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Air raid sirens sound in Kyiv during a visit by European leaders, Republicans oust Ilhan Omar from a high-profile House committee, and Apple forecasts another drop in revenue

by Linda Noakes

U.S. News

A balloon flies over Billings, Montana, February 1, 2023 in this picture obtained from social media

A Chinese spy balloon has been flying over the United States for a couple of days, U.S. officials said, in what would be a brazen act just days ahead of a planned trip to Beijing by Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Fighter jets were mobilized, but military leaders advised President Joe Biden against shooting the balloon out of the sky for fear debris could pose a safety threat.
House of Representatives Republicans ousted Democrat Ilhan Omar from a high-profile committee over remarks widely condemned as antisemitic, two years after Democrats removed two Republicans from committee assignments. The House voted 218-211 along party lines to remove Omar from the Foreign Affairs Committee with Republicans citing the 2019 remarks for which she later apologized.
A U.S. appeals court declared unconstitutional a federal law making it a crime for people under domestic violence restraining orders to own firearms. The decision is the latest victory for gun rights advocates since a Supreme Court ruling last June granting a broad right for people to carry firearms outside the home.
Nearly 1,000 migrant children separated at the U.S.-Mexico border by the administration of former President Donald Trump have yet to be reunited with their parents despite a two-year effort by Biden.
Three former U.S. snowboarders sued their former coach, the national snowboarding federation and the U.S. Olympic Committee alleging sexual abuse that was covered up by the two sporting bodies, court documents showed.

Reuters Graphic

TRACKING THE ASTEROIDS THAT MENACE EARTH

The discovery of an asteroid the size of a small shipping truck mere days before it passed Earth on January 26 - an object that posed no threat to humans - highlights a blind spot in our ability to predict those that could actually cause damage.

We look at the closest passes of objects in the past and those predicted in the future.

World News

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen arrive for a news briefing in Kyiv, February 2, 2023

Air raid alerts sounded across Ukraine as European Union leaders were in the country's capital to discuss further sanctions on Russia and Ukraine's prospects of joining the European bloc with President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. Here's what you need to know about the conflict right now.
Pope Francis wrapped up an emotional visit to Democratic Republic of Congo and headed to neighboring South Sudan, another nation struggling to overcome decades of conflict and grinding poverty. The country's woes were underscored on the eve of his arrival, when 27 people were killed in South Sudan's Central Equatoria state in tit-for-tat violence.
Iranian Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi said the death in custody of a young Iranian Kurdish woman last year has sparked an irreversible "revolutionary process" that would eventually lead to the collapse of the Islamic Republic. Ebadi has been one of the most outspoken supporters of the anti-government demonstrations.
Under pressure from Afghanistan's Taliban administration, the United Nations is delivering some food aid using men only, prompting warnings from donors and humanitarian groups that it could be seen as giving in to an internationally condemned ban on most female aid workers.
Police in Assam have arrested more than 1,800 men for marrying or arranging marriages to underage girls, launching what the eastern Indian state's chief minister said was the start of a sustained crackdown on the practice. Marriage under 18 is illegal in India, but the law is openly flouted.

Business & Markets

People wait to cross a road in front of the logo of the Adani Group installed at a roundabout in Ahmedabad, India, February 2, 2023

Both houses of India's parliament were adjourned amid chaotic scenes as some lawmakers demanded an inquiry following the meltdown of shares in billionaire Gautam Adani's group companies, which some fear could spark wider financial turmoil.
Business activity in the euro zone bounced back to growth in January, according to a survey which suggested the bloc's economy might again escape a contraction this quarter and that the upturn may accelerate. Britain's services sector kicked off 2023 with its weakest performance in two years, hit by cutbacks to business and consumer spending.
U.S. job growth likely remained strong in January amid a persistently resilient labor market, but an anticipated further slowdown in wage gains should give the Federal Reserve some comfort in its fight against inflation. The Labor Department's closely watched report today is also expected to show the unemployment rate ticking up to 3.6% last month.
Big Tech led U.S. markets on a sharp rebound to kick off 2023. The message from their earnings yesterday: not so fast. Apple, Google parent Alphabet and Amazon.com all posted results for the end-of-year quarter that left a sour taste in investors' mouths.
Ford said quarterly profits fell and the automaker predicted a difficult year ahead, sending its shares down after the bell as investors were disappointed following this week's robust report from rival General Motors.
Billionaire investor Ryan Cohen is building a large stake in Nordstrom and plans to push the upscale retailer to shake up its board as its performance has lagged behind rivals, people familiar with the matter said.

And Finally

The Xturismo air-mobility hover bike is displayed at the Tokyo Motor Show, Japan October 24, 2019. REUTERS/Edgar Su

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