee into surrounding mountains without food, water or shelter and prompting concerns of a potential genocide. The Yazidis are of Kurdish descent, and their religion is considered a pre-Islamic sect that draws from Christianity, Judaism and Zoroastrianism.

 U.S. flights prohibited

 In other signs of a growing regional conflict: The Federal Aviation Administration issued a notice prohibiting U.S. airlines from flying through Iraqi airspace "due to the hazardous situation created by the armed conflict."

 The developments showed that the lightning advance by ISIS fighters across northern Iraq this year has become a battle for the nation's future and overall stability in a part of the world wracked for decades by periodic war.

 U.S. warplanes patrolling the skies over northern Iraq have a "green light" to go after perceived ISIS threats to the Kurdish capital, Irbil, or to minority populations, said deputy national security adviser Ben Rhodes.

 Airstrikes are also possible to help Kurdish forces end the siege by ISIS in the northern Iraqi mountains, where tens of thousands of Yazidis have sought refuge, Earnest, the White House spokesman, said Friday.

 ISIS fighters have surrounded the Yazidis on the ground below.

 "If there can be American military might that can tip (the) balance, we'll look for an opportunity to do that," Earnest said.

 Kurdish pleas

 In announcing his airstrike decision Thursday night, Obama said the militants would get hit "should they move towards the city."

 Kurdish leaders have been pleading for the United States or NATO to buttress their forces against ISIS from the air. The President seems to have heard their appeal.

 "We do whatever is necessary to protect our people," Obama said, adding, "We support our allies when they're in danger."

 Before Obama announced the airstrikes, two U.S. military cargo planes airdropped 5,300 gallons of water and 8,000 meals onto Mount Sinjar, where some Yazidi children had died from dehydration.

 U.S. F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet

 Photos: U.S. military's fighter fleet Photos: U.S. military's fighter fleet An F/A-18E Super Hornet from the Sunliners of Strike Fighter Squadron 81 taxis onto a catapult before launching from the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson. Hide Caption 1 of 9 Photos: U.S. military's fighter fleet An F-15E Strike Eagle was designed for long-range, high-speed interdiction without relying on escort or electronic warfare aircraft. It was derived from the F-15 Eagle, which was developed to enhance U.S. air superiority during the Vietnam War. Hide Caption 2 of 9 Photos: U.S. military's fighter fleet A F-22 Raptor flies over Marietta, Georgia, home of the Lockheed Martin plant where it was built. The F-22 is the only fighter capable of simultaneously conducting air-to-air and air-to-ground combat missions. Hide Caption 3 of 9 Photos: U.S. military's fighter fleet F-16 Fighting Falcons are parked at the Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Center in Tucson, Arizona, on December 11, 2004. General Dynamics (which was later sold to Lockheed) delivered the U.S. Air Force its first F-16As in 1979. More than 4,500 of the fighters have been built, and they are used by more than 20 nations in addition to the United States. Hide Caption 4 of 9 Photos: U.S. military's fighter fleet A F-35C conducts a test flight over the Chesapeake Bay on February 11, 2011. Inspections of F-35 engines have been ordered after a runway fire at Eglin Air Force Base on June 23. The F-35 Lightning II has been beset by delays and cost overruns in the years since its introduction. Hide Caption 5 of 9 Photos: U.S. military's fighter fleet An A-10 Thunderbolt II from the 52nd Fighter Wing, 81st Fighter Squadron, Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany, in flight during a NATO Operation Allied Force combat mission. Hide Caption 6 of 9 Photos: U.S. military's fighter fleet An F/A-18 Hornet is pictured aboard the USS George H.W. Bush on May 19, 2009. The F/A-18 Hornet, a late-'70s contemporary of the Air Force's F-16 Fighting Falcon, became the workhorse of U.S. carrier-based air power and still supplements the Navy's and Marines' more current fleet of F/A-18E and F/A-18F Super Hornets. It is designed as both a fighter and an attack aircraft. Hide Caption 7 of 9 Photos: U.S. military's fighter fleet Pilots perform daily flight checks on their F-5E/F Tiger aircraft in Key West, Florida, on January 7, 2005. The Vietnam-era aircraft -- one of several offshoots of the original Northrup F-5s that went into service in the early 1960s -- is used to simulate adversary aircraft in training. Hide Caption 8 of 9 Photos: U.S. military's fighter fleet A AV-8B Harrier lands on board the USS Nassau on April 14, 1999, after a strike mission into Kosovo. The AV-8B Harrier is a single-engine ground-attack aircraft capable of vertical or short takeoff and landing. Though production of the aircraft ceased in 2003, the U.S. Marine Corps is looking at systems enhancements and plans to continue using Harriers well into the next decade. Hide Caption 9 of 9

 JUST WATCHED Report: ISIS captures Iraq's largest dam Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Report: ISIS captures Iraq's largest dam 03:56

 According to a U.S. official, a Predator drone flying overhead indicates the Yazidis have 63 of the 72 pallets dropped with aid supplies. It's not clear if the other pallets missed the drop zone or are in ISIS hands.

