USA

LOS ANGELES, May 18 (NNN-AGENCIES) – The U.S. death toll from COVID-19 has hit one million, less than three years into the pandemic, and the number is equivalent to a 9/11 attack every day, for 336 days, said a report by the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS).

The confirmed number of dead is roughly equal to how many Americans died in the Civil War and World War II combined. It is as if Boston and Pittsburgh were wiped out, said the report.

WASHINGTON, May 18 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden said on Wednesday the United States would work with Finland and Sweden to stay vigilant against any threats to their shared security while the two countries' NATO membership is being considered.

Biden said in a statement that he strongly supports Finland and Sweden's applications to join NATO which he said would "further strengthen our defense cooperation and benefit the entire Transatlantic Alliance."

LOS ANGELES, May 18 (Xinhua) -- California's gas prices hit a new record high on Tuesday, with a gallon of self-serve regular gasoline costing 6.021 U.S. dollars on average.

It's the first time in history that the average price of regular gas in California surpassed 6 dollars a gallon, according to American Automobile Association (AAA). The state's latest gas price is up sharply from 4.13 dollars a year ago, and 5.84 dollars only a week ago.

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas’ highest court on Wednesday upheld a Republican redistricting law that makes it harder for the only Democrat in the state’s congressional delegation to win reelection in a big victory for the GOP.

The state Supreme Court declined for now to declare that overly partisan gerrymandering violates the Kansas Constitution. The ruling sets district boundaries less than a month before the state’s June 10 filing deadline for congressional candidates.

(AP) — When a shooter attacked a supermarket in Buffalo, New York, over the weekend, its security guard tried to stop him. At least one of his shots hit the gunman, but it didn’t stop the deadly rampage because the gunman was wearing body armor.

Ten Black people died in the racist massacre, including security guard Aaron Salter, a retired Buffalo police officer hailed as a hero. It’s the latest mass shooting in which the gunman apparently came prepared for anyone trying to stop him with a gun.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A former Minneapolis police officer pleaded guilty Wednesday to a state charge of aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter in the killing of George Floyd.

As part of the plea deal, Thomas Lane will have a count of aiding and abetting second-degree unintentional murder dismissed. Lane, along with J. Alexander Kueng and Tou Thao, has already been convicted on federal counts of willfully violating Floyd’s rights during the May 2020 restraint that led to the Black man’s death.

17 May 2022; MEMO: US Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib has introduced a resolution for Congress to recognise the Palestinian Nakba, a day after Palestinians marked the Catastrophe's 74th anniversary. Tlaib was the first Palestinian-American woman to be elected to Congress. The resolution was co-sponsored by Tlaib's fellow Congresswomen Ilhan Omar, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Betty McCollum and Marie Newman.

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Tops Friendly Market was more than a place to buy groceries. As the only supermarket for miles, it became a sort of community hub on Buffalo’s East Side — where you chatted with neighbors and caught up on people’s lives.

“It’s where we go to buy bread and stay for 15, 20 minutes because ... you’re going to find four or five people you know and have a couple conversations before you leave,” said Buffalo City Councilman Ulysees O. Wingo, who represents the struggling Black neighborhood, where he grew up. “You just feel good because this is your store.”

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — First-term U.S. Rep. Madison Cawthorn lost his Republican primary race Tuesday to state Sen. Chuck Edwards, after the pro-Donald Trump firebrand’s personal and political blunders translated into voter unhappiness.

Cawthorn called Edwards to concede the 11th Congressional District primary to Edwards, Cawthorn campaign spokesperson Luke Ball told The Associated Press. The AP later called the race for Edwards over Cawthorn and six other Republican candidates.

16 May 2022; MEMO: The United States has provided $219 million to its allies in Iraq and Syria in 2022, so far, in efforts to reportedly maintain the fight against the terror group, Daesh, and prevent its resurgence.

In a statement yesterday by the US-led international coalition to defeat Daesh, Operation Inherent Resolve (CJTF-OIR), it announced that it had given around $219 million to its "partner forces in Syria and Iraq" for the first quarter of 2022.