Record-breaking cold clobbers
two-thirds of US
Reuters, Washington
Two-thirds of the continental United States will be a frozen ice box Tuesday, as the so-called polar vortex of frigid arctic air spins across the U.S. Midwest, clips the Great Lakes, the Ohio Valley and pushes on into New England.
And the sub-zero cold and bitter winds will stick around for a couple of days, possibly bringing dozens of record lows with a life-threatening freeze before dissipating by the weekend, the National Weather Service reported (NWS).
Mueller probe ‘close to being completed’: US AG
Reuters, Washington
Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s probe of Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. election is close to wrapping up, Acting U.S. Attorney General Matthew Whitaker told reporters on Monday.
“I’ve been fully briefed on the investigation and I look forward to Director Mueller delivering the final report,” he said at a press conference on U.S. charges against China’s Huawei Technologies Co Ltd.
China executes man for killing 15 people
AFP, Beijing
Chinese authorities on Tuesday executed a man who killed 15 people after ramming a car into a crowded square in central Hunan province last year.
Last September, Yang Zanyun ploughed a Land Rover into pedestrians at a public square in Hengdong city before slashing at people with a shovel and dagger. Fifteen people were killed and 43 others were injured.
Malaysia probes deadly market stampede
AFP, Kuala Lumpur
A stampede in a Malaysian market that killed two elderly women as people rushed to collect free food coupons will be investigated by police, an official said Tuesday.
Almost 1,000 people descended on the indoor market in Kuala Lumpur Monday to get their hands on 200 vouchers for a buffet meal during next month’s Lunar New Year festivities.Two women, aged 85 and 78, collapsed in the crush. Attempts by paramedics to resuscitate them failed and they died at the scene, police said.
5 Houston cops wounded during drug investigation
HuffPost
Five Houston police officers were wounded in a shooting at a suspected drug house Monday, Houston Police Department officials said.
Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo confirmed in a news conference Monday night that five officers had been injured in southeast Houston and taken to a hospital. Four of the officers were shot, and a fifth was hurt in the crossfire, Acevedo said. Two officers are in critical condition, and three are reported to be in stable condition.
