washingtontimes--2020-05-21--Investigators build a case for IS crimes against Yazidis

QASR AL-MIHRAB , Iraq ( AP ) — He was burly , with piercing blue eyes , and it was clear he was in charge when he entered the Galaxy , a wedding hall-turned-slave pen in the Iraqi city of Mosul .
Dozens of Yazidi women and girls huddled on the floor , newly abducted by Islamic State group militants .
He walked among them , beating them at the slightest sign of resistance .
At one point , he dragged a girl out of the hall by her hair , clearly picking her for himself , a Yazidi woman @ @ @ @ @ @ @ occurred in 2014 — recounted to The Associated Press .
This was Hajji Abdullah , a religious judge at the time and labeled one of the architects of the militant group ’ s enslavement of Iraq ’ s Yazidi religious minority , who rose to become deputy to IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi .
He ’ s believed to be the late al-Baghdadi ’ s successor , identified only by the pseudonym Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi .
A group of investigators with the Commission for International Justice and Accountability is amassing evidence , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ against humanity , war crimes and genocide — including Hajji Abdullah .
Hajji Abdullah was previously accused of involvement in the slave trade , most notably in a wanted poster circulated by the U.S. setting a $ 5 million bounty on his head .
But his prominence in the creation and oversight of the slave trade has never been spotlighted .
“ IS fighters didn ’ t take it upon themselves to rape these women and girls .
There was a carefully executed plan to enslave , sell , and rape Yazidi women @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the IS leadership , ” said Bill Wiley , executive director and founder of CIJA .
“ And in doing so , they were going to eradicate the Yazidi group by ensuring there were no more Yazidi children born.
” CIJA shared some of its findings with The Associated Press .
The group , through IS documents and interviews with survivors and insiders , identified 49 prominent IS figures who built and managed the slave trade , as well as nearly 170 slave owners , including Western , Asian , African and Arab @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , military commanders , local governors and women traders , many of them from the region neighboring the Yazidi community ’ s villages .
The AP also put together findings from IS ’ s own literature , along with interviews with IS members , former slaves and rescuers , to establish how slavery was strictly mapped out from the earliest days , devolving into a free-for-all with fighters enriching themselves by selling Yazidi women as the group ’ s power began to disintegrate .
CIJA ’ s focus now is to build cases @ @ @ @ @ @ @ members for crimes against humanity or genocide .
Countries can prosecute militants for individual rapes or torture or for membership in a terrorist group .
But to prove higher charges , they would need the contextual evidence that CIJA provides , showing the crimes were part of a greater structure .
“ Practically every Daesh prosecution that has ever happened anywhere in the world is a material support case , a membership case , ” Wiley said , using an Arabic name for the group .
“ Prosecuting high crimes could serve as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ In the first prosecution on charges of genocide against the Yazidis last month , a German court brought an Iraqi national to trial for enslaving a Yazidi woman and her 5-year-old , who was chained and left to die of thirst .
Meanwhile , a U.N. investigative team said it has collected evidence from Iraq , including 2 million call records , that can strengthen cases of prosecution for crimes against the Yazidis .
CIJA is sharing its findings from Iraq with the U.N. team and is pursuing more evidence from Syria , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The Syrian Kurdish authority holds perhaps the largest trove of material from the group , as well as some 10,000 of its members , including 2,000 foreign fighters , in detention .
Investigators ’ steep challenge : documenting crimes committed over the course of four years against millions of people in different countries , while many IS members remain at large .
In the Iraqi city of Mosul , for instance , the crimes took place among a population of nearly 2 million people over three years , including enslavement , attacks on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sites and training children in jihad .
The Islamic State group ’ s narrative is that slavery is a justifiable consequence of battle during its brutal capture of Sinjar , a region west of Mosul , as part of its attempt to establish a so-called caliphate .
But the AP determined , based on CIJA ’ s investigation and its own reporting , that the highest levels of leadership were directly involved in organizing an enslavement machine that became central to the group ’ s structure and identity .
Governing institutions were enlisted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that constructed the slave system , the security agencies that enforced it , the bureaucrats and Islamic courts that supervised it , and propaganda arms that justified it .
Even as their caliphate collapsed around them , the militants made keeping their grip on slaves a priority .
When slave markets proliferated out of the leadership ’ s reach , internal documents show IS officials struggled to impose control with a stream of edicts that were widely ignored .
IS launched its attack on the heartland of the Yazidi community at the foot @ @ @ @ @ @ @ It ’ s unclear if Sinjar was attacked for its strategic location between IS holdings in Iraq and in Syria or with the specific aim of subjugating the Yazidis , an ancient sect considered heretics by the militants .
In any case , the results were devastating : During the week-long assault , IS killed hundreds of Yazidis and abducted 6,417 , more than half of them women and girls .
Most of the captured adult men were likely eventually killed .
Hajji Abdullah , an ethnic Turkman from Tal Afar , an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be the highest IS judicial official in the area and so stepped in to play a key role in distributing slaves .
The women and children — their husbands and fathers butchered or missing — had to learn to navigate the perverse rules of a world where they were considered commodities for rape and servitude .
“ For five years I lived with them .
They beat me and sold me and did everything to me , ” said the woman who witnessed Hajji Abdullah ’ s casual cruelty in the Galaxy wedding @ @ @ @ @ @ @ her arms as she spoke , her skinny frame carrying more memories than her years are meant to handle .
The AP is not identifying her because she was a victim of rape .
Now 19 , she said she was raped by nearly a dozen owners , including al-Baghdadi , who owned her for months before he “ gifted ” her to one of his aides .
The woman was rescued in a U.S-led operation in May 2019 .
She spoke to the AP in a northern Iraqi town full of Yazidi @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who underwent similar horrors .
When Yazidis were seized , top IS commanders registered them , photographed the women and children and categorized them into married , unmarried and girls .
Initially , the thousands of captured women and children were handed out as gifts to fighters who took part in the Sinjar offensive , in line with the group ’ s policy on the “ spoils of war.
” Under early IS rules , war booty was distributed equally among the soldiers after the state took 20 % , known as the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ CIJA , some fighters came to detention centers with pieces of paper signed by Hajji Abdullah confirming their participation in the Sinjar attack and entitling them to a slave .
Women and girls also would be picked out to be raped by fighters , then returned to detention .
By early 2015 , the remaining women were transferred to the Syrian city of Raqqa , the caliphate ’ s capital , and then distributed across IS-controlled areas , CIJA and survivors of slavery accounts showed .
The IS propaganda machine was mobilized to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , sermons and fatwas interpreting Islamic law were issued outlining how taking slaves was in accordance with Islam .
Islamic Shariah law traditionally allowed and regulated slavery , just as many societies did throughout history , but almost all Muslim clerics now say slavery is no longer permissible .
IS operated centralized slave markets in Mosul , Raqqa and other cities .
At the market in the Syrian city of Palmyra , women walked a runway for IS members to bid on .
Others , like the one in al-Shadadi , distributed women @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2015 notification reviewed by the AP called on IS fighters in Syria ’ s Homs province to register for an upcoming slave market , or “ Souk al-Nakhassa , ” giving those on the front lines a 10 day-notice to attend .
Participants were told to enter bids in a sealed envelope .
The Soldiers ’ Department , or Diwan al-Jund , recorded fighters who owned slaves , usually referred to by the Arabic word “ sabaya.
” For a time , IS paid fighters a stipend of about $ 50 per slave @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the stipend for a wife .
The stipend eventually stopped , apparently because military defeats hurt revenues and because owning a sabaya became a sign of wealth and privilege .
Managing the robust system turned out to be more complicated than the leadership planned .
And chaos abounded .
Slaves meant to be a reward to fighters were resold for personal profit , and some IS members made tens of thousands of dollars ransoming captives back to their families .
Violence and abuse by owners led to rising reports of suicides and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ flurry of regulations on ownership and sales , uncovered by CIJA and Syria expert and independent researcher Aymenn Tamimi .
As early as March 2015 , IS officials in Syria ’ s Aleppo province banned posting pictures of Yazidi women on social media , trying to crack down on electronic markets that rescuers and smugglers often infiltrated to extract captives .
The CIJA archive contains a copy of an edict by the Department of War Spoils that banned separating enslaved women from their children , with a handwritten note ordering it distributed to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that earlier decrees had failed to stop the practice .
In July 2015 , the Delegated Committee — effectively the cabinet — ordered all slave sales to be registered by Islamic courts , seeking to end sales among fighters .
It also required the finance minister of each IS province to keep track of women between transactions .
The rules got only tighter as the leadership ’ s frustration over violations grew .
One directive set punishments for selling Yazidis to “ commoners ” — anyone not a fighter or senior IS official @ @ @ @ @ @ @ families .
CIJA documented cases of senior officials dismissed from their jobs or punished with lashes for making exorbitant sums by flouting the rules .
Another document explained that only al-Baghdadi was in charge of setting policy on slaves and their distribution .
A February 2016 edict required the Delegated Committee ’ s approval for any senior figure to own slaves — a suggestion that even top officials were abusing the sales process .
Captured IS militants offered a glimpse into the resistance the leadership faced in enforcing its rules .
In the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ what they saw as their right under Islamic law could not be restricted .
Abu Hareth , an Iraqi IS preacher held in a Baghdad prison , told the AP that many fighters didn ’ t feel compelled to register sales in courts .
“ You have a product and you are allowed to trade in it , ” he said .
Abdul-Rahman al-Shmary , a 24-year old Saudi who traded in slaves and is held in a Syrian Kurdish-run prison , dismissed the rules as rooted not in Islamic law but in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ It was about power and not for God ’ s sake , ” he said .
Abu Adel al-Jazrawi , a Saudi who worked in the group ’ s War Spoils department and is now imprisoned in eastern Syria , put it bluntly : “ Slaves were just the means for high officials to get rich.
” Laila Taloo ’ s 2½-year ordeal in captivity underscores how IS members continually ignored the rules .
“ They explained everything as permissible .
They called it Islamic law .
They raped women , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 33-year old Taloo , who was owned by eight men , all of whom raped her .
She asked that her name be used because she is publicly campaigning for justice for Yazidis .
After Taloo , her husband , young son and newborn daughter were abducted in 2014 and she and her husband were forced to convert to Islam , which should have spared them from being enslaved or killed .
But conversion meant nothing .
“ What is this all for ?
They never had a second thought about killing or @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said .
The family was taken to the Iraqi village of Qasr Mihrab , along with nearly 2,000 other converted Yazidis .
At one point , the militants gathered all the adult men and took them away .
Their bodies were never found but are believed to have been thrown into a nearby sinkhole , where bones still can be seen .
CIJA found that Hajji Abdullah was among the senior IS officials involved in the execution of the men .
Taloo was first sold to an Iraqi doctor , who three days @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Despite the rules mandating sales through courts , she was thrown into a world of informal slave markets run out of homes .
Her third owner , an Iraqi surgeon , woke her one night and had her dress and put on makeup so four Saudi men could inspect her .
One didn ’ t like her ankles ; another , a member of the IS religious police , paid nearly $ 6,000 for her .
That owner posted pictures of his slaves online and , every day , they were paraded before @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a fashion show .
We would walk up and down a room filled with men who are checking us out , ” Taloo said .
With each owner , she fought to keep her children safe .
One man took photos of her then-2-year-old daughter , threatening to sell her to an Iraqi woman who couldn ’ t have children .
IS was known to separate children from their mothers , using them as household slaves or child soldiers , changing their names and forcing them to convert to Islam .
One owner @ @ @ @ @ @ @ changed his mind and forced her to have an abortion .
He also forced her to remove a tattoo she engraved on her skin carrying her husband ’ s name .
Another owner forced her to use contraceptives .
A third owner got her pregnant and she forced her own abortion .
Eventually , to free a relative , Taloo married a militant who turned out to be a senior IS operative .
His long stints on the battlefield enabled her to escape : She paid a smuggler $ 19,500 she got from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ territory with her children and sister-in-law .
Today , Taloo still visits the sinkhole where her husband is believed to be buried , and for the first time last year she visited the house in Qasr al-Mihrab , where her family was held captive .
The house owners , who had fled the IS takeover , have now returned , unknowingly living among Taloo ’ s cherished memories of her family that was .
As their territory steadily diminished and defeat loomed , IS continued to crack down on members who , desperate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ back to their families for large sums .
Some fighters who did so were reportedly killed , survivors of IS slavery said .
Some 3,500 slaves have been freed from IS ’ clutches in recent years , most of them ransomed by their families .
But more than 2,900 Yazidis remain unaccounted for , including some 1,300 women and children , according to the Yazidi abductees office in Iraq ’ s Kurdish autonomous region .
Most are believed dead , but hundreds of women and children likely remain held by militants , said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Yazidis who work as rescuers tracking down the enslaved .
For years , the two have followed slave markets on social media , contacting smugglers and searching out IS militants willing to ransom their captives to their families .
Working separately , they have secured freedom for dozens of women and children .
Sitting under the shade of a tree at Lalish , the holiest Yazidi shrine in Iraq ’ s Dohuk province , Khanasouri recounted how he managed to escape after being among about 250 people kidnapped by IS in his hometown @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of a Tunisian IS member he encountered in captivity , he has developed a network of insiders and confederates in his quest to rescue as many fellow Yazidis as possible .
As IS crumbled , the rescue business was brisk as captors scrambled for money , “ looking for buyers , ” Khanasouri said .
Now , with militants scattered — some hiding in deserts and caves or in sleeper cells — finding sellers is harder .
Wielding his phone , Khanasouri shows maps of likely locations of IS safehouses in Iraq ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ certain surviving women are still held .
Other women are hiding , either by choice or coercion , among IS families housed at the al-Hol camp in Syria , run by Syrian Kurdish fighters .
Some captives have accepted their new identities , particularly Yazidi children who grew up under IS , Farhan said .
Some women with children born to IS fathers don ’ t want to return home because their Yazidi community has shunned the newborns .
Khanasouri and Farhan have extended their search beyond the areas that IS once controlled @ @ @ @ @ @ @ smuggled out by their captors who fled as far afield as Iran and Turkey .
A Yazidi freed slave lost custody in a Turkish court of her nephew and niece who were found in an orphanage in Turkey .
At times , they said , Syrian opposition fighters have refused to return enslaved girls they come across in their territory .
One Yazidi girl , forced to convert to Islam and six months pregnant , was found in the northwest Syrian town of Azaz when fighters captured a Saudi IS militant transporting her @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , an opposition fighter , offered to bring the girl back to her family .
But his commanders stopped the transfer .
“ They said , ‘ She is now a Muslim girl , why are you sending her back to the infidels ?
’ ” Farhan said .
Associated Press writers Qassim Abdul-Zahra in Baghdad and Salar Salim in Irbil , Iraq contributed to this report .

