USA

WASHINGTON (AP) — Moving from house to house is challenging under the best of circumstances, and even with movers as first rate as the housekeepers and other staff who work in the White House.

But the coronavirus pandemic could be a complicating factor as the executive mansion gets ready for a new president and executes the Inauguration Day ritual of moving out one leader and settling in another.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Joe Biden’s plan to scrap President Donald Trump’s vision of “America First” in favor of “diplomacy first” will depend on whether he’s able to regain the trust of allies and convince them that Trumpism is just a blip in the annals of U.S. foreign policy.

It could be a hard sell. From Europe to the Middle East and Asia, Trump’s brand of transactional diplomacy has alienated friends and foes alike, leaving Biden with a particularly contentious set of national security issues.

PHOENIX (AP) — Federal prosecutors who initially said there was “strong evidence” the pro-Trump mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol last week aimed to “capture and assassinate elected officials” backed away from the allegation after the head of the investigation cautioned Friday that the probe is still in its early stages and there was no “direct evidence” of such intentions.

UNITED NATIONS, Jan 15 (APP): Senior UN officials have called on the US to reverse a decision to designate Yemen’s Houthis as a terrorist organization, saying the move will cause a large-scale famine in the Arab country already suffering the worst humanitarian crisis in the world.

The call from UN’s Humanitarian chief Mark Lowcock, head of the World Food Programme (WFP) David Beasley and UN’s Special Envoy for Yemen Martin Griffiths were made Thursday at the virtual U.N. Security Council meeting on Yemen.

NEW YORK, Jan 15 (APP): As Israel presses ahead with its coronavirus vaccination programme, a number of human rights groups and United Nations rights experts have called on the Jewish state to also provide doses to Palestinians in the occupied territories of West Bank and Gaza.

Amnesty International said denying Covid-19 vaccines to Palestinians exposed Israel’s “institutionalised discrimination”.

14 Jan 2021; MEMO: US State Secretary Mike Pompeo has suggested that outgoing President Donald Trump should be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for promoting harmony between Arab countries and Israel.

This comes despite Trump facing trial in the Senate after becoming the first US president to be charged with misconduct in office for a second time.

The trial will be held after the president leaves office next Wednesday.

Washington, Jan 15 (PTI) The IMF believes the farm bills passed by the Indian government have the potential to represent a significant step forward for agricultural reforms, but a social safety net is needed to protect those who might be adversely impacted during the transition to the new system, a spokesperson of the global lender said here.

Gerry Rice, Director of Communications at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), said the new measures will reduce the role of the middlemen and enhance efficiency.

United Nations, Jan 15 (AP-PTI) The UN chief and top officials urged the United States on Thursday to reverse its decision to declare Yemen's Iran-backed rebels a terrorist group to prevent massive famine and death in the conflict-torn Arab nation but the Trump administration in its final days stood by its action.

The US deputy ambassador, Richard Mills, told the Security Council the U.S. has listened to warnings of the terrorist designation's humanitarian impact and will take measures to reduce the impact on aid deliveries and commercial imports.

HOUSTON, Jan. 14 (Xinhua) -- Governor of the U.S. state of New Mexico Michelle Lujan Grisham has issued a state of emergency due to the ongoing and pervasive threat of riots and insurrection, local media reported on Thursday.

According to the Albuquerque Journal, the executive order referenced the events of Jan. 6 when supporters of President Donald Trump stormed the Capitol building in Washington, D.C.

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has tapped nine of her most trusted allies in the House to argue the case for President Donald Trump’s impeachment.

The Democrats, all of whom are lawyers and many of whom have deep experience investigating the president, face the arduous task of convincing skeptical Senate Republicans to convict Trump.