North America

WASHINGTON (AP) — Jerome Powell is confronting his stiffest test yet as head of the Federal Reserve in an atmosphere vastly altered from what his predecessors faced. It makes an uncertain situation even more challenging.

On Tuesday, Powell announced a surprise half-point interest rate cut that shrank the Fed’s key rate to a range of just 1% to 1.25%. It marked the first time the central bank has cut rates between scheduled policy meetings since the 2008 financial crisis. And it’s the steepest rate cut the Fed has made since then.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump confirmed Tuesday that he spoke on the phone to a Taliban leader, making him the first U.S. president believed to have ever spoken directly with the militant group responsible for the deaths of thousands of U.S. troops in nearly 19 years of fighting in Afghanistan.

Trump said the United States has a shared interest with the Taliban, which harbored al-Qaida before the 9/11 attacks.

NEW YORK (AP) — For the first time, a U.S. survey found that black children appear to be more likely than white kids to be diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and other learning disabilities.

Previous studies had found the diagnosis was far more likely in white kids.

It’s not known what might have driven the change described in Wednesday’s report, said lead author Benjamin Zablotsky of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Rescuers searched through shattered Tennessee neighborhoods for bodies Tuesday, less than a day after tornadoes ripped across Nashville and other parts of the state as families slept. At least 24 people were killed, some in their beds, authorities said.

The twisters that struck in the hours after midnight shredded more than 140 buildings and buried people in piles of rubble and wrecked basements. The storms moved so quickly that many people in their path could not flee to safer areas.

WASHINGTON (AP) — A resurgent Joe Biden scored sweeping victories across the country with the backing of a diverse coalition and progressive rival Bernie Sanders seized Super Tuesday’s biggest prize with a win in California as the Democratic Party’s once-crowded presidential field suddenly transformed into a two-man contest.

03 Mar 2020; MEMO: A UN report issued by the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria has accused Russia, the Syrian regime and Kurdish militias of committing war crimes in Syria.

A member of the UN investigation panel, Hanny Megally, explained that areas controlled by Kurdish militias in Syria witnessed violations of civilians’ rights, including those of children.

UNITED NATIONS, Mar 03 (APP): The World Health Organization (WHO) has said that containment of the novel coronavirus is “feasible” and is a “top priority,” as more than 3,000 people globally have died from the outbreak and nearly 90,000 have been infected.

“We are in uncharted territory,” WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Monday during a press conference in Geneva. “We have never before seen a respiratory pathogen that is capable of community transmission, but which can also be contained with the right measures.”

UNITED NATIONS, Mar 03 (APP): The United Nations has confirmed the resignation of Ghassan Salame, the world body’s top envoy for Libya, citing failing health caused by the immense stress of the job.

“Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has received a message from Mr. Salame expressing his intention to leave the post,” Stephane Dujarric, the UN chief’s spokesman, told the regular noon briefing at UN Headquarters in New York. .

3 March 2020; AFP: Group of Seven finance ministers and central bank chiefs were set to hold coronavirus talks Tuesday as concerns grew that the epidemic could imperil the health of the global economy.

US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell "will lead a call with their G7 counterparts" on Tuesday, the Treasury Department confirmed in a statement.

Washington, Mar 3 (PTI) The peace deal signed with the Taliban in Doha over the weekend is a conditions-based agreement, US Defence Secretary Mark Esper has said, reiterating that this is an important first step towards a political solution to end the war in Afghanistan.

After 18 years of war, the US and the Taliban signed the peace deal in Doha on Saturday to facilitate intra-Afghan dialogue in Oslo this month and the withdrawal of all foreign forces from Afghanistan in 14 months.