QASR AL-MIHRAB, Iraq (AP) — He was burly, with piercing blue eyes, and it was clear he was in charge when he entered the Galaxy, a wedding hall-turned-slave pen in the Iraqi city of Mosul. Dozens of Yazidi women and girls huddled on the floor, newly abducted by Islamic State group militants.
He walked among them, beating them at the slightest sign of resistance. At one point, he dragged a girl out of the hall by her hair, clearly picking her for himself, a Yazidi woman — who was 14 when the incident occurred in 2014 — recounted to The Associated Press.
This was Hajji Abdullah, a religious judge at the time and labeled one of the architects of the militant group’s enslavement of Iraq’s Yazidi religious minority, who rose to become deputy to IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. He’s believed to be the late al-Baghdadi’s successor, identified only by the pseudonym Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi.
A group of investigators with the Commission for International Justice and Accountability is amassing evidence, hoping to prosecute IS figures for crimes against humanity, war crimes and genocide — including Hajji Abdullah.
Hajji Abdullah was previously accused of involvement in the slave trade, most notably in a wanted poster circulated by the U.S. setting a $5 million bounty on his head. But his prominence in the creation and oversight of the slave trade has never been spotlighted.
“IS fighters didn’t take it upon themselves to rape these women and girls. There was a carefully executed plan to enslave, sell, and rape Yazidi women presided over by the highest levels of the IS leadership,” said Bill Wiley, executive director and founder of CIJA. “And in doing so, they were going to eradicate the Yazidi group by ensuring there were no more Yazidi children born.”
CIJA shared some of its findings with The Associated Press. The group, through IS documents and interviews with survivors and insiders, identified 49 prominent IS figures who built and managed the slave trade, as well as nearly 170 slave owners, including Western, Asian, African and Arab fighters. These also include top financiers, military commanders, local governors and women traders, many of them from the region neighboring the Yazidi community’s villages.
The AP also put together findings from IS’s own literature, along with interviews with IS members, former slaves and rescuers, to establish how slavery was strictly mapped out from the earliest days, devolving into a free-for-all with fighters enriching themselves by selling Yazidi women as the group’s power began to disintegrate.
CIJA’s focus now is to build cases that courts can use to try IS members for crimes against humanity or genocide. Countries can prosecute militants for individual rapes or torture or for membership in a terrorist group. But to prove higher charges, they would need the contextual evidence that CIJA provides, showing the crimes were part of a greater structure.
“Practically every Daesh prosecution that has ever happened anywhere in the world is a material support case, a membership case,” Wiley said, using an Arabic name for the group. “Prosecuting high crimes could serve as a counter-radicalization tool for IS supporters.”
In the first prosecution on charges of genocide against the Yazidis last month, a German court brought an Iraqi national to trial for enslaving a Yazidi woman and her 5-year-old, who was chained and left to die of thirst. Meanwhile, a U.N. investigative team said it has collected evidence from Iraq, including 2 million call records, that can strengthen cases of prosecution for crimes against the Yazidis.
CIJA is sharing its findings from Iraq with the U.N. team and is pursuing more evidence from Syria, where IS made its last stand. The Syrian Kurdish authority holds perhaps the largest trove of material from the group, as well as some 10,000 of its members, including 2,000 foreign fighters, in detention.
Investigators’ steep challenge: documenting crimes committed over the course of four years against millions of people in different countries, while many IS members remain at large.
In the Iraqi city of Mosul, for instance, the crimes took place among a population of nearly 2 million people over three years, including enslavement, attacks on dissidents, destruction of cultural and religious sites and training children in jihad.
The Islamic State group’s narrative is that slavery is a justifiable consequence of battle during its brutal capture of Sinjar, a region west of Mosul, as part of its attempt to establish a so-called caliphate.
But the AP determined, based on CIJA’s investigation and its own reporting, that the highest levels of leadership were directly involved in organizing an enslavement machine that became central to the group’s structure and identity. Governing institutions were enlisted, from the IS “cabinet” that constructed the slave system, the security agencies that enforced it, the bureaucrats and Islamic courts that supervised it, and propaganda arms that justified it.
Even as their caliphate collapsed around them, the militants made keeping their grip on slaves a priority. When slave markets proliferated out of the leadership’s reach, internal documents show IS officials struggled to impose control with a stream of edicts that were widely ignored.
A SYSTEM OF SLAVERY
IS launched its attack on the heartland of the Yazidi community at the foot of Sinjar Mountain in August 2014. It’s unclear if Sinjar was attacked for its strategic location between IS holdings in Iraq and in Syria or with the specific aim of subjugating the Yazidis, an ancient sect considered heretics by the militants.
In any case, the results were devastating: During the week-long assault, IS killed hundreds of Yazidis and abducted 6,417, more than half of them women and girls. Most of the captured adult men were likely eventually killed. Hajji Abdullah, an ethnic Turkman from Tal Afar, an area near Sinjar, was believed to be the highest IS judicial official in the area and so stepped in to play a key role in distributing slaves.
The women and children — their husbands and fathers butchered or missing — had to learn to navigate the perverse rules of a world where they were considered commodities for rape and servitude.
“For five years I lived with them. They beat me and sold me and did everything to me,” said the woman who witnessed Hajji Abdullah’s casual cruelty in the Galaxy wedding hall. She dug her nails into her arms as she spoke, her skinny frame carrying more memories than her years are meant to handle. The AP is not identifying her because she was a victim of rape.
Now 19, she said she was raped by nearly a dozen owners, including al-Baghdadi, who owned her for months before he “gifted” her to one of his aides.
The woman was rescued in a U.S-led operation in May 2019. She spoke to the AP in a northern Iraqi town full of Yazidi refugees, including freed women and girls who underwent similar horrors.
When Yazidis were seized, top IS commanders registered them, photographed the women and children and categorized them into married, unmarried and girls.
Initially, the thousands of captured women and children were handed out as gifts to fighters who took part in the Sinjar offensive, in line with the group’s policy on the “spoils of war.” Under early IS rules, war booty was distributed equally among the soldiers after the state took 20%, known as the “khums.”
According to survivors and CIJA, some fighters came to detention centers with pieces of paper signed by Hajji Abdullah confirming their participation in the Sinjar attack and entitling them to a slave. Women and girls also would be picked out to be raped by fighters, then returned to detention.
By early 2015, the remaining women were transferred to the Syrian city of Raqqa, the caliphate’s capital, and then distributed across IS-controlled areas, CIJA and survivors of slavery accounts showed.
The IS propaganda machine was mobilized to justify its revival of slavery.
Articles, sermons and fatwas interpreting Islamic law were issued outlining how taking slaves was in accordance with Islam.
Islamic Shariah law traditionally allowed and regulated slavery, just as many societies did throughout history, but almost all Muslim clerics now say slavery is no longer permissible.
IS operated centralized slave markets in Mosul, Raqqa and other cities. At the market in the Syrian city of Palmyra, women walked a runway for IS members to bid on. Others, like the one in al-Shadadi, distributed women to militants by lottery.
A June 2015 notification reviewed by the AP called on IS fighters in Syria’s Homs province to register for an upcoming slave market, or “Souk al-Nakhassa,” giving those on the front lines a 10 day-notice to attend. Participants were told to enter bids in a sealed envelope.
The Soldiers’ Department, or Diwan al-Jund, recorded fighters who owned slaves, usually referred to by the Arabic word “sabaya.” For a time, IS paid fighters a stipend of about $50 per slave and $35 per child — equivalent to the stipend for a wife. The stipend eventually stopped, apparently because military defeats hurt revenues and because owning a sabaya became a sign of wealth and privilege.
