US transportation official says railroad company interfered with derailment probe

EAST PALESTINE, Ohio — The head of the National Transportation Safety Board said Tuesday that Norfolk Southern repeatedly tried to interfere with the agency’s investigation into the derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, and shape its conclusions about the flawed decision to blow open five tank cars and burn the vinyl chloride inside.  The NTSB also confirmed…

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In deal with US, WikiLeaks’ Assange pleads guilty, secures freedom, ends legal fight

SAIPAN, Northern Mariana Islands — WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has pleaded guilty to a single felony charge for publishing U.S. military secrets in a deal with Justice Department prosecutors that secures his freedom and concludes a drawn-out legal saga that raised divisive questions about press freedom and national security.  The plea was entered Wednesday morning in…

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US slaps sanctions on network it accuses of moving billions for Iran’s military

WASHINGTON — The United States on Tuesday imposed sanctions on nearly 50 entities and people it accused of moving billions of dollars for Iran’s military.  The U.S. Treasury Department in a statement said those targeted on Tuesday constitute a “shadow banking network” used by Iran’s Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics (MODAFL) and Islamic Revolutionary…

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A look at Julian Assange and how the long-jailed WikiLeaks founder is now on the verge of freedom

WASHINGTON — News that the U.S. Justice Department has reached a plea deal that will lead to freedom for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange brings a stunning culmination to a long-running saga of international intrigue that spanned multiple continents. Its central character is a quixotic internet publisher with a profound disdain for government secrets. A look at…

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