 Late Friday, the Defense Department announced that U.S. military planes made another airdrop of food and water for Iraqi citizens stranded on Mount Sinjar.

 The British government said Friday it would support the U.S. humanitarian effort and planned airdrops of its own.

 French President François Hollande joined the growing chorus of condemnation of the ISIS attacks and called on the international community to respond.

 "France is ready to take its part," Hollande said in a statement from his office that called for the European Union "to take an active role very quickly" and put in place all the necessary assistance to respond to the crisis.

 Meanwhile, the United Nations in Iraq was "urgently preparing a humanitarian corridor to allow those in need to flee the areas under threat," said Nickolay Mladenov, the special representative to the U.N. secretary-general.

 He welcomed the "cooperation between the Government of Iraq, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and the international community to help prevent genocide and fight terrorism," according to a U.N. statement.

 Iraqi Foreign MInister Hoshyar Zebari told reporters Friday from Irbil that his government is working with the KRG -- including supplying the Kurdish peshmerga with ammunition and military helicopters.

 This hasn't always been the case "because of political issues," the KRG's official website notes. Yet the same site reported that Zebari said "it is now clear that the peshmerga and the Iraqi security forces are fighting together against a common enemy."

 Beheadings

 ISIS has executed people who don't share their fanatical interpretation of Sunni Islam and posted videos of their killings to the Internet. "Convert to Islam or die" is the militants' ultimatum to those captured.

 They also have beheaded victims and placed their heads on spikes to strike terror in the population, a senior administration official said.

 Already, the Obama administration is rapidly funneling weapons to Iraqi forces. Factories are operating seven days a week to produce them, a senior administration official said.

 The administration has pushed for Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's Shiite-dominated regime to be replaced by an ethnically more inclusive government

 But two Republican senators said in a statement that the President's actions do not go far enough. And the United States should not wait on Iraq to pull together before Washington takes action.

 Sens. John McCain of Arizona and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina want to see U.S. forces take the fight to ISIS.

 "It should include U.S. airstrikes against ISIS leaders, forces, and positions both in Iraq and Syria," their statement read. ||||| IRBIL, Iraq (AP) — Iraqis on Friday welcomed the U.S. airlift of emergency aid to thousands of people who fled to the mountains to escape Islamic extremists and called for greater intervention, as U.S. warplanes struck the militants for the first time.

 Followers of Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr attend open-air Friday prayers in the Shiite stronghold of Sadr City, Baghdad, Iraq, Friday, Aug. 8 , 2014. (AP Photo/Karim Kadim) (Associated Press)

 A displaced Iraqi Christian woman holds a picture of her four-year-old relative, David, who was killed by militants, at St. Joseph Church in Irbil, northern Iraq, Thursday, Aug. 7, 2014. Late Wednesday,... (Associated Press)

 FILE - In this April 12, 2013, file photo, a U.S. Marine F/A-18 Hornet jet flies low pass during Philippines-US joint military exercise in northern Philippines. President Barack Obama authorized U.S.... (Associated Press)

 A Shiite fighter strands guard next to followers of Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr attending open-air Friday prayers in the Shiite stronghold of Sadr City, Baghdad, Iraq, Friday, Aug. 8, 2014. (AP Photo/Karim... (Associated Press)

 A displaced Iraqi Christian man, Adib Elias, holds a picture of his four-year-old son, David, who was killed by militants, at St. Joseph Church in Irbil, northern Iraq, Thursday, Aug. 7, 2014. Late Wednesday,... (Associated Press)

 Followers of Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr attend open-air Friday prayers in the Shiite stronghold of Sadr City, Baghdad, Iraq, Friday, Aug. 8 , 2014. (AP Photo/Karim Kadim) (Associated Press)

 Cargo planes dropped parachuted crates of food and water over an area in the mountains outside Sinjar, where thousands of members of the Yazidi minority where sheltering, according to witnesses in the militant-held town, who asked not to be identified for security reasons.