Managing the robust system turned out to be more complicated than the leadership planned. And chaos abounded.
Slaves meant to be a reward to fighters were resold for personal profit, and some IS members made tens of thousands of dollars ransoming captives back to their families. Violence and abuse by owners led to rising reports of suicides and escapes among captives.
That prompted a flurry of regulations on ownership and sales, uncovered by CIJA and Syria expert and independent researcher Aymenn Tamimi.
As early as March 2015, IS officials in Syria’s Aleppo province banned posting pictures of Yazidi women on social media, trying to crack down on electronic markets that rescuers and smugglers often infiltrated to extract captives.
The CIJA archive contains a copy of an edict by the Department of War Spoils that banned separating enslaved women from their children, with a handwritten note ordering it distributed to all departments and provinces — a signal that earlier decrees had failed to stop the practice.
In July 2015, the Delegated Committee — effectively the cabinet — ordered all slave sales to be registered by Islamic courts, seeking to end sales among fighters. It also required the finance minister of each IS province to keep track of women between transactions.
The rules got only tighter as the leadership’s frustration over violations grew.
One directive set punishments for selling Yazidis to “commoners” — anyone not a fighter or senior IS official — and for ransoming them to their families. CIJA documented cases of senior officials dismissed from their jobs or punished with lashes for making exorbitant sums by flouting the rules.
Another document explained that only al-Baghdadi was in charge of setting policy on slaves and their distribution. A February 2016 edict required the Delegated Committee’s approval for any senior figure to own slaves — a suggestion that even top officials were abusing the sales process.
Captured IS militants offered a glimpse into the resistance the leadership faced in enforcing its rules. In the eyes of some in the rank-and-file, what they saw as their right under Islamic law could not be restricted.
Abu Hareth, an Iraqi IS preacher held in a Baghdad prison, told the AP that many fighters didn’t feel compelled to register sales in courts. “You have a product and you are allowed to trade in it,” he said.
Abdul-Rahman al-Shmary, a 24-year old Saudi who traded in slaves and is held in a Syrian Kurdish-run prison, dismissed the rules as rooted not in Islamic law but in the leadership’s need for control.
“It was about power and not for God’s sake,” he said.
Abu Adel al-Jazrawi, a Saudi who worked in the group’s War Spoils department and is now imprisoned in eastern Syria, put it bluntly: “Slaves were just the means for high officials to get rich.”
TALOO’S JOURNEY
Laila Taloo’s 2½-year ordeal in captivity underscores how IS members continually ignored the rules.
“They explained everything as permissible. They called it Islamic law. They raped women, even young girls,” said the 33-year old Taloo, who was owned by eight men, all of whom raped her. She asked that her name be used because she is publicly campaigning for justice for Yazidis.
After Taloo, her husband, young son and newborn daughter were abducted in 2014 and she and her husband were forced to convert to Islam, which should have spared them from being enslaved or killed.
But conversion meant nothing. “What is this all for? They never had a second thought about killing or slaughtering or taking women,” Taloo said.
The family was taken to the Iraqi village of Qasr Mihrab, along with nearly 2,000 other converted Yazidis. At one point, the militants gathered all the adult men and took them away. Their bodies were never found but are believed to have been thrown into a nearby sinkhole, where bones still can be seen. CIJA found that Hajji Abdullah was among the senior IS officials involved in the execution of the men.
Taloo was first sold to an Iraqi doctor, who three days later gifted her to a friend. Despite the rules mandating sales through courts, she was thrown into a world of informal slave markets run out of homes.
Her third owner, an Iraqi surgeon, woke her one night and had her dress and put on makeup so four Saudi men could inspect her. One didn’t like her ankles; another, a member of the IS religious police, paid nearly $6,000 for her.
That owner posted pictures of his slaves online and, every day, they were paraded before potential buyers. “It was like a fashion show. We would walk up and down a room filled with men who are checking us out,” Taloo said.
With each owner, she fought to keep her children safe. One man took photos of her then-2-year-old daughter, threatening to sell her to an Iraqi woman who couldn’t have children. IS was known to separate children from their mothers, using them as household slaves or child soldiers, changing their names and forcing them to convert to Islam.
One owner forced Taloo to have a baby then changed his mind and forced her to have an abortion. He also forced her to remove a tattoo she engraved on her skin carrying her husband’s name. Another owner forced her to use contraceptives. A third owner got her pregnant and she forced her own abortion.
Eventually, to free a relative, Taloo married a militant who turned out to be a senior IS operative. His long stints on the battlefield enabled her to escape: She paid a smuggler $19,500 she got from her family for passage out of IS-held territory with her children and sister-in-law.
Today, Taloo still visits the sinkhole where her husband is believed to be buried, and for the first time last year she visited the house in Qasr al-Mihrab, where her family was held captive. The house owners, who had fled the IS takeover, have now returned, unknowingly living among Taloo’s cherished memories of her family that was.
THE RESCUERS
As their territory steadily diminished and defeat loomed, IS continued to crack down on members who, desperate for money, sought to sell slaves back to their families for large sums. Some fighters who did so were reportedly killed, survivors of IS slavery said.
Some 3,500 slaves have been freed from IS’ clutches in recent years, most of them ransomed by their families. But more than 2,900 Yazidis remain unaccounted for, including some 1,300 women and children, according to the Yazidi abductees office in Iraq’s Kurdish autonomous region.
Most are believed dead, but hundreds of women and children likely remain held by militants, said Bahzad Farhan and Ali Khanasouri, two Yazidis who work as rescuers tracking down the enslaved.
For years, the two have followed slave markets on social media, contacting smugglers and searching out IS militants willing to ransom their captives to their families. Working separately, they have secured freedom for dozens of women and children.
Sitting under the shade of a tree at Lalish, the holiest Yazidi shrine in Iraq’s Dohuk province, Khanasouri recounted how he managed to escape after being among about 250 people kidnapped by IS in his hometown five years ago.
With the help of a Tunisian IS member he encountered in captivity, he has developed a network of insiders and confederates in his quest to rescue as many fellow Yazidis as possible.
As IS crumbled, the rescue business was brisk as captors scrambled for money, “looking for buyers,” Khanasouri said. Now, with militants scattered — some hiding in deserts and caves or in sleeper cells — finding sellers is harder.
Wielding his phone, Khanasouri shows maps of likely locations of IS safehouses in Iraq’s western deserts, where he is certain surviving women are still held.
Other women are hiding, either by choice or coercion, among IS families housed at the al-Hol camp in Syria, run by Syrian Kurdish fighters.
Some captives have accepted their new identities, particularly Yazidi children who grew up under IS, Farhan said. Some women with children born to IS fathers don’t want to return home because their Yazidi community has shunned the newborns.
Khanasouri and Farhan have extended their search beyond the areas that IS once controlled, finding traces of women and children smuggled out by their captors who fled as far afield as Iran and Turkey. A Yazidi freed slave lost custody in a Turkish court of her nephew and niece who were found in an orphanage in Turkey.
At times, they said, Syrian opposition fighters have refused to return enslaved girls they come across in their territory.
One Yazidi girl, forced to convert to Islam and six months pregnant, was found in the northwest Syrian town of Azaz when fighters captured a Saudi IS militant transporting her. One of Farhan’s contacts, an opposition fighter, offered to bring the girl back to her family. But his commanders stopped the transfer.
“They said, ‘She is now a Muslim girl, why are you sending her back to the infidels?’” Farhan said.
___
Associated Press writers Qassim Abdul-Zahra in Baghdad and Salar Salim in Irbil, Iraq contributed to this report.


