Earthquake hits Indonesia’s Java island, one death confirmed

Earthquake hits Indonesia’s Java island, one death confirmed

JAKARTA, Indonesia

A strong earthquake shook Indonesia’s most populous island of Java on Friday night, collapsing buildings and killing at least 1 person.

The quake triggered a tsunami warning for parts of Java’s coastline that was lifted about two hours later.

Panicking people ran out of buildings in many areas, and Indonesian television showed heavy traffic on roads as people fled coastal areas.

A 62-year-old man was confirmed dead in the Ciamis region of western Java, and there were reports of more deaths and of injuries in the same region, said National Disaster Mitigation Agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho.

Judge temporarily blocks new Trump rules on birth control

PHILADELPHIA

A federal judge in Philadelphia on Friday ordered the Trump administration not to enforce new rules that could significantly reduce women’s access to free birth control.

Judge Wendy Beetlestone issued the injunction, temporarily stopping the government from enforcing the policy change to former President Barack Obama’s health care law.

The law required most companies to cover birth control at no additional cost, though it included exemptions for religious organizations and some private companies.

The new policy would allow more categories of employers, including publicly traded companies, to opt out of providing free contraception to women by claiming religious objections. It would allow any company that is not publicly traded to deny coverage on moral grounds.

Tillerson retreats on offer of unconditional North Korea talks

WASHINGTON

America’s top diplomat stepped back Friday from his offer of unconditional talks with North Korea, telling world powers the nuclear-armed nation must earn the right to negotiate with the United States.

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson’s declaration before the U.N. Security Council marked a stunning reversal after he proposed discussions with Pyongyang without preconditions earlier this week. That overture was almost immediately rebutted by White House officials.

Still, Tillerson had planned to reiterate his call at a special U.N. ministerial meeting on North Korea at the council Friday. His prepared remarks suggested only that North Korea would have to undertake a sustained halt in its threatening behavior before talks could begin. But Tillerson changed the script.

Moore tells supporters ‘battle is not over’ in Senate race

MONTGOMERY, Ala.

Alabama Republican Roy Moore on Friday told supporters that the “battle is not over” in Alabama’s Senate race even though President Donald Trump and others have called on him to concede.

Moore sent a fundraising email to supporters asking for contributions to his “election integrity fund’ so he could investigate reports of voter fraud.

“I also wanted to let you know that this battle is NOT OVER!” he wrote.

Democrat Doug Jones on Tuesday defeated Moore by about 20,000 votes, or 1.5 percent, according to unofficial returns. But Moore has not yet conceded the heated Alabama race to fill the seat that previously belonged to U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions.

The results of Alabama’s Senate race will be certified between Dec. 26 and Jan. 3 after counties report their official totals.

White House signals Western Wall has to be part of Israel

WASHINGTON

Senior Trump administration officials outlined their view Friday that Jerusalem’s Western Wall ultimately will be declared a part of Israel, in another declaration sure to inflame passions among Palestinians and others in the Middle East.

Although they said the ultimate borders of the holy city must be resolved through Israeli-Palestinian negotiations, the officials – speaking ahead of Vice President Mike Pence’s trip to the region – essentially ruled out any scenario that didn’t maintain Israeli control over the holiest ground in Judaism.

Associated Press