 The airstrikes were meanwhile launched outside the Kurdish regional capital Irbil, and marked the first time U.S. forces have directly targeted the extremist Islamic State group, which controls large areas of Syria and Iraq.

 In contrast to Washington's decision to invade Iraq more than a decade ago, both the airdrop and the authorization of military action against the Islamic State group were widely welcomed by Iraqi and Kurdish officials fearful of the militants' lightning advance across the country.

 "We thank Barack Obama," said Khalid Jamal Alber, from the religious affairs ministry in the semi-autonomous Kurdish government in northern Iraq.

 The Iraqi Ministry of Immigration and the Displaced also welcomed the aid drops. The ministry's spokesman, Satar Nawrouz, said the drops came "just in time."

 After seizing Iraq's second largest city Mosul in June, the Islamic State group advanced across the north, pushing back Kurdish forces and coming within 40 miles (60 kilometers) of Irbil.

 On Friday the Pentagon said U.S. fighter jets had dropped 500-pound bombs on a piece of artillery and a truck towing it after it fired near U.S. personnel outside the city.

 The extremist group's capture of a string of towns and villages in the north has sent minority communities fleeing for their lives. The Islamic state views Yazidis and Shiite Muslims as apostates, and has demanded Christians either convert to Islam or pay a special tax.

 Tens of thousands of Yazidis have been trapped in the mountains since the Islamic State overran Sinjar. The militants issued an ultimatum to the Yazidis, telling them they must convert to Islam, pay a religious tax, flee or face death.

 Faced with the threats, about 50,000 Yazidis — half of them children, according to U.N. figures — fled to the nearby mountains, where they were running out of food and water.

 An Iraqi military handout video posted online showed Iraqi troops in helicopters delivering aid to the area. The footage corresponds to AP reporting of events.

 Traveling in India, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said earlier Friday that if Islamic militants threaten U.S. interests in Iraq or the thousands of refugees in the mountains, the U.S. military has enough intelligence to clearly single out the attackers and launch effective airstrikes.

 He also told reporters that more than 60 of the 72 bundles of food and water airdropped onto the mountain reached the people stranded there.

 The rush of people expelled from their homes or fleeing violence has exacerbated Iraq's already-dire humanitarian crisis, with some 200,000 Iraqis joining the 1.5 million people already displaced from violence this year.

 A representative of Iraq's most influential Shiite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, called for a more comprehensive international intervention to support the Iraqi government.

 "The condemnation and consolation statements in support of the affected people, or sending some humanitarian aid, is not enough. Rather, solid plans, in cooperation with the Iraqi government, should be put in place to confront and eliminate the terrorists," said al-Sistani's spokesman Abdul-Mahdi al-Karbalaie in his Friday sermon in the holy city of Karbala.

 Obama's announcement on Thursday reflects the deepest American engagement in Iraq since U.S. troops withdrew in late 2011, after nearly a decade of war.

 The decision appears to have been driven by fears of an impending massacre of the tens of thousands who fled, as well as the longstanding U.S. ties with Iraq's Kurds, which go back to the first Gulf War in the 1990s.

 Washington has been more hesitant to intervene on behalf of the central government in Baghdad. Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has been widely blamed for the crisis, with critics accusing him of monopolizing power and pursuing a sectarian agenda that excluded Sunnis and Kurds.

 The Islamic State group, which has carved out a self-styled caliphate across wide swaths of Syria and Iraq, seized Iraq's largest hydroelectric dam on Thursday, taking control of enormous power and water resources and leverage over the Tigris River that runs through the heart of Baghdad.

 On Thursday the group said it has seized 17 Iraqi cities, towns and targets — including the dam and a military base — over the past five days, including Qaraqoush, the largest Christian village in Iraq.

 An Iraqi government official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to media, confirmed the takeover of the dam and described the situation as "very dangerous."

 In Irbil, about 3,000 Christians who fled their homes in Qaraqoush huddled inside St. Joseph's cathedral. They said they were happy about the possibility of American airstrikes.

 "We are pleased with the airstrikes and we hope we can go back to our properties," said one of the Qaraqoush refugees, 43-year-old Luay Janan.

 ___

 Yacoub reported from Baghdad. Associated Press writer Vivian Salama in Baghdad, Qassim Abdul-Zahra in Boston and Lolita Baldor in New Delhi contributed to this report. ||||| WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. fighters dropped bombs on Islamic militants in Iraq Friday, the Pentagon said, carrying out President Barack Obama's promise of military force to counter the advancing militants and confront the threat they pose to Iraqi civilians and Americans still stationed there.