washingtontimes--2020-05-21--Australian researchers see virus design manipulation

A forthcoming Australian scientific study concludes that the coronavirus causing the global pandemic contains unique properties suggesting it was manipulated in a Chinese laboratory and was not the result of a natural occurrence .
Five scientists who conducted the study discovered an unusual ability of the SARS-CoV-2 virus , as the pathogen behind COVID-19 is called , to easily infect humans .
The scientists said there is no sign so far that the virus can be found in other animals , including bats or the exotic wildlife sold for fresh meat at a market in the Chinese city of Wuhan @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and where China maintains a major laboratory studying such viruses .
The preliminary report of the study , which is now being peer-reviewed , is based on computer modeling of the virus ’ ability to infect various animals , including humans .
It was published May 13 on the Cornell University website arXiv.org , which is used for discussion of pre-publication papers .
Nikolai Petrovsky , the lead researcher , said his team suspects human manipulation in Wuhan because of the unmatched ability of the virus ’ protruding spike to infect human cells @ @ @ @ @ @ @ human cells “ far exceeds ” similar properties for infecting other animals , he said in a statement on the forthcoming report .
“ This , plus the fact that no corresponding virus has been found to exist in nature , leads to the possibility that COVID-19 is a human-created virus , ” said Mr. Petrovsky , a professor at the College of Medicine and Public Health at Flinders University in Adelaide , Australia .
“ It is therefore entirely plausible that the virus was created in the biosecurity facility in Wuhan by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a laboratory that was known to be cultivating exotic bat coronaviruses at the time.
” ACE2 is the acronym for angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 , which is on cell surfaces .
The enzyme is the entry point the coronavirus uses to infect organisms and spread .
Human lung cells contain ACE2 receptors that have been shown to be key targets of the SARS-CoV-2 .
A laboratory-treated coronavirus also could have escaped the facility through an accidental infection of a staff member who then visited the Wuhan wild animal market , Mr. Petrovsky said .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ medical waste at a Wuhan laboratory or transmission from a cat or other animal that came into contact with infected waste .
Mr. Petrovsky said the research team believes the quick evolution of the coronavirus and its unique ability to infect humans are either “ a remarkable coincidence or a sign of human intervention.
” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying denied again this month that the Wuhan Institute of Virology , which houses China ’ s high-security laboratory studying pathogens , was the source of the outbreak .
The head of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ convinced after a review that her lab played no role in the virus ’ spread .
Another Chinese Foreign Ministry official , Zhao Lijian , suggested that the U.S. Army brought the virus to China .
President Trump and other top officials angrily denied that accusation .
The Australian study contradicts other scientists ’ assertions that there is no evidence the virus originated in a Chinese laboratory or that it is the result of laboratory bioengineering .
Dr. Anthony Fauci , director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pandemic , has dismissed any suggestion that the virus came from a Chinese laboratory .
“ If you look at the evolution of the virus in bats and what ’ s out there now , [ the scientific evidence ] is very , very strongly leaning toward this could not have been artificially or deliberately manipulated , ” he told National Geographic this month .
“ Everything about the stepwise evolution over time strongly indicates that [ this virus ] evolved in nature and then jumped species.
” The forthcoming study , however @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the virus ’ “ spike ” protein — the crownlike protrusions surrounding the surface of the round microbe — is highest for humans and greater than all other species tested , including bats , which have been widely targeted as the likely original source .
“ This indicates that SARS-CoV-2 is a highly adapted human pathogen , ” the Australian report said .
The team analyzed spike protein binding of the virus on a range of other animals , including pangolins , civets , mice , hamsters , cats , dogs , snakes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ Overall , the data indicates that SARS-CoV-2 is uniquely adapted to infect humans , raising important questions as to whether it arose in nature by a rare chance event or whether its origins might lie elsewhere , ” the report said .
Jonathan J. Couey , a research assistant professor of neurobiology at the University of Pittsburgh , said he agrees with the Australian findings .
“ Understanding the exact origin of this virus is vital to ensure that all scientific and medical data are interpreted correctly by policymakers and health care @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
However , he said , debate on the laboratory origin of the virus has been stymied by scientists opposed to even considering the possibility .
“ Several scientists with obvious conflicts of interest have been permitted to go on the record denying that it would be possible to generate such a virus in a laboratory and stating specifically that the sequence of SARS-CoV-2 would never have been chosen by any ‘ gene jockey , ’ ” he said in an email .
“ Both of these denials are not genuine scientific rebuttals @ @ @ @ @ @ @ some of those most closely tied to the funding of these [ gain of function ] research lines.
” “ Gain-of-function research ” is laboratory work to increase the ability of pathogens to cause disease .
It is carried out to study pandemics and how to respond to them .
Research institutions and U.S. intelligence agencies are investigating the origin of the virus , which has now infected nearly 5 million people worldwide and is blamed for at least 323,000 deaths .
The 106,000 new cases of infections recorded Tuesday was the most @ @ @ @ @ @ @ began , World Health Organization officials said in Geneva .
U.S. intelligence agencies say they agree with a “ wide scientific consensus ” that the virus was not man-made or genetically modified , according to an April 30 statement by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence .
But public and private researchers have said it is impossible to dismiss the possibility of an accidental leak from the Wuhan laboratory of what became the COVID-19 strain .
The spy agencies are studying emerging information and intelligence “ to determine whether the outbreak @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or if it was the result of an accident at a laboratory in Wuhan , ” the ODNI said in an unusual public statement .
Knowing the origin of the virus could prove critical to finding vaccines and treatments and responding to future outbreaks , researchers say .
The Australian study is the second scientific paper to suggest laboratory manipulation played a part .
A group of Indian scientists published a paper on Jan. 31 that found the new coronavirus contained four insertions to the spike protein that are unique to SARS-CoV-2 and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ features , they said , are similar to those found in the virus known as HIV .
Those scientists concluded that similar structures are “ unlikely to be fortuitous in nature.
” The Indian paper was withdrawn under pressure from China , but the scientists involved refused to repudiate their research and promised to publish their findings eventually .
Mr. Petrovsky , who is also research director for Vaxine Pty Ltd. , a biotechnology company based in Bedford Park , South Australia , said the source of the virus remains a vitally important @ @ @ @ @ @ @ similarities to SARS and other bat viruses , no natural virus matching to COVID-19 has been found in nature despite an intensive search to find its origins , ” he said .
“ This raises the very legitimate question of whether the COVID-19 virus might be the result of human intervention.
” Like other scientists who studied the virus , the Australian team did not find easily recognizable artificial gene inserts that would signal virus engineering .
Mr. Petrovsky said there are ways to manipulate viruses without such inserts .
For example , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that is not infectious to humans and force its evolution by culturing the virus with cells that have the human receptor .
That process was used to culture SARS coronaviruses in laboratories .
The result would be that “ you can force the bat virus to adapt to infect human cells via mutations in its spike protein , ” Mr. Petrovsky said .
Laboratory development of viruses also can create other random mutations .
“ The result of these experiments is a virus that is highly virulent in humans but is sufficiently different @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bat virus , ” he said .
Since those mutations would be acquired randomly in a laboratory , there would be no signature of bioengineering “ but this is clearly a virus still created by human intervention.
” The Chinese government initially said the virus appeared to originate in the Huanan seafood market in Wuhan but later changed its official version to say the origin is something for scientists to study .
Beijing initially opposed international calls for an investigation into how the disease outbreak began but this week said it would support @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the disease outbreak at an unspecified date .
Critics say Chinese secrecy has prevented scientists from learning about the virus .
However , “ the nature of this event and its proximity to a high-risk biosecurity facility at the epicenter of the outbreak demands a full and independent international inquiry to ascertain whether a virus of this kind of COVID-19 was being cultured in the facility and might have been accidentally released , ” Mr. Petrovsky said .

