Search for 12 Marines goes into third day with high surf
HONOLULU – The ongoing search for 12 Marines who are missing after two helicopters crashed off Hawaii entered the third day with no plans Sunday morning to call off or suspend the massive effort, the Coast Guard said.
While high surf complicated the mission for rescuers on the water, a green laser off Haleiwa Beach Park on Saturday night struck a Coast Guard plane, forcing crew members to alter search patterns.
“It’s a very, very dangerous thing,” Coast Guard spokeswoman Tara Molle said of the laser, adding that it can be life-threatening for crews flying at night.
The crew of the HC-130 plane wasn’t exposed and didn’t have to land, but they changed their search pattern to avoid being hit again.
The Coast Guard reminded the public that targeting a laser at an aircraft is illegal and could result in fine of $11,000 per violation.
Pope denounces violence done in God’s name
ROME – Pope Francis denounced all religiously inspired violence during a visit to Rome’s main synagogue Sunday, joining the oldest Jewish community in a sign of interfaith friendship at a time of Islamic extremist attacks around the globe.
During a visit marked by tight security and historic continuity, Francis also rejected all forms of anti-Semitism and called for “maximum vigilance” and early intervention to prevent another Holocaust.
Francis joined a standing ovation when Holocaust survivors, some wearing striped scarves reminiscent of their camp uniforms, were singled out for applause at the start of the ceremony. And he elicited an ovation of his own when he paused in his remarks to acknowledge the survivors in the synagogue’s front row.
The visit comes amid a spate of Islamic extremist attacks in Europe, Africa, the Middle East and elsewhere – violence which Francis has repeatedly condemned as anathema to religion, particularly given that Christians and religious minorities have often been the target.
Meet 2016’s worst economic performers
For the world’s worst-performing economies, no good will come from New Year’s resolutions to do better. For many, 2016 will only bring more disappointment, say economists surveyed by Bloomberg.
Oil-rich Venezuela will contract by 3.3 percent this year, the worst forecast of any of the 93 countries in its analysis, followed by junk-rated Brazil, debt-laden Greece and commodities-ravaged Russia.
The club no one wants to join has some surprises. Among the nations with a 50-50 chance of two quarters of contraction is Taiwan. Its annual growth rate will slow dramatically from 4 percent in the first quarter of 2015 to minus 0.6 percent in the third quarter because of a slowdown in exports to China.
Even with expected growth this year of 1.2 percent, Ukraine, one of last year’s worst performers, is still at risk. Economists rate its chance of recession over the next 12 months at 60 percent, the third-highest tied with Argentina.
The outlook is dire for bottom-ranked Venezuela: from shortages of basic goods such as medicine to the collapse in the price of oil, which accounts for 95 percent of the country’s exports, the nation is looking at a third straight year of negative GDP. The opposition party taking over congress for the first time in 16 years offers brave investors a glimpse of good news.
Associated Press & Washington Post
