Town Hall News

By Henriette Chacar and Nidal al-Mughrabi JERUSALEM/GAZA (Reuters) -Israeli jets hit sites in Lebanon and Gaza early on Friday, in retaliation for rocket attacks it blamed on the Islamist group Hamas, as tensions following police raids on the Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem this week threatened to spiral out of control. Ground-shaking blasts rocked different areas of Gaza, as Israel said its jets hit targets including tunnels and weapons manufacturing sites […]

BEIJING/TAIPEI (Reuters) -China has imposed further sanctions on Hsiao Bi-khim, Taiwan’s de facto ambassador to the United States, prohibiting her and family members from entering the mainland, Hong Kong and Macau, state media reported on Friday. The sanctions, announced by China’s Taiwan Affairs Office, also prohibit investors and firms related to Hsiao from cooperating with mainland organisations and individuals. They come after Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen’s meeting with U.S. House […]

By Cheney Orr and Brad Brooks NASHVILLE, Tennessee (Reuters) -Republicans in control of the Tennessee House of Representatives expelled two Democratic representatives on Thursday for breaking decorum during a gun control demonstration at the statehouse last week in the wake of the latest school shooting. In an extraordinary measure, when lesser forms of discipline including censure were available, the Republican supermajority voted to remove Representatives Justin Jones and Justin Pearson, […]

By Leika Kihara TOKYO (Reuters) – Haruhiko Kuroda delivers his last press conference as Japan’s central bank chief on Friday, ending a decade of unconventional policy that included “bazooka” stimulus and a push to change public perceptions with a wall of money and Peter Pan metaphors. Hand-picked by then premier Shinzo Abe to break Japan out of deflation, Kuroda will see his second, five-year term end on Saturday and hand […]

By Joyce Lee and Heekyong Yang SEOUL (Reuters) -Samsung Electronics Co Ltd said on Friday it would make a “meaningful” cut to chip production after flagging a worse-than-expected 96% plunge in quarterly operating profit, as a sharp downturn in the global semiconductor market deepens. The rare announcement of an output cut by the world’s biggest memory chipmaker, which had resisted the broader industry trend of a steep investment reduction, underscored […]

By Cheney Orr and Brad Brooks NASHVILLE, Tennessee (Reuters) -Republicans in control of the Tennessee House of Representatives expelled two Democratic representatives on Thursday for breaking decorum during a gun control demonstration at the statehouse last week in the wake of the latest school shooting. In an extraordinary measure, when lesser forms of discipline including censure were available, the Republican supermajority voted to remove Representatives Justin Jones and Justin Pearson, […]

By Cheney Orr and Brad Brooks NASHVILLE, Tennessee (Reuters) -Republicans in control of the Tennessee House of Representatives expelled two Democratic representatives on Thursday for breaking decorum during a gun control demonstration at the statehouse last week in the wake of the latest school shooting. In an extraordinary measure, when lesser forms of discipline including censure were available, the Republican supermajority voted to remove Representatives Justin Jones and Justin Pearson, […]

(Reuters) – A Moscow court will consider an appeal by lawyers of jailed Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich to lift his pre-trial detention on April 18, the Interfax news agency reported, citing the court’s press service. Gershkovich, a U.S. citizen, was arrested last week in the Urals city of Yekaterinburg on espionage charges decried as bogus by the Wall Street Journal, Western leaders and the reporter’s colleagues. Shortly after […]

By Maiya Keidan TORONTO (Reuters) -Canadian dealmakers are optimistic about a return to strength in the second half of the year after mergers and acquisitions in the first quarter dropped to pandemic levels, belayed by higher borrowing costs and panic around a banking crisis. The collapse of regional banks Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank in the U.S. tightened credit markets, making funding difficult for deals. As the banking crisis […]