A forthcoming Australian scientific study concludes that the coronavirus causing the global pandemic contains unique properties suggesting it was manipulated in a Chinese laboratory and was not the result of a natural occurrence.
Five scientists who conducted the study discovered an unusual ability of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, as the pathogen behind COVID-19 is called, to easily infect humans.
The scientists said there is no sign so far that the virus can be found in other animals, including bats or the exotic wildlife sold for fresh meat at a market in the Chinese city of Wuhan, where the virus was first identified and where China maintains a major laboratory studying such viruses.
The preliminary report of the study, which is now being peer-reviewed, is based on computer modeling of the virus’ ability to infect various animals, including humans. It was published May 13 on the Cornell University website arXiv.org, which is used for discussion of pre-publication papers.
Nikolai Petrovsky, the lead researcher, said his team suspects human manipulation in Wuhan because of the unmatched ability of the virus’ protruding spike to infect human cells.
The virus’ binding strength for human cells “far exceeds” similar properties for infecting other animals, he said in a statement on the forthcoming report.
“This, plus the fact that no corresponding virus has been found to exist in nature, leads to the possibility that COVID-19 is a human-created virus,” said Mr. Petrovsky, a professor at the College of Medicine and Public Health at Flinders University in Adelaide, Australia.
“It is therefore entirely plausible that the virus was created in the biosecurity facility in Wuhan by selection on cells expressing human ACE2, a laboratory that was known to be cultivating exotic bat coronaviruses at the time.”
ACE2 is the acronym for angiotensin-converting enzyme 2, which is on cell surfaces. The enzyme is the entry point the coronavirus uses to infect organisms and spread.
Human lung cells contain ACE2 receptors that have been shown to be key targets of the SARS-CoV-2.
A laboratory-treated coronavirus also could have escaped the facility through an accidental infection of a staff member who then visited the Wuhan wild animal market, Mr. Petrovsky said. Other potential sources include inappropriate disposal of medical waste at a Wuhan laboratory or transmission from a cat or other animal that came into contact with infected waste.
Mr. Petrovsky said the research team believes the quick evolution of the coronavirus and its unique ability to infect humans are either “a remarkable coincidence or a sign of human intervention.”
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying denied again this month that the Wuhan Institute of Virology, which houses China’s high-security laboratory studying pathogens, was the source of the outbreak. The head of the Wuhan laboratory has also said she is convinced after a review that her lab played no role in the virus’ spread.
Another Chinese Foreign Ministry official, Zhao Lijian, suggested that the U.S. Army brought the virus to China. President Trump and other top officials angrily denied that accusation.
The Australian study contradicts other scientists’ assertions that there is no evidence the virus originated in a Chinese laboratory or that it is the result of laboratory bioengineering.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and a key adviser to Mr. Trump on the pandemic, has dismissed any suggestion that the virus came from a Chinese laboratory.
“If you look at the evolution of the virus in bats and what’s out there now, [the scientific evidence] is very, very strongly leaning toward this could not have been artificially or deliberately manipulated,” he told National Geographic this month.
“Everything about the stepwise evolution over time strongly indicates that [this virus] evolved in nature and then jumped species.”
‘Highly adapted’ pathogen
The forthcoming study, however, concludes that the binding energy of the virus’ “spike” protein — the crownlike protrusions surrounding the surface of the round microbe — is highest for humans and greater than all other species tested, including bats, which have been widely targeted as the likely original source.
“This indicates that SARS-CoV-2 is a highly adapted human pathogen,” the Australian report said.
The team analyzed spike protein binding of the virus on a range of other animals, including pangolins, civets, mice, hamsters, cats, dogs, snakes, horses, tigers and cows.
“Overall, the data indicates that SARS-CoV-2 is uniquely adapted to infect humans, raising important questions as to whether it arose in nature by a rare chance event or whether its origins might lie elsewhere,” the report said.
Jonathan J. Couey, a research assistant professor of neurobiology at the University of Pittsburgh, said he agrees with the Australian findings.
“Understanding the exact origin of this virus is vital to ensure that all scientific and medical data are interpreted correctly by policymakers and health care professionals alike,” Mr. Couey said.
However, he said, debate on the laboratory origin of the virus has been stymied by scientists opposed to even considering the possibility.
“Several scientists with obvious conflicts of interest have been permitted to go on the record denying that it would be possible to generate such a virus in a laboratory and stating specifically that the sequence of SARS-CoV-2 would never have been chosen by any ‘gene jockey,’” he said in an email.
“Both of these denials are not genuine scientific rebuttals, but rather semantic pseudo-denials formulated by some of those most closely tied to the funding of these [gain of function] research lines.”
“Gain-of-function research” is laboratory work to increase the ability of pathogens to cause disease. It is carried out to study pandemics and how to respond to them.
U.S. investigation
Research institutions and U.S. intelligence agencies are investigating the origin of the virus, which has now infected nearly 5 million people worldwide and is blamed for at least 323,000 deaths. The 106,000 new cases of infections recorded Tuesday was the most in a single day since the outbreak began, World Health Organization officials said in Geneva.
U.S. intelligence agencies say they agree with a “wide scientific consensus” that the virus was not man-made or genetically modified, according to an April 30 statement by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. But public and private researchers have said it is impossible to dismiss the possibility of an accidental leak from the Wuhan laboratory of what became the COVID-19 strain.
The spy agencies are studying emerging information and intelligence “to determine whether the outbreak began through contact with infected animals, or if it was the result of an accident at a laboratory in Wuhan,” the ODNI said in an unusual public statement.
Knowing the origin of the virus could prove critical to finding vaccines and treatments and responding to future outbreaks, researchers say.
The Australian study is the second scientific paper to suggest laboratory manipulation played a part.
A group of Indian scientists published a paper on Jan. 31 that found the new coronavirus contained four insertions to the spike protein that are unique to SARS-CoV-2 and not found in other coronaviruses. The features, they said, are similar to those found in the virus known as HIV.
Those scientists concluded that similar structures are “unlikely to be fortuitous in nature.”
The Indian paper was withdrawn under pressure from China, but the scientists involved refused to repudiate their research and promised to publish their findings eventually.
Mr. Petrovsky, who is also research director for Vaxine Pty Ltd., a biotechnology company based in Bedford Park, South Australia, said the source of the virus remains a vitally important question.
“While COVID-19 has close similarities to SARS and other bat viruses, no natural virus matching to COVID-19 has been found in nature despite an intensive search to find its origins,” he said. “This raises the very legitimate question of whether the COVID-19 virus might be the result of human intervention.”
Like other scientists who studied the virus, the Australian team did not find easily recognizable artificial gene inserts that would signal virus engineering. Mr. Petrovsky said there are ways to manipulate viruses without such inserts.
For example, laboratory technicians could take a bat coronavirus that is not infectious to humans and force its evolution by culturing the virus with cells that have the human receptor.
That process was used to culture SARS coronaviruses in laboratories.
The result would be that “you can force the bat virus to adapt to infect human cells via mutations in its spike protein,” Mr. Petrovsky said.
Laboratory development of viruses also can create other random mutations.
“The result of these experiments is a virus that is highly virulent in humans but is sufficiently different that it no longer resembles the original bat virus,” he said.
Since those mutations would be acquired randomly in a laboratory, there would be no signature of bioengineering “but this is clearly a virus still created by human intervention.”
The Chinese government initially said the virus appeared to originate in the Huanan seafood market in Wuhan but later changed its official version to say the origin is something for scientists to study.
Beijing initially opposed international calls for an investigation into how the disease outbreak began but this week said it would support an independent WHO probe of the handling of the disease outbreak at an unspecified date.
Critics say Chinese secrecy has prevented scientists from learning about the virus.
However, “the nature of this event and its proximity to a high-risk biosecurity facility at the epicenter of the outbreak demands a full and independent international inquiry to ascertain whether a virus of this kind of COVID-19 was being cultured in the facility and might have been accidentally released,” Mr. Petrovsky said.
• Bill Gertz can be reached at bgertz@washingtontimes.com.


washingtontimes--2020-05-21--Officials: 2 Georgia firefighters who cheated in class fired

FORSYTH , Ga. ( AP ) - Two firefighters in Georgia were fired after they were caught cheating in a @ @ @ @ @ authorities said .
The Monroe County Emergency Services announced the terminations in a Facebook post @ @ @ @ @ after instructors from the Georgia Public Safety Training Center told the department the firefighters had @ @ @ @ @ “ Whether on an emergency scene or training in the classroom , the trust of @ @ @ @ @ of the utmost importance to us , ” Monroe County Emergency Services Spokesman Capt .
@ @ @ @ @ said the names of the terminated firefighters will not be released .

FORSYTH, Ga. (AP) - Two firefighters in Georgia were fired after they were caught cheating in a fire instructor training class, authorities said.
The Monroe County Emergency Services announced the terminations in a Facebook post on Wednesday, two days after instructors from the Georgia Public Safety Training Center told the department the firefighters had cheated in the class.
“Whether on an emergency scene or training in the classroom, the trust of the public is imperative and of the utmost importance to us,” Monroe County Emergency Services Spokesman Capt. Shane Cook said.
Officials said the names of the terminated firefighters will not be released.


washingtontimes--2020-05-21--Child killed, 3 others injured in Florida car crash

ORMOND BEACH , Fla. ( AP ) - A 4-year-old girl has died and three others were hospitalized after their @ @ @ @ @ tree in Florida , police said .
Two adults , Christopher Brown and Amanda Brown @ @ @ @ @ in the car when it veered left and struck the tree in Ormond Beach on @ @ @ @ @ ’ s police department said in a news release .
Lilian Brown died at the @ @ @ @ @ Ormond Beach Police Spokesman Keith Walker said .
The adults were taken to a hospital @ @ @ @ @ injuries , Walker said .
Authorities used a helicopter to transport the other injured child @ @ @ @ @ not immediately reveal what led up to the crash or the current status of the @ @ @ @ @ .

