June 6, 2021 7:51 am
VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis on Sunday expressed sorrow over the discovery in Canada of the remains of 215 Indigenous students of church-run boarding schools but didn’t offer the apology sought by the Canadian prime minister. Francis, in remarks to faithful gathered in St. Peter’s Square, called on political and church authorities to work to shed light on what he called “this sad affair” and to foster healing. Two days earlier, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he was deeply disappointed that the Vatican hadn’t offered an apology, and called on the church to take responsibility. From the 19th century until the 1970s, more than 150,000 Indigenous children were forced to attend state-funded Christian schools, the majority of them run by Catholic missionary congregations, in a campaign to assimilate them into Canadian society. Ground-penetrating radar was used to confirm the remains of the children at the Kamloops Indian Residential School in Kamloops, British Columbia, last month. The school was Canada’s largest such facility and was operated by the Catholic church between 1890 and 1969. The Canadian government has admitted that physical and sexual abuse was rampant in the schools, with students beaten for speaking their native languages.
June 6, 2021 7:49 am
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — The U.S. will give Taiwan 750,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine, part of President Joe Biden’s move to share tens of millions of jabs globally, three American senators said Sunday, after the self-ruled island complained that China is hindering its efforts to secure vaccines as it battles an outbreak. Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth of Illinois, who made a three-hour stop in Taiwan with fellow Democrat Christopher Coons of Delaware and Republican Dan Sullivan of Alaska, said their visit underscores bipartisan U.S. support for the democratic island that Beijing claims as its own renegade territory. Taiwan faces a severe vaccine shortage and has geopolitical significance as a flashpoint in U.S.-China relations. Taiwan was included on a long list of places announced last week that would receive 25 million doses from the United States in what the Biden administration says is the first tranche of at least 80 million doses to be distributed globally. Most of the first tranche, including Taiwan’s, will be sent through COVAX, a U.N.-backed program to distribute vaccines to low and middle-income countries.
June 6, 2021 7:48 am
COLLEVILLE-SUR-MER, France (AP) — When the sun rises over Omaha Beach, revealing vast stretches of wet sand extending toward distant cliffs, one starts to grasp the immensity of the task faced by Allied soldiers on June 6, 1944, landing on the Nazi-occupied Normandy shore. Several ceremonies are scheduled Sunday to commemorate the 77th anniversary of the decisive assault that led to the liberation of France and western Europe from Nazi control, and honor those who fell. On D-Day, more than 150,000 Allied troops landed on the beaches code-named Omaha, Utah, Juno, Sword and Gold, carried by 7,000 boats. This year on June 6, the beaches stood vast and empty as the sun rose, exactly 77 years since the dawn invasion. For the second year in a row, anniversary commemorations are marked by virus travel restrictions that have prevented veterans or families of fallen soldiers from the U.S., Britain, Canada and other Allied countries making the trip to France. Only a few officials were allowed exceptions. Most public events have been canceled, and the official ceremonies are limited to a small number of selected guests and dignitaries.
June 6, 2021 7:44 am
NASHVILLE — The two men accused of shooting and killing a woman originally from Butler County along a Nashville interstate entered not guilty pleas in court Thursday. According to WSMV, Devaunte Hill and James Cowan appeared via video on charges of first-degree murder related to the December 2020 death of Caitlyn Kaufman. Kaufman, 26, was shot and killed while driving to her job as an ICU nurse at a Nashville hospital. The windshield of her SUV and the back windows were smashed by the gunfire. She was found dead in her SUV just before 9 p.m. that night after she failed to show up for her shift at St. Thomas West Hospital. She grew up in Chicora and her family said it was her lifelong dream to move to Nashville. A section of I-440 outside of the city was renamed in her memory. WSMV reported one of the men charged in Kaufman’s death said she had cut them off on the highway and that is what led to the deadly shooting.
June 6, 2021 7:42 am
BURGETTSTOWN, Pa. — Looks like no cheeseburgers in Burgettstown this summer. The Jimmy Buffet and The Coral Reefer Band show at Star Lake amphitheater has been canceled. According to Buffet’s website, the July 15 show had to be canceled because of a scheduling conflict. He has shows in Cincinnati on July 13 and in Nashville on July 16. The website says refunds will be automatically issued for people who already have tickets. The popular island-rock icon’s show was supposed to kick off the live events season at The Pavilion at Star Lake. Instead, Chicago will headline the first show on July 21.
June 6, 2021 4:28 am
A Canonsburg man is accused of embezzling nearly $7 million from another business he worked for. Jon Weston, who owns Katie’s Kandy in Pittsburgh, was federally indicted on charges of fraud, conspiracy, money laundering and filing false tax returns this week. Investigators say Weston was an accountant for Hillandale Farms in Greensburg and worked with the bookkeeper to steal from Hillandale. Investigators say that Weston laundered millions of dollars through the bank accounts for Katie’s Kandy and his chain of car washes. Officials say the embezzlement went on for 14 years until the bookkeeper died in 2019. Weston faces up to 58 years in prison.
June 6, 2021 4:18 am
MCDONALD, Pa. — After over a week, Police have found a McDonald man who was reported missing last month. According to the Washington County Coroner, John R. Terrell, 58, was found dead in a seated position folded over between two cars in a vacant lot Friday around 9:00 p.m. The parking lot was near the 100 block O’Hara Street in the borough. The coroner’s report says the office is investigating the case as a natural death, with the cause of death pending an autopsy and the manner of death still under investigation by the McDonald Police Department. Authorities sent out a release asking for the public’s help in finding Terrell, who was considered missing back on May 28th. According to the release, Terrell was known to suffer from alcoholism.
June 6, 2021 1:50 am
The Washington County Coroner’s Office said Friday that they have identified the human remains found in a burned-out car in Claysville. Authorities say DNA testing shows the body is that of 40-year-old Thomas Ringer of Waynesburg. Ringer’s remains were found in what was left of a burned out vehicle on May 16th on Maple Road. No further details have been released. State Police are asking anyone with information connected to this incident to call their barracks at 724-223-5200.
June 5, 2021 4:35 am
President Joe Biden is portraying the May jobs report as a jumping off point for more spending on infrastructure and education. It’s an argument for his broader agenda to keep growth going. But Friday’s employment numbers also hinted at the limits of how much government aid can be pumped into the world’s largest economy. The 559,000 jobs added were less than what many economists were expecting. A separate figure indicated that too few people are looking for jobs compared to demand from employers. This mismatch means wages are rising sharply. But it also means that inflation could be elevated until market forces sort out supply chains and hiring.
June 5, 2021 4:34 am
UNITED NATIONS (AP) – U.N. experts say Taliban insurgents show no sign of reducing the level of violence in Afghanistan to facilitate peace negotiations with the government. The experts said in a report to the U.N. Security Council circulated Friday that the Taliban appears to be trying to strengthen its military position as leverage, with the “unprecedented violence” of 2020 carrying into 2021. The experts said the Taliban are also reported to be responsible for the great majority of assassinations that have become a feature of the violence in Afghanistan, targeting government officials, women, human rights defenders and journalists among others.
