USA

NEW YORK, Jan 14 (APP): A prominent international human rights watchdog body has denounced Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government for intensifying repression in Jammu and Kashmir, targeting Muslims in India and for harassing, arresting and prosecuting activists, journalists, and others critics.

UNITED NATIONS, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday issued a call for an inclusive, transparent and peaceful election process across Uganda, a day ahead of opening of the polls.

With presidential and parliamentary elections scheduled to take place on Thursday, the UN chief raised concern over reports of violence and tensions in parts of the country and implored all political actors and their supporters to "refrain from the use of hate speech, intimidation and violence."

NEW YORK, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- The total number of COVID-19 cases in the United States topped 23 million on Wednesday, according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University.

U.S. COVID-19 case count rose to 23,029,450, with a total of 383,939 deaths, as of 5:22 p.m. local time (2222 GMT), according to the CSSE tally.

California reported 2,821,512 cases, followed by Texas with 2,032,809 cases and Florida with 1,517,472 cases. The states of New York and Illinois both registered more than 1 million cases.

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — The Illinois House on Wednesday elected its first Black speaker to replace the longest-serving legislative leader in modern U.S. history, picking Democratic Rep. Emanuel “Chris” Welch for the job and pushing aside Michael Madigan after he was implicated in an ongoing bribery investigation.

Welch, an eight-year House veteran from the Chicago suburb of Hillside, garnered 70 votes from the 118-member House just days after emerging as the front-runner alternative to Madigan, 78, who was first inaugurated as a House member a half-century ago.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. government announced Wednesday that it will halt imports of cotton and tomatoes from the Uighur region of China in its most sweeping action yet to pressure the Communist Party over its campaign against ethnic minorities.

Officials said Customs and Border Protection will use its authority to block products suspected of being produced with forced labor to keep out cotton, tomatoes and related products from the Xinjiang region of northwest China.

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Two years after leaving office, former Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder is facing charges of willful neglect of duty in the Flint water crisis as prosecutors revisit how the city’s water system was contaminated with lead during one of worst manmade environmental disasters in U.S. history.

WASHINGTON (AP) — All through downtown Washington, the primary sound for several blocks was the beeping of forklifts unloading more fencing.

There were no cars or scooters and seemingly no tourists Wednesday, just the occasional jogger and multiple construction crews at work. The U.S. Capitol that proved such a soft target last week was visible only through lines of tall, black fence.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Potential threats and leads are pouring in to law enforcement agencies nationwide after the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. The challenge is now figuring out what’s real and what’s just noise.

Investigators are combing through a mountain of online posts, street surveillance and other intelligence, including information that suggests mobs could try to storm the Capitol again and threats to kill some members of Congress.

WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — A coronavirus action plan being unveiled by President-elect Joe Biden centers on a mass vaccination campaign and closer coordination among all levels of government.

The Biden plan comes as a divided nation remains caught in the grip of the pandemic’s most dangerous wave yet. So far, more than 380,000 Americans have died.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Joe Biden will no longer be taking an Amtrak train to Washington for his inauguration because of security concerns, a person briefed on the decision told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

The president-elect’s decision reflects growing worries over potential threats in the Capitol and across the U.S. in the lead-up to Biden’s Jan. 20 inauguration.