ORMOND BEACH, Fla. (AP) - A 4-year-old girl has died and three others were hospitalized after their car crashed into an Oak tree in Florida, police said.
Two adults, Christopher Brown and Amanda Brown, and two children were in the car when it veered left and struck the tree in Ormond Beach on Tuesday evening, the city’s police department said in a news release. Lilian Brown died at the scene from her injuries, Ormond Beach Police Spokesman Keith Walker said.
The adults were taken to a hospital to get treatment for their injuries, Walker said. Authorities used a helicopter to transport the other injured child for treatment.
Officials did not immediately reveal what led up to the crash or the current status of the adults and the injured child.


washingtontimes--2020-05-21--Mammoth Cave National Park starts project to repave roads

CAVE CITY , Ky. ( AP ) - A project to repave Mammoth Cave National Park ’ s roads and @ @ @ @ @ Kentucky .
The pavement preservation project will begin Thursday and continue until November , news @ @ @ @ @ time , visitors may experience temporary closures and short delays on roads and parking areas @ @ @ @ @ The project is a joint coordination between the United States Federal Highway Administration and National @ @ @ @ @ deemed necessary to support critical infrastructure while Mammoth Cave National Park cave tours , visitor @ @ @ @ @ to be closed due to the coronavirus outbreak .

CAVE CITY, Ky. (AP) - A project to repave Mammoth Cave National Park’s roads and parking areas has launched in Kentucky.
The pavement preservation project will begin Thursday and continue until November, news outlets reported. During this time, visitors may experience temporary closures and short delays on roads and parking areas throughout the national park.
The project is a joint coordination between the United States Federal Highway Administration and National Park Service. It was deemed necessary to support critical infrastructure while Mammoth Cave National Park cave tours, visitor center, and campgrounds continue to be closed due to the coronavirus outbreak.


washingtontimes--2020-05-21--AP Week in Pictures, Middle East

AP Week in Pictures, Middle East

This photo gallery highlights some of the most compelling images made or published by Associated Press photographers in the Middle @ @ @ @ @ Region between May 14-20 , 2020 .
This week ’ s selection includes scenes across @ @ @ @ @ began to resume some daily activities as coronavirus restrictions were eased in some areas .
@ @ @ @ @ photographer Maya Alleruzzo .

This photo gallery highlights some of the most compelling images made or published by Associated Press photographers in the Middle East, Afghanistan & Pakistan Region between May 14-20, 2020.
This week’s selection includes scenes across the region, where people began to resume some daily activities as coronavirus restrictions were eased in some areas.
The gallery was curated by photographer Maya Alleruzzo.
Follow AP visual journalism:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/apnews
AP Images on Twitter: http://twitter.com/AP_Images
AP Images blog: http://apimagesblog.com


washingtontimes--2020-05-21--NOPD officer who lost father to virus now wears his badge

NEW ORLEANS , La .
( AP ) - A New Orleans man whose father died due to the novel @ @ @ @ @ city ’ s police force wearing his late father ’ s badge .
Mark Hall @ @ @ @ @ her late husband ’ s officer badge on her son ’ s new uniform during @ @ @ @ @ Wednesday , the New Orleans Police Department said in a Facebook post .
Hall was @ @ @ @ @ Academy graduation ceremony on May 1 due to the loss of his father , Mark @ @ @ @ @ away a day earlier .
While Hall ‘ s final exam and graduation were initially @ @ @ @ @ department said he was “ undeterred by the tragic loss ” and was able to @ @ @ @ @ The elder had served on the city ’ s police force for more than 30 @ @ @ @ @ in early April , news outlets reported .
His son will now continue the family @ @ @ @ @ to New Orleans , the department said .

NEW ORLEANS, La. (AP) - A New Orleans man whose father died due to the novel coronavirus was sworn into the city’s police force wearing his late father’s badge.
Mark Hall Jr.’s mother placed her late husband’s officer badge on her son’s new uniform during the personal ceremony held on Wednesday, the New Orleans Police Department said in a Facebook post.
Hall was unable to attend the Training Academy graduation ceremony on May 1 due to the loss of his father, Mark Hall Sr., who passed away a day earlier. While Hall ‘s final exam and graduation were initially put on hold, the department said he was “undeterred by the tragic loss” and was able to pass his final exam.
The elder had served on the city’s police force for more than 30 years before his COVID-19 diagnosis in early April, news outlets reported. His son will now continue the family’s legacy of service to New Orleans, the department said.


washingtontimes--2020-05-21--Rehabilitated manatees returned to Florida Keys waters

ISLAMORADA , Fla. ( AP ) - Two rehabilitated manatees were returned to Florida Keys waters Wednesday .
Staff from @ @ @ @ @ Manatee Rescue Team , and volunteers with Dolphins Plus Marine Mammal Responder and Florida Keys @ @ @ @ @ the rescues and assisted with the releases .
“ Spookey ” was rescued in the @ @ @ @ @ after a boat strike severely injured her tail .
In February 2020 , “ Scott @ @ @ @ @ flipper entangled in monofilament fishing line .
Both marine mammals were rehabilitated at Miami Seaquarium @ @ @ @ @ remain closed to visitors until June 1 , the destination ’ s many nature and @ @ @ @ @ caring for rescued wildlife and helping animals in need during the coronavirus crisis .

ISLAMORADA, Fla. (AP) - Two rehabilitated manatees were returned to Florida Keys waters Wednesday.
Staff from Dolphin Research Center’s Manatee Rescue Team, and volunteers with Dolphins Plus Marine Mammal Responder and Florida Keys Aquarium Encounters, assisted with the rescues and assisted with the releases.
“Spookey” was rescued in the Upper Keys in October 2019 after a boat strike severely injured her tail. In February 2020, “Scott” was discovered with a flipper entangled in monofilament fishing line. Both marine mammals were rehabilitated at Miami Seaquarium.
Although the Florida Keys remain closed to visitors until June 1, the destination’s many nature and wildlife rehabilitation centers have continued caring for rescued wildlife and helping animals in need during the coronavirus crisis.


washingtontimes--2020-05-21--Cabinet Secretary Azar visits testing site in North Carolina

CHARLOTTE , N.C. ( AP ) - A key booster of President Donald Trump ’ s administration response to the @ @ @ @ @ revive the national economy is visiting North Carolina .
U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary @ @ @ @ @ on Thursday a testing site run by Atrium Health at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord @ @ @ @ @ expected to meet afterward with local health care leaders about efforts to dull the spread @ @ @ @ @ Carolina safely .
The visit comes the day before a new order by Gov .
@ @ @ @ @ restarts indoor dining at restaurants and reopens barber shops , salons and pools - all @ @ @ @ @ gyms , movie theaters and other indoor entertainment venues must remain closed for another month @ @ @ @ @ reported more than 20,000 positive cases of the virus and about 700 related deaths .

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) - A key booster of President Donald Trump’s administration response to the new coronavirus and efforts to revive the national economy is visiting North Carolina.
U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar planned to visit on Thursday a testing site run by Atrium Health at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord.
The Cabinet secretary was expected to meet afterward with local health care leaders about efforts to dull the spread of COVID-19 and reopen North Carolina safely.
The visit comes the day before a new order by Gov. Roy Cooper takes effect that restarts indoor dining at restaurants and reopens barber shops, salons and pools - all at reduced capacity. But gyms, movie theaters and other indoor entertainment venues must remain closed for another month.
State health officials have reported more than 20,000 positive cases of the virus and about 700 related deaths.


washingtontimes--2020-05-21--Longtime Louisiana party leader Doré now at N. Carolina GOP

RALEIGH , N.C. ( AP ) - A former state GOP leader in Louisiana is now running day-to-day operations for @ @ @ @ @ .
State party Chairman Michael Whatley announced this week that Jason Doré is the new @ @ @ @ @ Jonathan Sink , who left the post after less than a year on the job @ @ @ @ @ attorney for Gaston County .
Doré had two stints with the Republican Party of Louisiana @ @ @ @ @ and political and communications director .
He recently worked within the U.S. Small Business Administration @ @ @ @ @ during a presidential election year in which statewide races for Senate and governor also are @ @ @ @ @ whichever party wins majorities in the General Assembly can control decisions over drawing disrtict boundaries @ @ @ @ @ years .

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) - A former state GOP leader in Louisiana is now running day-to-day operations for the North Carolina Republican Party.
State party Chairman Michael Whatley announced this week that Jason Doré is the new executive director. He succeeds Jonathan Sink, who left the post after less than a year on the job to become the county government attorney for Gaston County.
Doré had two stints with the Republican Party of Louisiana, serving as executive director and political and communications director. He recently worked within the U.S. Small Business Administration in Washington.
Doré arrives during a presidential election year in which statewide races for Senate and governor also are on the ballot. And whichever party wins majorities in the General Assembly can control decisions over drawing disrtict boundaries used for the next 10 years.


washingtontimes--2020-05-21--Tennessee puts $5.7M from VW settlement into bus projects

NASHVILLE , Tenn. ( AP ) - Tennessee officials are using $ 5.7 million from the Volkswagen diesel emissions scandal @ @ @ @ @ in three cities .
The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation announced Wednesday that the @ @ @ @ @ Chattanooga Area Regional Transportation Authority , Knoxville Area Transit and Memphis Area Transit Authority .
@ @ @ @ @ replace three diesel buses with three electric ones , while Knoxville will switch three diesel @ @ @ @ @ .
In 2019 , the department awarded $ 8.4 million from the VW settlement for @ @ @ @ @ .
The department says it will announce future funding programs under the settlement trust .
@ @ @ @ @ , Volkswagen was caught using software to cheat on emissions testing .

