US

Mississippi tornado and storms kill at least 23 - state officials

Reuters reports four people were missing following the twister, which left a trail of damage for more than 161km (100 miles).

The tornado struck Silver City, a town of 200 people in western Mississippi, as well as Rolling Fork, with a population of 1700, which was hardest hit. Parts of the state remain under tornado warning.

"At least twenty three Mississippians were killed by last night's violent tornados," Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves wrote on Twitter.

Stocks rebound as US and UK seek to calm investors

BBC reports investors have recently been unnerved by a string of bank failures.

But US stock markets were higher after Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen signalled the US government would protect people's deposits if another bank collapsed.

In the UK, the FTSE closed 1.79% higher after gains in top bank shares.

NatWest, Prudential and Barclays shares gained about 5%, while Standard Chartered and Lloyds also traded higher.

Ms Yellen said "the situation is stabilising, and the US banking system remains sound" in a speech on Tuesday.

Multi-billion dollar rescue deal for First Republic bank

The move came as authorities in the US are trying to quell panic over the health of the banking system, after a series of bank collapses in the US.

BBC reports worries about the sector have spread globally, raising fears of a crisis.

US regulators called the move "most welcome", while the banks said their action reflected their "confidence".

They said the banking system had plenty of cash and made big profits.

Felony charges for Tongan contractor accused of ripping off several US residents

Jessy Nguyen told KSL Investigators a man named Ofa showed up at his mom’s house last June, offering to do some work. His mom hired Ofa to pour concrete, put in a fence, and do some landscaping work, paying more than $40,000.

“He did the work, like he started,” said Nguyen, “but as soon as he got the money, he stopped.”

Nguyen said both he and his mom tried to reach Ofa multiple times to get the job finished, without success.

“He’ll give you a sob story of why he can’t come, and then he just stops answering your calls,” said Nguyen.

US shoots down suspected Chinese spy balloon

 

The Department of Defence confirmed its fighter jets brought down the balloon over US territorial waters.

BBC reports China's foreign ministry later expressed "strong dissatisfaction and protest against the US's use of force to attack civilian unmanned aircraft".

Footage on US TV networks showed the balloon falling to the sea after a small explosion.

An F-22 jet fighter engaged the high-altitude balloon with one missile - an AIM-9X Sidewinder - and it went down about six nautical miles off the US coast at 14:39 EST, a defence official told reporters.

Driver in custody after Tongan grandfather, child killed in US crash

Gage Kauffman was driving northbound on Dobson Road on December 20 at a high rate of speed, reported the ABC15.

Vaka To’oa Snr was driving another vehicle that was entering Dobson Road at Shawnee Drive. Kauffman’s vehicle crashed into Vaka’s vehicle.

His grandson Vaka ‘Isitolo To’oa Jnr, a four-year-old boy, was also killed from injuries suffered in the crash reports Kaniva News.

The ABC15 report quoted a court document which said that Kauffman was driving over 100 miles per hour in a 45-mile-per-hour zone moments before the deadly crash

Deadly blizzard leaves more than 60 dead across US

The death toll in the New York city of Buffalo has risen to 28, with thousands still without power amid a monster winter storm that has battered North America.

BBC reports across the US, at least 62 people have died in weather-related incidents.

In Buffalo, a state official said that military police were being brought in to help manage traffic in the city, where a driving ban remained in place.

Looting has been reported in parts of the city during the emergency.

Winning ticket for $1.3bn jackpot sold in Illinois

The cash value option of the jackpot is $780.5m. The winner can choose to take the cash outright or be paid the full jackpot in instalments over 29 years.

The odds of winning the jackpot in Friday's draw were rather slim - one in 300 million.

The largest Mega Millions prize to date was $1.537bn in 2018.

It was won by a single ticket sold in South Carolina. The 2016 Powerball prize, however, remains the largest jackpot in US history - $1.586bn - shared by three winners.

US monkeypox outbreak: Demand for vaccines outstrips supply

The US has seen more than 1,800 cases so far, though that is thought to be an undercount as testing has also lagged.

There has been growing concern about the rate at which monkeypox is spreading - especially in New York City, epicentre of the US outbreak.

The disease, characterised by lesions on the skin, usually clears up on its own but can be extremely painful.

Most confirmed cases have been among men who have sex with men, although anyone can be infected with the virus.

Russian superyacht leaves Fiji for US following a court ruling

Fiji's Supreme Court lifted a stay order which had prevented the U.S. from seizing the superyacht Amadea.

A US Justice Department's Taskforce has focused on seizing yachts and other luxury assets of Russian oligarchs in a bid to pressure Russian President Vladimir Putin over the war in Ukraine.

The 106m Amadea arrived in Fiji on 13 April after an 18-day voyage from Mexico.

It was seized by Fiji authorities after the country's High Court granted a US warrant last month that linked the yacht to sanctioned Russian oligarch Suleiman Kerimov.