 FILE - This June 20, 2007, file photo shows a C-130-J transport aircraft over Little Rock Air Force Base in Jacksonville, Ark. President Barack Obama authorized U.S. airstrikes in northern Iraq, Thursday,... (Associated Press)

 President Barack Obama approaches the podium to speak about the situation in Iraq in the State Dining Room at the White House in Washington, Thursday, Aug. 7, 2014. Obama says he has authorized the U.S.... (Associated Press)

 President Barack Obama speaks about the situation in Iraq in the State Dining Room at the White House in Washington, Thursday, Aug. 7, 2014. Obama says he has authorized the U.S. military to launch targeted... (Associated Press)

 President Barack Obama speaks about the situation in Iraq in the State Dining Room at the White House in Washington, Thursday, Aug. 7, 2014. Obama says he's authorized the U.S. military to carry out airstrikes... (Associated Press)

 President Barack Obama speaks about the situation in Iraq in the State Dining Room at the White House in Washington, Thursday, Aug. 7, 2014. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak) (Associated Press)

 Pentagon press secretary Rear Adm. John Kirby said that two F/A-18 jets dropped 500-pound bombs on a piece of artillery and the truck towing it. Kirby said the fighters had taken off from the aircraft carrier USS George HW Bush in the Persian Gulf to conduct the mission. He said it wasn't clear how many militants might have been killed in the strike.

 The Pentagon said the militants were using the artillery to shell Kurdish forces defending Irbil.

 For the United States, it was a re-engagement in the long sectarian war from which American combat forces had been withdrawn — on President Barack Obama's orders — in late 2011.

 In a televised speech Thursday night, Obama threatened to renew U.S. military involvement. At the same time, he announced that U.S. military planes already had carried out airdrops of food and water, at the request of the Iraqi government, to tens of thousands of Iraqi religious minorities atop a mountain surrounded by militants and desperately in need of supplies.

 "America is coming to help," Obama declared.

 Speaking to reporters while traveling in India Friday, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said the U.S. military has sufficient intelligence resources and assets in place to launch strikes by both manned and unmanned aircraft in the region.

 Asked if the Islamic State group could successfully hide among civilians to evade strikes, Hagel said if the Islamic State moves against Irbil, Baghdad or the refugees trapped on a mountain, "it's pretty clear who they are, and they would be pretty identifiable where our airstrikes could be effective."

 The Yazidis, who follow an ancient religion with ties to Zoroastrianism, fled their homes after the Islamic State group issued an ultimatum to convert to Islam, pay a religious fine, flee their homes or face death.

 "Earlier this week, one Iraqi in the area cried to the world, 'There is no one coming to help.' Well, today, America is coming to help," Obama said. "We're also consulting with other countries — and the United Nations — who have called for action to address this humanitarian crisis."

 The announcement reflected the deepest American engagement in Iraq since U.S. troops left.

 Obama, who made his remarks in a steady and somber tone, has staked much of his legacy as president on ending what he once called the "dumb war" in Iraq.

 Mindful of the public's aversion to another lengthy war, Obama acknowledged that the prospect of a new round of U.S. military action would be a cause for concern among many Americans. He vowed anew not to put American combat troops back on the ground in Iraq and said there was no U.S. military solution to the crisis.

 "As commander in chief, I will not allow the United States to be dragged into fighting another war in Iraq," Obama said.

 Even so, he outlined a rationale for airstrikes in the event the Islamic State militants advanced on American troops in Irbil and the U.S. consulate there in the Kurdish region of Iraq. The troops were sent to Iraq earlier this year as part of the White House response to the extremist group's swift movement across the border with Syria and into Iraq.

 "When the lives of American citizens are at risk, we will take action," Obama said. "That's my responsibility as commander in chief."

 He said he had also authorized the use of targeted military strikes if necessary to help the Iraqi security forces protect civilians.

 The Pentagon said the airdrops were performed by one C-17 and two C-130 cargo aircraft that together delivered a total of 72 bundles of food and water. They were escorted by two F/A-18 fighters from an undisclosed air base in the region.

 The planes delivered 5,300 gallons of fresh drinking water and 8,000 pre-packaged meals and were over the drop area for less than 15 minutes at a low altitude.

 The president cast the mission to assist the Yazidis as part of the American mandate to assist around the world when the U.S. has the unique capabilities to help avert a massacre.

 In those cases, Obama said, "we can act carefully and responsibly to prevent a potential act of genocide."

 Officials said the U.S. was prepared to undertake additional humanitarian airdrops if necessary, though they did not say how quickly those missions could occur.