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Tennessee officials are using $5.7 million from the Volkswagen diesel emissions scandal settlement for transit bus replacements in three cities.
The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation announced Wednesday that the funding will go to the Chattanooga Area Regional Transportation Authority, Knoxville Area Transit and Memphis Area Transit Authority. Chattanooga and Memphis will each replace three diesel buses with three electric ones, while Knoxville will switch three diesel buses for three diesel-hybrid models.
In 2019, the department awarded $8.4 million from the VW settlement for school bus replacement across Tennessee. The department says it will announce future funding programs under the settlement trust.
In the 2015 diesel scandal, Volkswagen was caught using software to cheat on emissions testing.


washingtontimes--2020-05-21--Governor declares emergency after big Nevada quake May 15

RENO , Nev. ( AP ) - Gov .
Seve Sisolak has declared a state of emergency after Nevada ’ @ @ @ @ @ years caused significant damage last week to three U.S. highways , including the major route @ @ @ @ @ .
Sisolak said his declaration late Thursday will make the state eligible for emergency funding @ @ @ @ @ to help cover highway repair costs expected to exceed $ 700,000 .
No one was @ @ @ @ @ the 6.5-magnitude quake in west-central Nevada about 35 miles ( 56 kilometers ) west of @ @ @ @ @ But Sisolak said the temblor caused extensive damage to U.S. Highway 95 , U.S. Route @ @ @ @ @ , disrupting travel in Esmeralda , Mineral and Nye counties .
He said emergency repairs @ @ @ @ @ , but further inspections revealed the destruction was beyond normal repair .
The early morning @ @ @ @ @ knocked goods off shelves in Tonopah about half way between Reno and Las Vegas .
@ @ @ @ @ away as Salt Lake City and California ’ s Central Valley .

RENO, Nev. (AP) - Gov. Seve Sisolak has declared a state of emergency after Nevada’s biggest earthquake in 65 years caused significant damage last week to three U.S. highways, including the major route connecting Reno to Las Vegas.
Sisolak said his declaration late Thursday will make the state eligible for emergency funding from the Federal Highway Administration to help cover highway repair costs expected to exceed $700,000.
No one was killed or seriously injured in the 6.5-magnitude quake in west-central Nevada about 35 miles (56 kilometers) west of Tonopah on May 15.
But Sisolak said the temblor caused extensive damage to U.S. Highway 95, U.S. Route 6 and U.S. Route 360, disrupting travel in Esmeralda, Mineral and Nye counties.
He said emergency repairs allowed the roadways to reopen, but further inspections revealed the destruction was beyond normal repair.
The early morning earthquake cracked storefront windows and knocked goods off shelves in Tonopah about half way between Reno and Las Vegas. It was felt as far away as Salt Lake City and California’s Central Valley.


washingtontimes--2020-05-21--EPA reaches $6.5M cleanup deal for LA-area superfund site

LOS ANGELES ( AP ) - Companies that contaminated soil and water at a former recycling center in a Los Angeles suburb have agreed to pay $ 6.5 million to help clean up the Superfund site , the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced Thursday .
The agreement was reached with 145 parties that used the Omega Chemical Corp. in Whittier , which recycled refrigerants and solvents from 1976 to 1991 , the EPA said .
Each party sent one to three tons of waste to the facility , which handled “ drums and bulk loads of industrial waste solvents and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ products , ” an EPA statement said .
Soil and groundwater in and around the site has high concentrations of toxic chemicals , including trichloroethylene and perchloroethylene , regulators said .
The settlement is expected to help pay for cleanup at the site and for several miles of contaminated groundwater that reaches the cities of Whittier , Santa Fe Springs and Norwalk , the EPA said .
“ Ensuring the protection of a vital drinking water source for Los Angeles County is one of the priorities in getting this site cleaned up , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Busterud said .
In 1999 , the site was added to the national Superfund priority list of sites requiring longterm hazardous waste cleanup .
The EPA said it has overseen the removal of 2,700 drums and more than 6 tons of contaminants from the area and treated more than 30 millions gallons of contaminated groundwater .

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Companies that contaminated soil and water at a former recycling center in a Los Angeles suburb have agreed to pay $6.5 million to help clean up the Superfund site, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced Thursday.
The agreement was reached with 145 parties that used the Omega Chemical Corp. in Whittier, which recycled refrigerants and solvents from 1976 to 1991, the EPA said.
Each party sent one to three tons of waste to the facility, which handled “drums and bulk loads of industrial waste solvents and chemicals that were processed to form commercial products,” an EPA statement said.
Soil and groundwater in and around the site has high concentrations of toxic chemicals, including trichloroethylene and perchloroethylene, regulators said.
The settlement is expected to help pay for cleanup at the site and for several miles of contaminated groundwater that reaches the cities of Whittier, Santa Fe Springs and Norwalk, the EPA said.
“Ensuring the protection of a vital drinking water source for Los Angeles County is one of the priorities in getting this site cleaned up,” EPA Pacific Southwest Regional Administrator John Busterud said.
In 1999, the site was added to the national Superfund priority list of sites requiring longterm hazardous waste cleanup.
The EPA said it has overseen the removal of 2,700 drums and more than 6 tons of contaminants from the area and treated more than 30 millions gallons of contaminated groundwater.


washingtontimes--2020-05-21--Harley-Davidson restarts US production, faces 'new normal '

MILWAUKEE ( AP ) - Harley-Davidson Inc. is resuming production at its U.S. manufacturing plants after suspending production for about two months .
The Milwaukee-based motorcycle company shut down production in March after an employee at its factory in Menomonee Falls , Wisconsin , tested positive for the coronavirus .
Harley-Davidson also saw motorcycle sales drop in the economic fallout from COVID-19 , the disease caused by the virus .
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports the Wisconsin factory where the worker tested positive for the coronavirus is expected to return to full staffing after Memorial Day weekend .
The engine @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The Menomonee Falls factory plans to bring all hourly employees back after the Memorial Day weekend for full production , Ross Winklbauer , a Steelworkers subdistrict director , said Thursday .
Currently , about 125 U.S. Steelworkers union members are back at the plant .
The company has staggered work start times and installed barriers between work stations to address the coronavirus .
“ It ’ s going to be a new normal for them , ” Winklbauer said .
Harley-Davidson said in a statement it has begun a planned phased approach @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ following the guidelines of public health and regulatory authorities and keeping employee health and safety front and center.
” “ At all of its facilities , Harley-Davidson has implemented enhanced safety measures , protocols to support social distancing and is bolstering its already-rigorous cleaning and sanitation practices , ” the company said .

MILWAUKEE (AP) - Harley-Davidson Inc. is resuming production at its U.S. manufacturing plants after suspending production for about two months.
The Milwaukee-based motorcycle company shut down production in March after an employee at its factory in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, tested positive for the coronavirus. Harley-Davidson also saw motorcycle sales drop in the economic fallout from COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports the Wisconsin factory where the worker tested positive for the coronavirus is expected to return to full staffing after Memorial Day weekend. The engine and drivetrain facility employs about 1,000 people.
The Menomonee Falls factory plans to bring all hourly employees back after the Memorial Day weekend for full production, Ross Winklbauer, a Steelworkers subdistrict director, said Thursday. Currently, about 125 U.S. Steelworkers union members are back at the plant.
The company has staggered work start times and installed barriers between work stations to address the coronavirus.
“It’s going to be a new normal for them,” Winklbauer said.
Harley-Davidson said in a statement it has begun a planned phased approach to resuming production in its facilities, “following the guidelines of public health and regulatory authorities and keeping employee health and safety front and center.”
“At all of its facilities, Harley-Davidson has implemented enhanced safety measures, protocols to support social distancing and is bolstering its already-rigorous cleaning and sanitation practices,” the company said.


washingtontimes--2020-05-21--Arizona House OKs virus liability shield for businesses

PHOENIX ( AP ) - The Arizona House voted Thursday to give businesses sweeping protections from lawsuits if their customers or employees get sick from the coronavirus and to eliminate criminal penalties for violating the governor ’ s public-health orders .
Republicans , who approved the bill in a party-line vote , said it is needed to assure employers they can reopen without being pummeled with lawsuits .
Many Democrats said the plan strips rights from employees and the public , making it virtually impossible for people to get redress from businesses that act irresponsibly .
The House also backed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ emergency federal cash to help child care centers reopen and ensure workers can return to work knowing their children are safe .
And they sent the Senate a series of bills the upper chamber had already passed , including one that will require health insurers to sell policies to people with pre-existing conditions if the U.S. Supreme Court overturns the Affordable Care Act .
Democrats railed against that proposal too , saying it simply provided a fig leaf to Republican Attorney General Mark Brnovich because he joined other GOP attorneys general in trying @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
While the measure technically requires insurers to cover people with health problems , it does nothing to prevent insurers from charging exorbitantly for that coverage , Democrats said .
Republicans pushed back , saying they were protecting the most popular part of President Barack Obama ’ s law .
The House then adjourned for the year in hopes the Senate , which has already voted to adjourn , will reverse course and pass the business liability bill , the child care funding and other House measures that have been stalled since both @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pandemic .
Republican Sen. Sonny Borrelli said Thursday that his chamber voted to end its work to force the House to figure out a way to move ahead .
“ We had been waiting for them to do something for like three weeks and they couldn ’ t come up with a plan .
Finally it was like ‘ put up or shut up , ’ ” Borrelli said .
“ So now they ’ re finally doing something and I ’ m sure we ’ re going to be doing something also.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Republican Senate President Karen Fann has said she wants to take up the liability proposal and other virus-specific virus legislation .
But whether Fann will do what the House did this week - the lower chamber passed more than 30 Senate bills unrelated to the virus - remains unclear .
That could take days of work that senators from both sides don ’ t relish amidst the pandemic .
“ The Democrats don ’ t want to come back - the Democrats were adamant about not coming back , ” Borrelli said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ what can we do with the members we ’ ve got on the floor.
” The liability shield would raise the standard for people to successfully sue businesses for coronavirus-related claims from negligence to gross negligence .
Plaintiffs would also have to show by “ clear and convincing evidence ” that a company was grossly negligent , a higher bar of proof than the typical “ preponderance of the evidence ” standard for negligence claims .
“ There ’ s a great cloud of fear that hangs over the business community about being @ @ @ @ @ @ @ efforts to open , ” said Rep. John Kavanagh , a Fountain Hills Republican .
Democrats said making it virtually impossible to sue would eliminate accountability for employers that play fast and loose with the health of their workers and customers .
“ If a business makes a risky decision during the COVID-19 pandemic , they should be held accountable , ” said Rep. Pam Powers Hanley , a Tucson Democrat .
It ’ s unclear whether Gov .
Doug Ducey would sign the measure .
He ’ s generally supportive of measures @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the bill also would strip his own power .
It would ban misdemeanor criminal penalties for people who refuse to comply with his virus emergency orders and prohibit government agencies from stripping business licenses from those who ignore his orders .
Ducey riled many GOP lawmakers after he threatened to strip liquor licenses if needed .
Ducey has lifted his stay-home order and restrictions on most business operations but has left the door open to reviving them if the state sees a surge in COVID-19 infections .

