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Ukraine president blames separatists for attack on city

 
Getty Images
Getty Images
Published Jan. 26, 2015

Ukraine

President blames separatists for attack on city

Ukraine's president said Sunday that intercepted radio and telephone conversations prove that Russia-backed separatists were responsible for firing the rockets that pounded the southeastern city of Mariupol and killed at least 30 people. The attack on Mariupol, a strategically situated port city that had been relatively quiet for months, alarmed the West and looked likely further to aggravate relations with Russia. Putting the blame squarely on Moscow, President Barack Obama said the United States would work with its European partners to "ratchet up the pressure on Russia." European Union foreign affairs chief Federica Mogherini later announced that EU foreign ministers would hold an "extraordinary" meeting in Brussels on Thursday to discuss Ukraine.

Atlanta

Hunt for suspect in threats against jets

Federal law enforcement officials are continuing to pursue a suspect after bomb threats targeted two jets bound for Atlanta, prompting F-16 fighter jets to escort the planes, FBI Special Agent Stephen Emmett said Sunday. Airport officials said Saturday's threats targeted Southwest Airlines Flight 2492, which arrived at Atlanta from Milwaukee; and Delta Air Lines Flight 1156, which arrived from Portland, Ore. No bombs were found in searches of both planes after they landed safely Saturday in Atlanta. The threats had been posted on the social media network Twitter, said Preston Schlachter, a spokesman for the North American Aerospace Defense Command. "We certainly take these types of threats seriously and we're pursuing them aggressively," Emmett told the Associated Press.

Elsewhere

Miami: Miss Colombia Paulina Vega was crowned Miss Universe on Sunday. Miss USA Nia Sanchez was named runnerup.

New York: An employee at a Home Depot store in Manhattan argued with a co-worker before fatally shooting him and then killing himself on Sunday, police said, sending panicked workers and shoppers rushing to get away from the gunfire.

Egypt: Antigovernment protesters fought street battles with police in Cairo and other cities on Sunday, the fourth anniversary of the country's 2011 uprising, as clashes left at least 15 people dead. Two others died when an explosive device they were planting under a tower in the Nile Delta exploded.

Zambia: After weeks of political wrangling and tension, Edgar Lungu was sworn in Sunday as Zambia's new president.

Times wires

Actor Angelina Jolie, a special envoy for the United Nations Refugee Agency, meets members of the Yazidi minority in camp in Khanke, Iraq, on Sunday. Jolie visited Syrian refugees and displaced Iraqi citizens in the Kurdistan region of Iraq to offer support to 3.3 million displaced people in the country and highlight their dire needs.