North America

MONTREAL, Jan 4 (NNN-AGENCIES) — A Canadian court has awarded more than CAN$100 million in compensation to the families of six people who died aboard a Ukrainian passenger jet shot down over Tehran almost two years ago, local media said.

Iran shot down Ukraine International Airlines flight PS752 shortly after take-off from its capital Tehran on Jan 8, 2020, killing all 176 people aboard, including 85 Canadian citizens and permanent residents.

Three days later, the Iranian armed forces admitted having shot down the Kiev-bound plane “by mistake”.

Jan 3 (Reuters) - A federal judge on Monday barred the U.S. Department of Defense from punishing a group of Navy SEALs and other special forces members who refused COVID-19 vaccines on religious grounds.

U.S. District Judge Reed O'Connor, acting in response to a lawsuit filed on behalf of 35 special forces service members, issued a preliminary injunction blocking the Navy and Defense Department from enforcing the mandate.

NEW YORK, Jan. 4 (Xinhua) -- One year after the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, over 60 percent of Americans are deeply pessimistic about the future of democracy, according to a new NPR/Ipsos poll published on Monday.

The poll found that 64 percent of Americans believe U.S. democracy is "in crisis and at risk of failing."

WASHINGTON, Jan. 4 (Xinhua) -- The United States shattered a single-day record with over 1 million COVID-19 cases on Monday amid the rapid spread of Omicron variant and government decisions to ease prevention and control measures in the country.

As of 0500 GMT Tuesday, the country registered about 1.07 million confirmed cases in the past 24 hours, according to Johns Hopkins University.

NEW YORK (AP) — The New York attorney general’s office confirmed Monday that it has subpoenaed former President Donald Trump and his two eldest children, Ivanka and Donald Trump Jr., demanding their testimony in an investigation into the family’s business practices.

Attorney General Letitia James’ office said in a court filing that it recently issued subpoenas seeking testimony and documents from the Trumps as part of a yearslong civil probe involving matters including “the valuation of properties owned or controlled” by Trump and his company.

BOULDER, Colo. (AP) — Investigators seeking the cause of the Colorado wildfire that destroyed nearly 1,000 buildings have narrowed their search to an area near Boulder, but it could be days or weeks before details are released, the sheriff said Monday.

The search is focused on an area where a passer-by captured video of a burning shed on the day the fire began, Boulder County Sheriff Joe Pelle told a news briefing. He said dozens of people have been interviewed thus far.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Days before the anniversary of the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer announced the Senate will vote soon on easing filibuster rules in an effort to advance stalled voting legislation that Democrats say is needed to protect America’s democracy.

In a letter Monday to colleagues, Schumer, D-N.Y., said the Senate “must evolve” and will “debate and consider” the rule changes by Jan. 17, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, as the Democrats seek to overcome Republican opposition to their elections law package.

BOSTON (AP) — A refugee who survived the Khmer Rouge’s brutal rule has become the first Cambodian American mayor in the United States.

Sokhary Chau, a city councilor in Lowell, Massachusetts, was unanimously picked by his council peers to assume the legislative body’s top post on Monday. He also became the city’s first Asian American mayor.

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — Albany’s top prosecutor said Tuesday he is dropping a criminal charge accusing former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo of fondling an aide.

Albany County District Attorney David Soares’ decision comes three days before the Democratic ex-governor was due to answer the misdemeanor charge in court.

WASHINGTON (AP) — A record 4.5 million American workers quit their jobs in November, a sign of confidence and more evidence that the U.S. job market is bouncing back strongly from last year’s coronavirus recession.

The Labor Department also reported Tuesday that employers posted 10.6 million job openings in November, down from 11.1 million in October but still high by historical standards.

Employers hired 6.7 million people in November, up from 6.5 million in October, the Labor Department reported Tuesday in its monthly Jobs Openings and Labor Turnover Survey.