PHOENIX (AP) - The Arizona House voted Thursday to give businesses sweeping protections from lawsuits if their customers or employees get sick from the coronavirus and to eliminate criminal penalties for violating the governor’s public-health orders.
Republicans, who approved the bill in a party-line vote, said it is needed to assure employers they can reopen without being pummeled with lawsuits. Many Democrats said the plan strips rights from employees and the public, making it virtually impossible for people to get redress from businesses that act irresponsibly.
The House also backed a measure allocating $88 million in emergency federal cash to help child care centers reopen and ensure workers can return to work knowing their children are safe. And they sent the Senate a series of bills the upper chamber had already passed, including one that will require health insurers to sell policies to people with pre-existing conditions if the U.S. Supreme Court overturns the Affordable Care Act.
Democrats railed against that proposal too, saying it simply provided a fig leaf to Republican Attorney General Mark Brnovich because he joined other GOP attorneys general in trying to overturn the law often called Obamacare. While the measure technically requires insurers to cover people with health problems, it does nothing to prevent insurers from charging exorbitantly for that coverage, Democrats said.
Republicans pushed back, saying they were protecting the most popular part of President Barack Obama’s law.
The House then adjourned for the year in hopes the Senate, which has already voted to adjourn, will reverse course and pass the business liability bill, the child care funding and other House measures that have been stalled since both chambers recessed in March amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Republican Sen. Sonny Borrelli said Thursday that his chamber voted to end its work to force the House to figure out a way to move ahead.
“We had been waiting for them to do something for like three weeks and they couldn’t come up with a plan. Finally it was like ‘put up or shut up,’” Borrelli said. “So now they’re finally doing something and I’m sure we’re going to be doing something also.”
Exactly what that is remains unclear. Republican Senate President Karen Fann has said she wants to take up the liability proposal and other virus-specific virus legislation.
But whether Fann will do what the House did this week - the lower chamber passed more than 30 Senate bills unrelated to the virus - remains unclear. That could take days of work that senators from both sides don’t relish amidst the pandemic.
“The Democrats don’t want to come back - the Democrats were adamant about not coming back,” Borrelli said. “So it comes down to what can we do with the members we’ve got on the floor.”
Republicans hold majorities in both chambers.
Senate Minority Leader David Bradley said Thursday evening that he expects Fann to call members back next week, possibly as early as Tuesday. He said Fann was considering whether to take up the two virus bills or even as many as 28. She wasn’t immediately available for comment.
“Our preference is to just come in and sine die,” Bradley said, using the term for adjourning the session for the year.
All lawmakers expect to return for a special session called by the governor to take up virus-related legislation relatively soon. So even if the Senate adjourns without passing the liability and child care bills, they can deal with them at that time.
The liability shield would raise the standard for people to successfully sue businesses for coronavirus-related claims from negligence to gross negligence. Plaintiffs would also have to show by “clear and convincing evidence” that a company was grossly negligent, a higher bar of proof than the typical “preponderance of the evidence” standard for negligence claims.
“There’s a great cloud of fear that hangs over the business community about being sued, and its slowing down their efforts to open,” said Rep. John Kavanagh, a Fountain Hills Republican.
Democrats said making it virtually impossible to sue would eliminate accountability for employers that play fast and loose with the health of their workers and customers.
“If a business makes a risky decision during the COVID-19 pandemic, they should be held accountable,” said Rep. Pam Powers Hanley, a Tucson Democrat.
It’s unclear whether Gov. Doug Ducey would sign the measure. He’s generally supportive of measures improving conditions for business owners, but the bill also would strip his own power. It would ban misdemeanor criminal penalties for people who refuse to comply with his virus emergency orders and prohibit government agencies from stripping business licenses from those who ignore his orders.
Ducey riled many GOP lawmakers after he threatened to strip liquor licenses if needed.
Ducey has lifted his stay-home order and restrictions on most business operations but has left the door open to reviving them if the state sees a surge in COVID-19 infections.


washingtontimes--2020-05-21--Search fails to find missing girl, hunter in South Dakota

RAPID CITY , S.D .
( AP ) - A four-day search in western South Dakota has failed to find @ @ @ @ @ .
The search for Serenity Dennard and missing hunter Larry Genzlinger began Saturday and continued @ @ @ @ @ were used in the search .
A spokeswoman for the Pennington County Sheriff ’ s @ @ @ @ @ by foot and on side-by-sides and with a SHERP all-terrain vehicle .
The Rapid City @ @ @ @ @ 190 miles in the area Genzlinger went missing and 110 miles for Dennard .
Dennard @ @ @ @ @ away from the Black Hills Children ’ s Home near Rockerville in February 2019 .
@ @ @ @ @ went missing while elk hunting with his nephew last October .

RAPID CITY, S.D. (AP) - A four-day search in western South Dakota has failed to find a missing girl and hunter.
The search for Serenity Dennard and missing hunter Larry Genzlinger began Saturday and continued through Tuesday.
Canine teams were used in the search. A spokeswoman for the Pennington County Sheriff’s Office said the volunteers searched by foot and on side-by-sides and with a SHERP all-terrain vehicle.
The Rapid City Journal reports the teams covered 190 miles in the area Genzlinger went missing and 110 miles for Dennard.
Dennard was 9 when she ran away from the Black Hills Children’s Home near Rockerville in February 2019. Genzlinger, of Howard, went missing while elk hunting with his nephew last October.


washingtontimes--2020-05-21--GM says it is reopening two of its Mexican plants Friday

MEXICO CITY ( AP ) - General Motors announced Thursday that it is “ gradually restarting operations ” at engine and transmission plants at two of its four manufacturing complexes in Mexico .
The news came as Mexico recorded its second highest one-day death toll in the coronavirus pandemic , with 420 deaths reported Thursday , slightly less than the 424 reported Wednesday .
That brought Mexico ’ s total COVID-19 deaths to 6,510 .
Confirmed cases rose by just under 3,000 to 59,567 , though experts say the actual number is probably several times higher because Mexico performs so @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said that auto companies could start preparatory work for reopening their operations May 18 , but that a full re-opening wouldn ’ t occur until June 1 .
But General Motors de Mexico said in a statement that it would start operations Friday at its motor plant in Ramos Arizpe in the northern state of Coahuila and an engine and transmission plant in Silao in the central state of Guanajuato .
The company said assembly work at the two complexes also might resume Friday , “ depending on the status of suppliers.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it might reopen operations at its complexes in Toluca near Mexico City and in the central state of San Luis Potosi .
U.S. officials have pressured Mexico to allow factories to resume operations after shutdowns to stem the spread of the coronavirus .
They argue that the integrated supply and production chains throughout the three nations of North America make plants in all three countries dependent on each other .
Mexico has said companies would have to do temperature and symptom screening of workers , give them face masks , enforce social distancing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to reopen .
GM , whose Mexican plants have been shuttered for almost two months , said it is complying with all the government requirements .

MEXICO CITY (AP) - General Motors announced Thursday that it is “gradually restarting operations” at engine and transmission plants at two of its four manufacturing complexes in Mexico.
The news came as Mexico recorded its second highest one-day death toll in the coronavirus pandemic, with 420 deaths reported Thursday, slightly less than the 424 reported Wednesday. That brought Mexico’s total COVID-19 deaths to 6,510. Confirmed cases rose by just under 3,000 to 59,567, though experts say the actual number is probably several times higher because Mexico performs so little testing.
The Mexican government had said that auto companies could start preparatory work for reopening their operations May 18, but that a full re-opening wouldn’t occur until June 1.
But General Motors de Mexico said in a statement that it would start operations Friday at its motor plant in Ramos Arizpe in the northern state of Coahuila and an engine and transmission plant in Silao in the central state of Guanajuato.
The company said assembly work at the two complexes also might resume Friday, “depending on the status of suppliers.”
The company said it was unclear when it might reopen operations at its complexes in Toluca near Mexico City and in the central state of San Luis Potosi.
U.S. officials have pressured Mexico to allow factories to resume operations after shutdowns to stem the spread of the coronavirus. They argue that the integrated supply and production chains throughout the three nations of North America make plants in all three countries dependent on each other.
Mexico has said companies would have to do temperature and symptom screening of workers, give them face masks, enforce social distancing and ensure sanitation measures in plants set to reopen.
GM, whose Mexican plants have been shuttered for almost two months, said it is complying with all the government requirements.