Nation & World Watch
vChicago: United changes policy on seated travelers
United Airlines is changing a company policy and will no longer allow crew members to displace customers already onboard an airplane.
The change comes after a passenger, Dr. David Dao, was dragged from a fully booked United Express flight in Chicago because he refused to give up his seat to make room for crew members. Cellphone video of the incident sparked widespread outrage and created a publicrelations nightmare for United.
Under the change outlined in an internal email Friday, crew members must make must-ride bookings at least 60 minutes prior to departure. Crews could previously be booked until the time of departure.
vChicago: Trump says protesters were paid
President Donald Trump says “someone should look into who paid” for the rallies around the country Saturday that urged him to release his tax returns.
Trump tweeted Sunday: “I did what was an almost an impossible thing to do for a Republican-easily won the Electoral College! Now Tax Returns are brought up again?”
Trump was the first major-party nominee in more than 40 years not to release his returns and he reneged on a campaign commitment to release them. He said they were being audited.
“Someone should look into who paid for the small organized rallies yesterday. The election is over,” he tweeted.
vGuatemala: Fugitive Mexican ex-official caught
The former governor of Mexico’s Veracruz state, who is accused of running a corruption ring that allegedly pilfered millions of dollars from state coffers, was detained in Guatemala after six months as a fugitive and high-profile symbol of government graft in his country.
Javier Duarte, pale and visibly tired, was brought Sunday to a prison at a military base in the Guatemalan capital.
A statement from Mexico’s federal Attorney General’s Office said Duarte is wanted on suspicion of money laundering and organized crime, and prosecutors directed the Foreign Relations Department to request his extradition.
vSri Lanka: Collapse of garbage mound kills 26
The death toll from the collapse of a massive garbage mound near Sri Lanka’s capital rose to 26 on Sunday, and rescuers said 20 more people could still be buried underneath the debris.
Military spokesman Roshan Seneviratne said 26 deaths have been reported so far and military personnel were still searching the site in Meetotamulla, a town outside Colombo, the capital. They were speaking to survivors to determine how many were missing, he said.
The mound collapsed Friday evening as people were celebrating the local new year. Ranasinghe said 78 houses were destroyed and more than 150 damaged.
vColumbus, Ohio: 9 shot at club; witnesses sought
Police in Ohio’s capital city appealed Sunday for witnesses to come forward to help them identify suspects in an early morning club shooting that wounded nine people.
An argument erupted into gunfire shortly after 3 a.m. EDT Sunday in the J&R Party Hall, an after-hours venue, Columbus police said. Five women and four men were shot, ranging in age from 20 to 33. Investigators weren’t sure how many people fired shots.
Two people were initially hospitalized in critical condition, but police said Sunday afternoon that none of the wounded had life-threatening injuries.
Police have interviewed victims and other witnesses, but they say they haven’t been cooperative.