 Administration officials had said earlier they believed unilateral U.S. strikes would be consistent with international law, in part because the Iraqi government has asked for Washington to take military action. They also said Obama had the constitutional authority to act on his own in order to protect American citizens.

 Obama had similarly authorized strikes in Syria last summer after chemical weapons were deployed, but those attacks were never carried out, in part because of domestic political concerns and also because an international agreement to strip Syria of its stockpiles of the deadly gases.

 The president has also faced persistent calls to take military action in Syria on humanitarian grounds, given that more than 170,000 people have been killed there.

 Critics, including some Republicans in Congress, have argued that Obama's cautious approach to Syria has allowed the Islamic State group to flourish there, growing strong enough to move across the border with Iraq and make swift gains.

 Republican Sens. John McCain of Arizona and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina praised Obama's proposed actions Thursday night but said much more will be necessary.

 "This should include the provision of military and other assistance to our Kurdish, Iraqi and Syrian partners" who are fighting the militants, airstrikes against the militants' leaders and forces and support for Sunni Iraqis who seek to resist the extremists, they said in a statement.

 In light of the militants' advances, Obama dispatched about 800 U.S. forces to Iraq earlier this year, with those troops largely split between joint operation centers in Baghdad and Irbil.

 More than half are providing security for the embassy and U.S. personnel. American service members also are involved in improving U.S. intelligence, providing security cooperation and conducting assessments of Iraqi capabilities.

 ___

 Associated Press writers Josh Lederman and Darlene Superville contributed to this report.

 ___

 Follow Julie Pace at http://twitter.com/jpaceDC and Robert Burns at http://twitter.com/RobertBurnsAP |||||

– The US launched airstrikes against Iraq's Islamic State militants this morning. "US military aircraft conduct strike on ISIL artillery," tweeted Rear Adm. John Kirby. "Artillery was used against Kurdish forces defending (Irbil), near US personnel." He confirms that F/A-18 jets dropped a pair of laser-guided 500-pound bombs on militants towing artillery at about 6:45am Eastern, reports the AP. US military trainers are stationed nearby. More: The F/A-18s were based on the aircraft carrier USS George HW Bush in the Persian Gulf and took off on the orders of the commander of US Central Command, CNN reports. (President Obama authorized airstrikes last night.) It's unclear how many militants were killed in the strikes. John Kerry, speaking today in Afghanistan, echoed Obama's language, saying the Islamic State's "campaign of terror against the innocent, including the Yazidi and Christian minorities, and its grotesque targeted acts of violence show all the warning signs of genocide." Meanwhile, the AP reports that Iraqi and Kurdish officials are welcoming last night's humanitarian aid drops for Iraqis trapped by the militants in the mountains. "We thank Barack Obama," said one Kurdish official in northern Iraq, while a rep for the Iraqi Ministry of Migration and Displacement said the drops were "just in time."


Shots disrupt MLK Day celebration

 Miami-Dade Police blocked off NW 32nd Avenue from NW 62nd St and several blocks south after shots were fired during the MLK Holiday near Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Park in Liberty City. ||||| MIAMI (AP) — Miami-Dade police say eight people — five of them juveniles — have been wounded in a shooting at Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Park.

 Police Department spokesman Detective Daniel Ferrin says in a news release that two suspects are being questioned about the Monday afternoon shooting. He says two firearms were recovered and the active investigation is continuing.

 The Miami Herald (http://hrld.us/2ji9upu) reports that hundreds of people had gathered in the park after the annual MLK Day parade in the Liberty City neighborhood in northwest Miami-Dade.

 Ferrin says the victims range in age from 11 to 30, with five listed in stable condition and one critical. He says two juveniles grazed by bullets were treated and released on the scene. |||||
What is a one-paragraph summary of the above article?

– Miami-Dade police say eight people—five of them juveniles—have been wounded in a shooting at Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Park, the AP reports. Police spokesman Detective Daniel Ferrin says in a news release that two suspects are being questioned about the Monday afternoon shooting. He says two firearms were recovered and the active investigation is continuing. The Miami Herald reports that hundreds of people had gathered in the park after the annual MLK Day parade in the Liberty City neighborhood in northwest Miami-Dade. Ferrin says the victims range in age from 11 to 30, with five listed in stable condition and one critical. He says two juveniles grazed by bullets were treated and released on the scene. Two weapons were recovered at the scene. As for a motive, police are still investigating. "@MiamiDadePD shameful closing to the MLK Parade. Certainly not what the followers of Dr. King Jr. want out of our community," tweeted Juan Perez, director of the Miami-Dade Police Department.