12-03-2023  8:46 am   •   PDX and SEA Weather
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NORTHWEST NEWS

Oldest Black Church in Oregon Will Tear Down, Rebuild To Better Serve Community

As physical attendance dwindles, First African Methodist Episcopal Zion is joining the growing trend of churches that are re-imagining how best to use their facilities.

Cities Crack Down on Homeless Encampments. Advocates Say That’s Not the Answer

Homeless people and their advocates say encampment sweeps are cruel and costly, and there aren't enough shelter beds or treatment for everyone. But government officials say it's unacceptable to let encampments fester and people need to accept offers of shelter or treatment, if they have a severe mental illness or addiction.

Schools in Portland, Oregon, Reach Tentative Deal With Teachers Union After Nearly Month-Long Strike

The agreement must still be voted on by teachers who have been on the picket line since Nov. 1 over issues of pay, class sizes and planning time. It must also be approved by the school board.

Voter-Approved Oregon Gun Control Law Violates the State Constitution, Judge Rules

The law is one of the toughest in the nation. It requires people to undergo a criminal background check and complete a gun safety training course in order to obtain a permit to buy a firearm. It also bans high-capacity magazines.

NEWS BRIEFS

Talk A Mile Event Connects Young Black Leaders with Portland Police Bureau Trainees

Talk A Mile operates on the idea that conversation bridges gaps and builds empathy, which can promote understanding between Black...

Turkey Rules the Table. But an AP-NORC Poll Finds Disagreement Over Other Thanksgiving Classics

Thanksgiving may be a time for Americans to come together, but opinion is divided over what's on the crowded dinner table. We mostly...

Veteran Journalist and Emmy Award-Winning Producer to Lead Award-Winning Digital Magazine Focused on Racial Inequality

Jamil Smith will drive The Emancipator’s editorial vision and serve as a key partner to Payne in growing the rising media...

Regional Arts & Culture Council and Port of Portland Announce Selection of PDX Phase 1 Terminal Redevelopment Artists

Sanford Biggers and Yoonhee Choi’s projects will be on display with the opening of the new terminal in May 2024 ...

Portland Theatres Unite in ‘Go See A Play’ Revival Campaign

The effort aims to invigorate the city's performing arts scene. ...

Idaho baby found dead by police one day after Amber Alert, police say father is in custody

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (AP) — An Idaho baby was found dead by police on Saturday, one day after an Amber Alert was issued for him, authorities said. The baby's father was taken into custody on an arrest warrant issued in connection with the death of his wife. Police found the body of...

Winter weather in Pacific Northwest cuts power to thousands in Seattle, dumps snow on Cascades

SEATTLE (AP) — Winter weather brought high winds and snow to parts of the Pacific Northwest, knocking out power in some areas and dumping fresh snow across the Cascade Range. Thousands of households were without power Saturday morning in the greater Seattle area after a night of...

Pittsburgh plays Clemson following Hinson's 22-point performance

Clemson Tigers (6-0) at Pittsburgh Panthers (5-2) Pittsburgh; Sunday, 2 p.m. EST FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK LINE: Panthers -1.5; over/under is 146.5 BOTTOM LINE: Pittsburgh plays the Clemson Tigers after Blake Hinson scored 22 points in Pittsburgh's 71-64 loss to...

Wichita State visits East and Missouri

Wichita State Shockers (7-1) at Missouri Tigers (6-2) Columbia, Missouri; Sunday, 3 p.m. EST FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK LINE: Tigers -6; over/under is 143.5 BOTTOM LINE: Missouri hosts the Wichita State Shockers after Sean East scored 21 points in Missouri's 71-64...

OPINION

Why Are Bullies So Mean? A Youth Psychology Expert Explains What’s Behind Their Harmful Behavior

Bullied children and teens are at risk for anxiety, depression, dropping out of school, peer rejection, social isolation and self-harm. ...

Federal Agencies Issue $23 Million Fine Against TransUnion and Subsidiary

FTC and CFPB say actions harmed renters and violated fair credit laws ...

First One to Commit to Nonviolence Wins

Every time gains towards nonviolence looked promising, someone from the most aggrieved and trauma-warped groups made sure to be spoilers by committing some atrocity and resetting the hate and violence. ...

Boxes

What is patently obvious to all Americans right now is the adolescent dysfunction of Congress. ...

AFRICAN AMERICANS IN THE NEWS

Barbie doll honoring Cherokee Nation leader is met with mixed emotions

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — An iconic chief of the Cherokee Nation, Wilma Mankiller, inspired countless Native American children as a powerful but humble leader who expanded early education and rural healthcare. Her reach is now broadening with a quintessential American honor: a Barbie...

Send-offs show Carlton Pearson's split legacy spurred by his inclusive beliefs, rejection of hell

Before his peers would label him a heretic, the late Bishop Carlton D. Pearson was once one of the best known preachers in the nation. His skilled biblical oration, steeped in the Black Pentecostal tradition and melded with white evangelicalism, helped swell the membership of the...

