America

    The number of homeless people in Los Angeles County jumped by nearly six percent over the past year to 46,874, in part due to a “historic” housing shortage, authorities said on Wednesday. The Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA) said in its report that the increase came about despite a reduction in the number of homeless veterans and homeless families. Homelessness among veterans dropped by 30 percent across the county, while the number of homeless families fell by 18 percent, largely thanks to an increase in funding by the federal government. “Homelessness responds to resources,” said LAHSA executive director Peter Lynn. “When we have systematically applied city, county and federal resources, we see results.” According to the report, the number of homeless peop...

    In a bid for their first Emmy nomination, the show's creators released an image of their titular character, Peter Griffin, looking particularly orange and with ridiculous blonde hair. “As long as we’re voting for loud dumbmouths, can I get an Emmy?” reads the photo’s caption. Of course, as you likely suspected, they’re making fun of the Republican’s Presidential frontrunner, Donald Trump. Although MacFarlane is an avid Bernie Sanders supporter, some fans have been caught off guard by the cartoon, with some vowing never to watch the show again. The official Family GuyFacebook page posted the story, with commentators underneath expressing their outrage. “Wehhhh he's a loud mouth is all you can say as you mock the majority of REAL Americans voting for him. Trump is going to b...

    Two lawsuits filed in California claim that Muslim women were discriminated against in separate incidents because of their religion and for wearing the hijab. One of the suits claims that police in Long Beach forcibly removed a suspect's headscarf while another suit alleges that a group of women were kicked out of a Laguna Beach coffee house for being Muslim. According to the complaint against the city of Long Beach and its police department, Kirsty Powell and her husband were pulled over by two officers while driving home in May of last year. She was subsequently arrested on two outstanding warrants -- one linked to her sister allegedly falsely using her identity and one in relation to a 2002 shoplifting incident at a grocery store. Powell, who is African American, allege...

    A Muslim woman launched a legal action on Monday against police in California alleging that her headscarf was forcibly removed after she was arrested on outstanding warrants. According to the complaint against the city of Long Beach and its police department, Kirsty Powell and her husband were pulled over by two officers while driving home in May of last year. She was subsequently arrested on two outstanding warrants - one linked to her sister allegedly falsely using her identity and one in relation to a 2002 shoplifting incident at a grocery store. Powell, who is African American, alleges that while being booked at the police station, one of the officers forcibly removed her headscarf in view of other male officers and inmates, telling her she was not allowed to wear her h...

    Aiming jokes at the expense of political allies and opponents, President Barack Obama enjoyed himself at his final official appearance at the White House Correspondents’ dinner in Washington. Nobody was spared. Bernie Sanders, the 74-year-old Vermont senator who has turned the race for the Democratic nomination into a competition rather than a procession, was hailed as “the bright young face of the Democratic Party”. He went on: Bernie, you look like a million bucks — or we’ll put it in terms you’ll understand: You look like 37,000 donations of $27 each. Hillary Clinton, who now looks almost certain to be the Democratic nominee, was mocked for her attempt to win the support of young Americans. “You have to admit it though, Hillary trying to appeal to young voters is a litt...

    Twenty-eight secret pages of a report locked away in a room in the Capitol in Washington lie in the centre of a crisis between America and Saudi Arabia which threatens to have severe and widespread repercussions. The US Congress is considering legislation which would enable the families of victims of the September 11 attacks to sue Saudi Arabia, presented by the West as its most valuable ally in the Middle East, over alleged links with al-Qaeda terrorists who carried out the attacks on New York and Washington. The issue had cast a long shadow over the recent visit of President Barack Obama to Riyadh, with the Saudis threatening to sell off $750bn of American assets they hold if the bill is passed by Congress. The classified pages are in a file titled “Finding, Discussion a...

    US President Barack Obama arrives at Stansted airport for a visit to the UK. In 1939, President Franklin D Roosevelt offered a toast to King George VI in the White House. “I am persuaded that the greatest single contribution our two countries have been enabled to make to civilisation, and to the welfare of peoples throughout the world,” he said, “is the example we have jointly set by our manner of conducting relations between our two nations.” Nearly 80 years later, the United Kingdom remains a friend and ally to the United States like no other. Our special relationship was forged as we spilt blood together on the battlefield. It was fortified as we built and sustained the architecture for advancing stability and prosperity in Europe, and our democratic values around the g...

    A powerful earthquake killed at least 77 people, injured hundreds more, ravaged coastal towns and sent residents fleeing for higher ground in Ecuador on Saturday night. The 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck off Ecuador's Pacific coast and was felt hundreds of miles (km) away in the capital of Quito as well as in the large commercial city of Guayaquil, where rubble lay strewn in the streets and some buildings were cracked or partially collapsed. A bridge in the city collapsed on top of car, crushing it. The earthquake was Ecuador's worst in decades and officials said the death toll was likely to rise even higher as rescue teams headed into the hardest-hit areas. "It was terrifying, we were all scared and we're still out in the streets because we're worried about aftershocks,"...

featu     Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg laid out a 10-year plan to connect the world that sounded as much like a political cause as a grab for potential billions in dollars. In a sweeping address that took on sharp political tones at times, Facebook's 31-year-old CEO detailed how Facebook aims to reach the planet's 7 billion people — half of whom do not have Internet access. And he took very direct aim at those who would limit free trade and immigration. “We are one global community,” he said. “Whether we are welcoming a refugee fleeing war or an immigrant seeking opportunity, coming together to fight a global disease like Ebola or to address climate change.” The theme of the keynote was, "give everyone the power to share anything with anyone," positioning Facebook as a unifying...

    US President Barack Obama speaks at the University of Chicago Law School on April 7, 2016 in Chicago, Illinois. Barack Obama says the biggest mistake of his presidency was the lack of planning for the aftermath of the fall of late Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi, with the country spiraling into chaos and grappling with violent extremists. Reflecting on his legacy in a Fox News interview aired Sunday, Obama said his "worst mistake" was "probably failing to plan for the day after what I think was the right thing to do in intervening in Libya." Last month, Obama made a searing critique of British Prime Minister David Cameron and former French leader Nicolas Sarkozy for their roles in the bombing campaign they led in Libya. Cameron became "distracted" and Sarkozy wanted to promo...