Sputnik News US

2022-02-25 05:31:01 The EU has made a "political decision" to slap another batch of sanctions on Russia, which, according to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, will hit 70 percent of the Russian banking sector, key state-run corporations and deprive Russia of access to modern technologies Open / Comment

2022-02-25 05:05:28 Macron claims he called Putin at Zelensky's request Open / Comment

2022-02-25 04:32:50 The Canadian Foreign Ministry has announced another round of sanctions, this time against Russian lawmakers who voted for the recognition of the Lugansk and Donetsk People's Republics, as well as Putin's "inner circle". Open / Comment

2022-02-25 03:28:32 Florida House passes ‘Stop WOKE Act’ to limits talks on race, gender, and discrimination in schools, workplaces.

Dubbed the “Stop WOKE Act,” which stands for “wrongs to our kids and employees,” it bans the teaching of critical race theory, which addresses systemic racism in the U.S., alleging it widens racial divisions.

Florida legislators made their opposition to teaching gender identity and race in public schools official, as the state’s House of Representatives passed the “Stop WOKE Act” on Thursday.

Senate Bill 148 still needs to be signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis, but if it becomes law, it would limit protected speech in workplaces with more than 15 employees and classrooms, banning lessons about gender identity and race that could make students feel “discomfort.” Open / Comment

2022-02-25 02:37:31 Japan has hit Russia with new sanctions, freezing the assets of Russian citizens and entities and banning visas to Russians Open / Comment

2022-02-25 02:25:39 Read the full statement of Russia's ambassador in Washington regarding the expulsion of the minister counselor:

"We regard the new expulsion as another unfriendly step aimed at reducing the Russian diplomatic presence in the United States. Our retaliatory measures are predictable," Ambassador Anatoly Antonov said in a statement published by the Russian Embassy.

"We have made a lot of efforts to stop the escalation imposed by the Americans. We urged the State Department to reconsider its position in order to avoid an exchange of blows. However, we faced a categorical refusal, accompanied by a threat to arrest our diplomat if he stayed even for one more day in Washington," the diplomat added. Open / Comment

2022-02-25 02:04:17 State Department has confirmed to Sputnik that the US is expelling Russia's minister counselor Open / Comment

2022-02-25 01:54:17 Convicted child sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell's bid for a retrial over jury guidance

Lawyers for the disgraced socialite filed a 37-page appeal on Friday evening at a New York court claiming “erroneous” jury instructions made her conviction unfair.

They discovered that one of the jurors lied during jury selection. That juror failed to disclose his criminal conviction and contact with law enforcement, which would have led the court to have excused him for the cause.

U.S. Federal Judge Alison Nathan said Thursday that she denied Maxwell's motion for a new trial "on the current record" because the current record relies extensively on the juror's public statements, which the court is not allowed to consider under a federal rule of evidence. Open / Comment

2022-02-25 01:31:00 A US jury found three former Minneapolis police officers involved in the murder of George Floyd guilty on civil rights violation charges, the Star Tribune reported on Thursday.

The jury found Tou Thao, Alexander Kueng and Thomas Lane guilty on civil rights charges, including failure to render medical aid to Floyd and failure to intervene to stop fellow former officer Derek Chauvin from kneeling on his neck, the report said.

The jury also found that the officers’ actions resulted in Floyd’s death, which could lead to them receiving significantly higher sentences. The jury delivered its verdict after approximately 13 hours of deliberation. Open / Comment

2022-02-25 01:24:55 Volodymyr Zelenskyy has declared to hold general mobilization in Ukraine within the next 90 days. Open / Comment