10 Local Stories of the Week
There's never a slow news week in Jackson, Miss., and last week was no exception. Here are the local stories JFP reporters brought you in case you missed them.
In Hong Kong, No Endgame for Chaotic Protests
Three weeks ago, students at a rally stormed a fenced-off courtyard outside Hong Kong's government headquarters, triggering unprecedented mass protests for greater democracy in the semiautonomous Chinese city. Since then, the movement has spiraled into a volatile and dangerous crisis with no clear endgame.
Nigeria, Extremists Agree to Immediate Cease-Fire
Nigeria's government and Islamic extremists from Boko Haram have agreed to an immediate cease-fire, officials said Friday, in a move that could end five years of insurgency that has killed thousands and left hundreds of thousands homeless in Africa's most populous nation and its biggest oil producer.
Former Iraqi Pilots Train IS Fighters on MiG Jets
The Islamic State group is test flying, with the help of former Iraqi air force pilots, several fighter jets captured earlier from air bases belonging to the Syrian military, a Syrian activist group said Friday.
Obama Names Ebola 'Czar' as Precautions Expand
President Barack Obama turned to a trusted adviser to lead the nation's Ebola response on Friday as efforts to clamp down on any possible route of infection from three Texas cases expanded, reaching a cruise ship at sea and multiple airline flights.
All Citizens Files Reports Despite Founder's Africa Trip
Bishop Ronnie Crudup of New Horizon Church International left for Africa on Oct. 7, but that didn't delay the filing of the Federal Election Commission report for his super PAC, All Citizens for Mississippi, which was due Oct. 15.
The 'Nitty Gritty, Nuts-and-Bolts, Rubber-Hits-the-Road' Side of Climate Change
Atmospheric scientist Katharine Hayhoe delivers the message on climate change with a skill that makes it easy to believe that she is the daughter of missionaries. Her pulpit, though, is at Texas Tech, as professor and director of the university's Climate Science Center.
Rita Martinson
State Rep. Rita Martinson, 77, who has represented Madison as a Republican since 1992, recently announced that she would not seek another term so that she can spend more time traveling with her family.
Judge Strikes Down Arizona's Ban on Gay Marriage
A federal judge has cleared the way for legally recognized gay marriages in Arizona by ruling that the state's ban on same-sex unions is unconstitutional.
Hospitals Grapple with Possibility of Ebola
As questions persist over the handling of an Ebola patient who has since died at a Dallas hospital, it has become clear that the key to containing the disease in the U.S. lies with the response of local hospitals.
Police in 3 Washington Towns Targeted by Gunfire
A day after dozens of gunshots were directed at police in three Snohomish County towns, law enforcement officials said little about what prompted the rampage.
Trial Opens to Judge Ex-Khmer Rouge on Genocide
The first trial weighing charges of genocide against Cambodia's brutal 1970s Khmer Rouge regime opened Friday with a prosecutor saying it will show that Cambodians were enslaved in inhumane conditions that led to the deaths of 1.7 million people from starvation, disease and execution.
Merkel: No Breakthrough Yet on Russia-Ukraine
The Russian and Ukraine leaders met face-to-face Friday on a Ukraine peace deal, but despite signs of progress German Chancellor Angela Merkel said no breakthrough was in sight.
UN: We Botched Response to the Ebola Outbreak
The World Health Organization has admitted that it botched attempts to stop the now-spiraling Ebola outbreak in West Africa, blaming factors including incompetent staff and a lack of information.
Glance at 2014 Miss. School District Ratings
Here's how Mississippi's 151 school districts in 2014 were rated under the state's A-to-F grading system.
FBI Director Warns Against Cellphone Encryption
FBI Director James Comey warned in stark terms Thursday against the push by technology companies to encrypt smartphone data and operating systems, arguing that murder cases could be stalled, suspects could walk free and justice could be thwarted by a locked phone or an encrypted hard drive.
News Guide: A Look at Latest Ebola Developments
The nation's top health officials tried to assure Congress that they can halt the spread of the Ebola virus in the U.S. despite mistakes that allowed two nurses to get the infection from a patient. Some lawmakers pressed for a ban on travel to the U.S. from the region—a course President Barack Obama is resisting.
US Still Searching for Credible Allies in Syria
Despite years of diplomacy and a CIA operation to vet and train moderate rebels, the U.S. finds itself without a credible partner on the ground in Syria as it bombs the Islamic State group. That's a potentially serious flaw in its strategy to ultimately defeat the militants.
Anti-Abortion Preachers Take Aim at Blacks, Women and Jayonce
The rate of abortion in the African American community will hasten the downfall of McDonald's, Beyonce and Jay-Z as well as the black press, said several black clergymen who spoke Wednesday at a rally at Mississippi's last abortion clinic.
Conservative States Balk at Gay Marriage Action
Conservative officials in some of the six states where Supreme Court action this week likely cleared the way for same-sex weddings say they won't issue marriage licenses to gay couples until their hands are forced. Now, gay rights advocates are preparing to do just that.