10 things you need to know today: June 3, 2013
Turkish protesters clash with riot police for a fourth straight day, Bradley Manning goes on trial, and more
1. TURKISH RIOTS ENTER FOURTH DAY
Dozens of people were injured early Monday as clashes between Turkish police and anti-government protesters entered their fourth day. More than 900 people were arrested in more than 90 demonstrations across the country against what protesters call the growing authoritarianism of Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan and his AFK party. The violence rattled financial markets, sending Turkish stocks tumbling by as much as 8 percent early Monday. [Haaretz, Al-Arabiya]
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2. BRADLEY MANNING GOES ON TRIAL IN WIKILEAKS CASE
Army Pfc. Bradley Manning goes on trial Monday for sending a massive trove of military secrets to WikiLeaks, an anti-secrecy website. Manning, a former Army intelligence analyst, has already pleaded guilty to charges punishable with up to 20 years in prison, but prosecutors are pressing forward with more charges, including aiding the enemy, that could result in a life sentence for what has been called the biggest leak of classified information in U.S. history. [Washington Post]
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3. EXPERIENCED STORM CHASERS WERE AMONG THOSE KILLED BY LATEST TORNADOES
Three veteran storm chasers were among the 13 people killed Friday by the latest tornadoes to hit Oklahoma, relatives of two of the men said Sunday. Tim Samaras, his son Paul Samaras, and meteorologist Carl Young — whose work had been featured on the Discovery Channel show Storm Chasers — were killed after the twister they were tracking in the Oklahoma City suburb of El Reno took an unexpected sharp turn. [CNN]
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4. FIRE KILLS 119 AT A POULTRY PLANT IN CHINA
A fire killed at least 119 people at a poultry plant in northeastern China, in Jilin province, on Monday. The blaze erupted after three explosions, possibly caused by an ammonia leak. The death toll could rise as crews sift through the charred wreckage — there were about 350 workers inside when the fire broke out. [CBS News]
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5. WILDFIRES RAGE IN CALIFORNIA AND NEW MEXICO
Three drought-fueled wildfires spread in New Mexico and California on Sunday. The biggest forced 2,000 people to flee their homes north of Los Angeles. That fire had already blackened 25,000 acres on Sunday, and it remained only 20 percent contained, leading firefighters to predict that it would rage for a week before it could be brought under control. [Reuters]
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6. EGYPT'S HIGH COURT RULES THAT PARLIAMENT'S UPPER HOUSE WAS ELECTED ILLEGALLY
Egypt's highest court ruled Sunday that the Muslim Brotherhood-dominated upper house of parliament and constitutional panel were elected illegally and are therefore invalid. The upper house, or Shura Council, will remain in place until a new lower house is elected to replace the one judges dissolved last year. The ruling could deepen the country's political instability, as it casts doubt on the future of a new constitution adopted in a December vote. [NPR]
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7. JOLIE MAKES HER FIRST APPEARANCE SINCE ANNOUNCING HER SURGERY
Angelina Jolie joined her fiance, Brad Pitt, on a red carpet in London on Sunday in her first public appearance since announcing she had had a double mastectomy. Jolie made the decision after learning she carried a gene giving her an 87 percent chance of getting breast cancer. Jolie, 37, said she was happy that her openness had provoked a discussion about women's health. "That means the world to me," she said. [Reuters]
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8. NORTH AMERICAN PUFFIN POPULATIONS ARE IN TROUBLE
Scientists are warning that the Atlantic puffin population is in danger in the U.S. The sea birds have been dying of starvation and survival rates for fledglings are plunging, possibly because of shifting fish populations as ocean temperatures rise, researchers say. "It's our marine canary in a coal mine, if you will," says Rebecca Holberton, a University of Maine puffin expert. [Associated Press]
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9. THE PACERS' HIBBERT IS FINED FOR USING ANTI-GAY TERM
The NBA fined Indiana Pacers center Roy Hibbert $75,000 for using an anti-gay slur — "no homo" — in a news conference after his team's Saturday victory over the Miami Heat, which sent the Eastern Conference finals into a decisive seventh game to be played Monday night. Hibbert apologized early Sunday, saying he deeply regretted using the "disrespectful and offensive" term. [New York Times]
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10. MICHAEL DOUGLAS BLAMES HIS CANCER ON ORAL SEX
Actor Michael Douglas says in an interview published Monday in Britain's Guardian that his throat cancer was caused by a virus he got by performing oral sex on women. "This particular cancer is caused by HPV [human papillomavirus], which actually comes about from cunnilingus," says Douglas, currently starring in an acclaimed HBO biopic on Liberace. Douglas was diagnosed in 2010 but has been clear of cancer for two years after undergoing aggressive chemotherapy. [Guardian]
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Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.
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