Inmate who stabbed Derek Chauvin 22 times is charged with attempted murder, prosecutors say

Derek Chauvin was stabbed in prison 22 times by a former gang leader and one-time FBI informant who told investigators he targeted the ex-Minneapolis police officer because of his notoriety for killing George Floyd, federal prosecutors said Friday. John Turscak was charged with...

ENTERTAINMENT

How grief, creating characters and wigs helped comic Heather McMahan to build a loyal following

When Heather McMahan recently debuted her first Netflix comedy special, “Son I Never Had," the fan reaction was as though their best girlfriend had achieved a major win. “The coolest thing about this job is a lot of people have been on this journey with me from the beginning,"...

Book Review: Lauren Grodstein’s masterpiece of historical fiction set in Warsaw Ghetto during WWII

The Oneg Shabbat archive was a secret project of Jewish prisoners in the Warsaw Ghetto to record their histories as they awaited deportation to Nazi death camps during World War II. Lauren Grodstein has used this historical fact as the basis for her mesmerizing new novel, “We Must Not Think of...

Book Review: ‘Eyeliner' examines the staple makeup product's revolutionary role in global society

Zahra Hankir opens “Eyeliner: A Cultural History” by marveling over her mother’s elegant beauty process as she delicately sweeps black kohl on her waterline, dreaming of displaying that same confidence one day. For Hankir, eyeliner is more than just a cosmetic product. It...

U.S. & WORLD NEWS

Kissinger's unwavering support for brutal regimes still haunts Latin America

SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) — In Chile, leftists were tortured, tossed from helicopters and forced to watch relatives...

Teen girls are being victimized by deepfake nudes. One family is pushing for more protections

A mother and her 14-year-old daughter are advocating for better protections for victims after AI-generated nude...

Here's why the UAE, the autocratic COP28 host, has to allow limited protests at the summit

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Participants at the United Nations' COP28 climate talks Sunday found...

Third-party candidate leaves Mexico's 2024 presidential race. Next leader now likely to be a woman

MEXICO CITY (AP) — A third-party candidate announced Saturday he is leaving Mexico’s 2024 presidential race,...

Indonesia's Marapi volcano erupts and blankets nearby villages with ash

PADANG, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesia’s Mount Marapi in West Sumatra province erupted Sunday, spewing...

Romanian guru suspected of running international sex sect handed preliminary charges with 14 others

PARIS (AP) — A 71-year-old Romanian yoga guru and 14 others were handed preliminary charges by a Paris...

 

Ireland becomes the first country to legalize same sex marriage through a referendum   

 

Investigators are frustrated that the site of the crash was left unsecured. They are confident that the plane was shot down, but the role Russia played remains unclear

Pallbearers carry a coffin out of a military transport plane during a ceremony to mark the return of the first bodies, of passengers and crew killed in the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, from Ukraine at Eindhoven military air base, Netherlands, Wednesday, July 23, 2014. After being removed from the planes, the bodies were taken in a convoy of hearses to a military barracks in the central city of Hilversum, where forensic experts will begin the painstaking task of identifying the bodies and returning them to their loved ones. (AP Photo/Phil Nijhuis)

EINDHOVEN, Netherlands (AP) — Victims of the Malaysian jetliner shot down over Ukraine returned at last Wednesday to Dutch soil in 40 wooden coffins, solemnly and gently carried to 40 identical hearses, flags at half-staff flapping in the wind.

The carefully choreographed, nearly silent ceremony contrasted sharply with the boom of shells and shattered glass around eastern Ukraine as pro-Russian rebels fought Wednesday to hang onto territory — and shot down two Ukrainian fighter jets. The bold new attack showed they are not shying away from shooting at the skies despite international outrage and grief at the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17.

Even though they are still unidentified, the corpses that arrived in Eindhoven were embraced by a nation unmoored by the loss of so many people caught in someone else's faraway war.

Boys going to visit their grandparents, a flight attendant in a hurry to get home, a bouncer heading to see his sweetheart were among the 298 victims of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, whose downing last week has intensified anger at the pro-Russian rebels suspected of bringing the plane down.

Nearly a week later, international investigators still don't have unfettered access to the area, some remains are unrecovered, and armed men roam, defying their government.

Investigators in a lab in southern England began studying the plane's black box recorders Wednesday in hopes of finding clues to what happened. The Dutch Safety Board, which has taken control of the investigation, said the voice recorder suffered damage but showed no sign of manipulation, and its recordings were intact. Specialists will start studying the flight data recorder Thursday.

Families of passengers moved to a new stage of grieving as the corpses started arriving in the Netherlands, the country that bore the heaviest death toll in the crash.

