NEW YORK: A powerful winter storm dumped heavy snow and blasted the U.S. Northeast with high winds, closing schools, restricting travel and snarling transportation from major highways to busy airports. Officials in multiple cities and states declared emergencies and urged residents to stay off the roads as crews worked to clear streets and restore service. Meteorologists described the…

TRUCKEE: Recovery crews have recovered the bodies of all nine backcountry skiers killed in a powerful avalanche near Castle Peak in the Lake Tahoe region, ending a four-day search complicated by severe winter weather and unstable snow conditions. The Nevada County Sheriff’s Office said the last of the victims was recovered Saturday, Feb. 21, after responders used helicopters…

VIRGINIA: Robert Duvall, the Oscar-winning American actor whose performances ranged from the steady consigliere Tom Hagen in The Godfather films to the broken singer at the center of Tender Mercies, has died. He was 95. Duvall died peacefully at his home in Middleburg, Virginia, on Sunday, Feb. 15, according to a statement issued by his wife, Luciana Duvall, and an…

NEW YORK: United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called on the international community to overcome divisions and step up support for people in need as Ramadan approaches, urging action to protect human rights and dignity amid conflicts and humanitarian crises. In a message delivered by UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric at UN Headquarters in New York, Guterres described Ramadan as…

DETROIT: President Donald Trump has threatened to block the opening of the Gordie Howe International Bridge, a major new U.S.-Canada crossing between Detroit and Windsor, unless Canada agrees to terms he outlined on social media. Trump said the bridge should not open until the United States is “fully compensated” and said the U.S. should own at least part…

PHOENIX: A federal jury in Phoenix ordered Uber Technologies to pay $8.5 million to a passenger who said she was sexually assaulted by a driver, marking a closely watched verdict in litigation that includes thousands of similar claims against the ride-hailing company across the United States. The award consisted of compensatory damages and followed a trial that tested…