Airliner with 110 aboard crashes in Cuba, 3 said to survive
HAVANA — A 39-year-old airliner with 110 people aboard crashed and burned in a cassava field just after taking off from the Havana airport Friday, leaving three survivors in Cuba’s worst aviation disaster in three decades, officials said.
The Boeing 737 went down just after noon a short distance from the end of the runway at Jose Marti International Airport while on a short-hop flight to the eastern city of Holguin. Firefighters rushed to extinguish the flames that engulfed the field of debris left where Cubana Flight 972 hit the ground.
“There is a high number of people who appear to have died,” Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel said from the scene. “Things have been organized, the fire has been put out, and the remains are being identified.”
Relatives of those aboard were ushered into a private area at the terminal to await word on their loved ones.
“My daughter is 24, my God, she’s only 24!” cried Beatriz Pantoja, whose daughter Leticia was on the plane.
Trump thrusts abortion fight into crucial midterm elections
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration acted Friday to bar taxpayer-funded family planning clinics from referring women for abortions, energizing its conservative political base ahead of crucial midterm elections while setting the stage for new legal battles.
The Health and Human Services Department sent its proposal to rewrite the rules to the White House, setting in motion a regulatory process that could take months. Scant on details, an administration overview of the plan said it would echo a Reagan-era rule by banning abortion referrals by federally funded clinics and forbidding them from locating in facilities that also provide abortions.
Planned Parenthood, a principal provider of family planning, abortion services and basic preventive care for women, said the plan appears designed to target the organization. “The end result would make it impossible for women to come to Planned Parenthood, who are counting on us every day,” said executive vice president Dawn Laguens.
But presidential counselor Kellyanne Conway told Fox News that the administration is simply recognizing “that abortion is not family planning. This is family planning money.”
The policy was derided as a “gag rule” by abortion rights supporters, a point challenged by the administration, which said counseling about abortion would be OK, but not referrals. It’s likely to trigger lawsuits from opponents, and certain to galvanize activists on both sides of the abortion debate going into November’s congressional elections.
Conservative revolt over immigration sinks House farm bill
WASHINGTON — House Republican leaders suffered an embarrassing setback Friday when conservatives scuttled an ambitious farm bill, part of a high-stakes power play as they once again exert their oversized sway in the House.
In this case, conservatives in the House Freedom Caucus wanted to slow the momentum of bipartisan immigration legislation to help young “Dreamers.” Republican moderates are gaining ground with their immigration effort and conservatives don’t like the deals taking shape. By withholding their votes on the farm bill, they flexed their political muscle to doom both.
Not even a tweet from President Donald Trump supporting the farm bill could save it from the chaos Friday. It was defeated, 213-198. Some 30 Republicans joined with every chamber Democrat in opposition.
The vote was a blow to GOP leaders, exposing the power struggle underway as leaders jockey to replace Speaker Paul Ryan, who is not seeking re-election. It disrupts GOP efforts to portray party unity ahead of the midterm election and to rack up legislative wins to motivate voters to the polls to keep their majority.
Trump is “disappointed in the result of today’s vote” and “hopes the House can resolve any remaining issues,” said Deputy Press Secretary Lindsay Walters.
Gay-friendly Apple weighs North Carolina despite LGBT laws
RALEIGH, N.C. — Gay-rights advocates are divided on whether to cheer or bemoan a potential marriage between the state of North Carolina and one of the global corporations most friendly to LGBT workers and causes.
Feelings remain raw over North Carolina’s so-called bathroom bill, which prompted a boycott campaign. Many advocates remain frustrated that a legislative compromise that put an end to the controversy still allows discrimination against them.
Apple Inc. is close to deciding whether to build a planned corporate hub in the Raleigh-Durham area, a North Carolina government official and an economic development official told The Associated Press. They spoke on condition of anonymity because of confidentiality promises surrounding business recruitment.
The project could create 5,000 North Carolina jobs, with a later target of 10,000 jobs, the economic development official said. And while they denied any direct tie to the Apple decision, top state legislators committed this week to a major expansion of tax breaks for any employers promising thousands of jobs.
An Apple spokesman declined to say Friday how LGBT issues would play into its location decision.
Windsor gears up for royal wedding, embraces Harry, Meghan
WINDSOR, England — Meghan Markle will have an heir to the British throne walk her down the aisle — and have her mother and friends on hand for support — when she marries Prince Harry at Windsor Castle.
Friday’s announcement that Markle has asked her future father-in-law Prince Charles to offer a supporting elbow, stepping in for Markle’s father after he became ill, meant arrangements were almost complete for Saturday’s royal wedding.
The event’s mix of royalty, celebrity, pomp and ceremony has drawn stratospheric levels of interest around the world and will be broadcast live to tens of millions.
Kensington Palace said Prince Charles “is pleased to be able to welcome Ms. Markle to the royal family in this way” after Markle’s father Thomas was unable to attend due to illness.
Thousands of well-wishers descended Friday on Windsor amid final preparations for the wedding, which has drawn royal fans and an international media throng to the castle town and royal residence 25 miles (40 kilometers) west of London.