The families had spent days agonizing in wait while body parts decayed in sweltering Ukrainian fields before being gradually shifted by truck, train and plane to the Netherlands.

"If I have to wait five months for identification, I can do it," said Silene Fredriksz-Hoogzand, whose son, Bryce, and his girlfriend Daisy Oehlers died in the crash. "Waiting while the bodies were in the field and in the train was a nightmare."

Plane-webPHOTO: People lay flowers in front of a plane prior a ceremony to mark the return of the first bodies, of passengers and crew killed in the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, from Ukraine at Eindhoven military air base, Wednesday, July 23, 2014. After being removed from the planes, the bodies are to be taken in a convoy of hearses to a military barracks in the central city of Hilversum, where forensic experts will begin the painstaking task of identifying the bodies and returning them to their loved ones. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

On a day of national mourning, flags flew at half-staff on Dutch government buildings and family homes around this nation of 17 million.

Church bells rang out around the country as the planes taxied to a standstill. King Willem-Alexander clasped his wife Queen Maxima's hand as the couple grimly watched teams carry the coffins slowly from the planes to a fleet of waiting hearses.

Almost the only sound was of boots marching across the ground and flags flapping in the wind.

Then as the last hearses drove away, applause briefly broke out.

From the airport, they were driven under military police escort to the central city of Hilversum where forensic experts were waiting at a military barracks to carry out the painstaking task of identifying the remains. Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte says many bodies could be identified quickly and returned to their loved ones, but some families may have to wait weeks for a positive identification.

The rebels, undeterred, fought Wednesday to hold onto territory in eastern Ukraine and said they attacked two Ukrainian Air Force jets in the same area where the passenger plane fell.

Ukraine's Defense Ministry said the Su-25s were shot about 30 kilometers (20 miles) south of the wreckage from the Malaysian jet. The separatist group Donetsk People's Republic said on its website that one of the pilots was killed and another was being sought by rebel fighters.

The attack revived questions about the rebels' weapons capabilities — and how much support and training they are getting from Russia. The U.S. accuses Russia of backing the separatists and fueling Ukraine's conflict, which has brought Russia's relations with the West and key trading partners in Europe to a two-decade low.

While the insurgents deny having missiles capable of hitting a jetliner at cruising altitude, rebel leader Alexander Borodai has said that separatist fighters do have Strela-10M ground-to-air missiles, which are capable of hitting targets up to an altitude of 3,500 meters (11,500 feet). They have shoulder-fired missiles with a smaller range.

The rebels also say they shot down an Antonov-26 early last week with a shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missile. The Ukrainian government is hinting that the Antonov was flying too high for the rebels to hit it, suggesting Russian involvement.

Rebel leader Pavel Gubarev wrote on his Facebook page that 30 rebels were injured and his men retreated Wednesday from the villages of Chervona Zorya and Kozhevnya, on the Russian border about 45 kilometers (30 miles) from the sunflower fields where the Malaysia Airlines plane fell.

The battles are complicating the investigation into the passenger jet crash.

Ukraine and Western nations are pressing the pro-Russian rebels who control the crash site to allow an unfettered investigation, something Russian President Vladimir Putin said he would use his influence to achieve. Though confident that a missile brought down the passenger jet, U.S. officials say Russia's role remains unclear. Russia denies involvement.

The Dutch Safety Board, which is leading an international team of 24 investigators, said unhindered access to the crash site was critical.

Spokesman Tjibbe Joustra told The Associated Press in a telephone interview that around 25 investigators are in Kiev analyzing information including photos, satellite images and radar information, but have not yet gained access to the crash site.

Body parts were spotted still at the crash site Wednesday, said Michael Bociurkiw, spokesman for the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine. He also described "significant puncture marks to the fuselage, almost a piercing mark."

Independent military analysts said the size, spread, shape and number of shrapnel impacts visible in an AP photograph of a piece of the wreckage all point to a missile system like the SA-11 Buk.

U.S. analysts have also concluded that an SA-11 was the likely weapon.

Konrad Muzyka, Europe and CIS armed forces analyst at IHS Jane's, said the high number of shrapnel holes in the debris meant that only a fragmentary warhead like the SA-11 could have been used. The fact the shrapnel holes are folded inwards confirmed that the explosion came from outside the plane, he added.

Justin Bronk, military sciences research analyst at the Royal United Services Institute, said "the size of shrapnel holes is fairly broad, in keeping with what you would expect from a large missile like the SA-11."

Residents in the rebel-held city of Donetsk swept broken glass Wednesday and tried to repair apartments damaged from shelling in recent days.

"The solution I see is to stop shooting. Then Europe and Russia should step in to help start talks," said resident Alexander Litvinkenko. "Nothing will be resolved by force."

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Chernov contributed from Snizhne, Ukraine. Mike Corder in The Hague, Netherlands, and Jona Kallgren in Kharkiv, Ukraine, contributed to this report.