North America

MEXICO CITY, July 15 (Xinhua) -- At least 14 Mexican marines were killed on Friday when their helicopter crashed during the arrest and transport of a drug lord in northern Mexico, the Mexican Navy said.

The Black Hawk helicopter, owned by the Navy, was escorting another aircraft carrying Rafael Caro Quintero, founder of the Guadalajara Cartel, who was arrested earlier in the day in the northern state of Sinaloa.

One person survived the crash, the cause of which has yet to be determined, the Navy said in a statement.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The House committee investigating the U.S. Capitol attack subpoenaed the Secret Service on Friday night for text messages agents reportedly deleted around Jan. 6, 2021, as the panel probes Donald Trump’s actions at the time of the deadly siege.

Committee Chairman Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., said in a statement that the committee understands the messages had been “erased.” Thompson outlined an aggressive timeline for production of the documents by Tuesday.

NEW YORK (AP) — Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was almost hidden from the street as she stood behind a nondescript building in Queens that a local nonprofit is buying with federal money. But people spotted her anyway, slowly trickling up the sidewalk and forming a small line to get a picture with her.

The New York congresswoman wrapped up her visit, did a quick interview with a Bengali-language TV crew and posed for pictures with the people who were hovering nearby.

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Four years, five months and four days after Nikolas Cruz murdered 17 at Parkland’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, his trial for the deadliest U.S. mass shooting to reach a jury begins Monday with opening statements.

Delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic and legal wrangling, the penalty-only trial is expected to last four months with the seven-man, five-woman jury being exposed to horrific evidence throughout. The jurors will then decide whether Cruz, 23, is sentenced to death or life without the possibility of parole.

MEXICO CITY (AP) — As Mexican marines closed in on infamous drug lord Rafael Caro Quintero deep in the mountains of his native state of Sinaloa, it was a 6-year-old bloodhound named “Max” who rousted from the undergrowth the man allegedly responsible for the murder of a U.S. DEA agent more than three decades ago.

(AP) --- Six people have died after a dust storm fueled by wind gusts topping 60 mph caused a pileup on Interstate 90 in Montana, authorities said.

Twenty-one vehicles crashed Friday evening and Montana Highway Patrol Sgt. Jay Nelson said authorities believe the weather was the cause.

“It appears as though there was heavy winds, causing a dust storm with zero visibility,” he said.

While the highway patrol did not have an immediate count of the number of injuries, Nelson said additional ambulances had to be called in from Billings to help.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is promising “strong executive action” to combat climate change, despite dual setbacks in recent weeks that have restricted his ability to regulate carbon emissions and boost clean energy such as wind and solar power.

DENVER (AP) — It was no shock that state Rep. Ron Hanks and Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters handily lost their recent Republican primaries in Colorado for U.S. Senate and secretary of state.

Hanks was outspent 14-to-1 by his rival. Peters, who was vying to become Colorado’s top elections official, had been indicted on seven felony charges alleging she helped orchestrate a breach of her voting system’s hard drive.

UNITED NATIONS, July 15 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Being a reliable supplier, Russia is ready to significantly increase its exports of food and fertilizers to the global market, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin has said.

“On the subject of food security, we would like to note that Russia can significantly increase exports of corresponding goods and fertilizers,” he told the High-Level Political Forum for Sustainable Development under the auspices of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) in New York.

July 15 (Reuters) - NASA and Russia's space agency Roscosmos have signed a long-sought agreement to integrate flights to the International Space Station, allowing Russian cosmonauts to fly on U.S.-made spacecraft in exchange for American astronauts being able to ride on Russia's Soyuz, the agencies said Friday.

"The agreement is in the interests of Russia and the United States and will promote the development of cooperation within the framework of the ISS program," Roscosmos said in a statement, adding it will facilitate the "exploration of outer space for peaceful purposes."