North America

UNITED NATIONS, Mar 13 (APP): UN agencies have underscored their commitment to continue supporting civilians hit by the war in Syria, which this month enters its tenth year.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres issued a statement Thursday evening, declaring that “we cannot allow the tenth year to result in the same carnage, the same flouting of human rights and international humanitarian law.”

The UN chief highlighted the need for a peaceful solution to the crisis in a message posted on his Twitter account.

HAVANA, March 14. /TASS/: The US sanctions imposed on TNK Trading International S.A., a Rosneft subsidiary working with Venezuela, are a manifestation of a criminal policy directed against the interests of the people, Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla wrote in a Twitter post.

NEW YORK, March 14. /TASS/: The US Securities and Exchange Commission has announced charges against Florida-based Russian citizen Denis Sotnikov over his alleged participation in a fraudulent scheme to lure US investors into buying fictitious Certificates of Deposit, the commission said in a statement posted on its website on Friday.

The complaint was filed in the federal court in the District of New Jersey.

New York, Mar 13 (AFP/PTI) US airlines announced additional steps Friday to ground planes and curtail executive pay as they prepare for an unprecedentedly bad travel market in the near-term.

Demand for service at Delta Air Lines is "declining at an accelerated pace daily, driving an unprecedented revenue impact," Chief Executive Ed Bastian said in a letter to employees that announced the carrier will cut overall capacity by 40 per cent.

San Francisco, Mar 13 (AFP/PTI) Microsoft on Friday announced that co-founder Bill Gates has left its board of directors to devote more time to philanthropy.

The 64-year-old stopped being involved in day-to-day operations at the firm more than a decade ago, turning his attention to the foundation he launched with his wife, Melinda.

OTTAWA, March 14 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will be in isolation for two weeks after his wife, Sophie, tested positive for coronavirus.

Sophie Gregoire Trudeau recently returned from London and experienced flu-like symptoms, so she was tested for the coronavirus, the prime minister’s office said. The test came back positive.

(Reuters) - The coronavirus pandemic has begun to impact the U.S. court system, halting civil and criminal jury trials in high-profile venues such as Manhattan’s federal court and delaying a $1 billion trial against Elon Musk that was slated to begin Monday.

The postponements are raising questions about how courts will protect criminal defendants’ rights to a speedy trial, clear a backlog of hundreds of thousands of asylum cases and resolve high-profile corporate disputes.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. appeals court on Friday said it would reconsider a recent decision dismissing a Democratic-led congressional panel’s lawsuit seeking to enforce a subpoena for testimony from former White House Counsel Donald McGahn.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit said it would hear arguments in the case on April 28.

(Reuters) - Apple Inc said late on Friday it will close all its retail stores outside Greater China until March 27, to minimize risk of coronavirus transmission.

"We will be closing all of our retail stores outside of Greater China until March 27," Apple CEO Tim Cook wrote in a letter apple.co/2w768jZ posted on the company's website.

“In all of our offices, we are moving to flexible work arrangements worldwide outside of Greater China,” he added. “That means team members should work remotely if their job allows.”

OTTAWA (Reuters) - The Canadian Parliament rushed through ratification of the new U.S.-Mexico-Canada (USMCA) trade pact on Friday before taking a three-week break to help stop the spread of the coronavirus, a top government official said.

Canada was the last of the three signatories to formally adopt the pact, prompting congratulations from the United States and Mexico.