Nuns would care for priest who killed nun
Nuns would care for priest who killed nun
toledO
A Roman Catholic priest convicted of killing a nun is asking a federal judge in Ohio to let him spend his final days at a nursing home run by nuns.
Attorneys for the Rev. Gerald Robinson say he is near death and want him released from a prison hospice unit in Columbus. A motion filed in federal court Friday says it’s seeking “an act of grace for a dying man.”
Robinson’s attorney says the Little Sisters of the Poor run a home for the elderly and dying near the priest’s hometown of Toledo and have agreed to care for him.
Robinson is serving 15 years to life after being convicted in 2006 of killing Sister Margaret Ann Pahl in 1980.
Rebels to abide by cease-fire in Ukraine
DONETSK, Ukraine
Pro-Russian insurgents in eastern Ukraine agreed Monday to respect a cease-fire declared by the Ukrainian president, raising hopes for an end to months of fighting that have killed hundreds and ravaged the country’s industrial heartland.
The announcement came as the Russian and U.S. presidents traded demands over the conflict. Russian President Vladimir Putin urged direct talks between the government and the rebels. President Barack Obama warned Putin that Moscow will face additional costs if it does not help ease the crisis.
The insurgents’ pledge to respect the cease-fire came on the first day of talks between a former Ukrainian president, the Russian ambassador, European officials and the eastern separatists who have declared independence.
Syria hands over last of declared chemical weapons
NICOSIA, Cyprus
Syria finished handing over to Western powers Monday the 1,300 tons of chemical weapons it acknowledged possessing, completing a deal reached last fall under threat of U.S. airstrikes.
The most-dangerous material will be transferred to an American ship, which will move into international waters and use specialized equipment to destroy the chemicals over the next two months. Other material will be disposed of at toxic-waste sites in various countries.
Questions persist over whether Syrian President Bashar Assad is hiding undeclared poison gases or attacking rebels with chlorine — a toxic industrial gas that is not specifically classified as a chemical weapon.
Politicians and activists hailed Monday’s milestone as a victory for international diplomacy.
Egypt court convicts, sentences journalists
CAIRO
An Egyptian court on Monday convicted three Al-Jazeera journalists and sentenced them to seven years in prison on terrorism-related charges after a trial dismissed by rights groups as a politically motivated sham. The verdict brought a landslide of international condemnation and calls for the newly elected president to intervene.
The ruling stunned the defendants and their families, many of whom had hoped their loved ones would be released because of international pressure on the case.
Magnitude-7.9 quake spawns warnings
ANCHORAGE, Alaska
A strong earthquake near Alaska’s Aleutian Islands triggered a tsunami warning Monday, but only small waves of several inches hit coastal communities.
The National Tsunami Warning Center canceled all tsunami warnings Monday afternoon, about four hours after the earthquake struck.
There were no reports of damage, said Jeremy Zidek, a spokesman for the Alaska Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management.
Associated Press