An elderly man floated in Devils Lake for 12 hours in a fight for his life , mostly under the shadow of darkness.
It was his wife of more than 40 years who called police, but she says it was prayers that helped her husband get to shore.
They're calling it a miracle.
73-year-old LeRoy Throlson’s small fishing boat started taking on water on Devils Lake, Friday night about an hour before sunset.
Eventually, the lake would take his boat, but his family says it was because of his determination the lake would not take him too.
Eunice Throlson, wife: “Praying and hoping for the best and preparing for the worst.”
LeRoy's a retired farmer, who went fishing on Friday and didn't come home that night.
Eunice Throlson, wife: “He's usually home by dark and usually out of the water by dark. 10:30 I was getting quite concerned, but then I thought, maybe he helped someone out.”
But, it was LeRoy who needed help. Strong southern winds caused some waves to crash over the side of his small fishing boat. He dropped anchor to try to stabilize the boat and bail the water, but it was too late.
LeRoy was in the water.
Eunice Throlson, wife: “We came over here and saw the pickup and the trailer, and that was the hardest.”
They knew something was wrong, and called authorities.
Steven Rohrer, sheriff: “You know I felt just terrible, but there's really nothing I could do at 12:30 in the morning. So, I told them I'd be out at the lake at about 5:30, 6 o'clock right at daylight I'd be paging search and rescue and game and fish.”
His wife says he doesn't always wear life jacket, but did on Friday and when his boat started going down.
LeRoy made one other important move as well.
Eunice Throlson, wife: “He saw the gas can floating. It was half full, it was floating and he thought this might come in handy. So he grabbed it and, basically, he floated and swam with that all night.”
They're estimating LeRoy battled the cold night in the 330 square mile lake for around 12 to 14 hours.
Eunice Throlson, wife: “Well he was watching the stars he said and I know he said he prayed the night wouldn't last real long.”
Thankfully, for LeRoy's sake, mother nature was on his side.
Steven Rohrer, sheriff: “If this was even two or three weeks down the road the water temperature is going to start changing real quick.”
Shortly after day-break, LeRoy hit highway 19 several miles away from where he launched his boat.
Eunice Throlson, wife: “I mean, I just, I screamed. My sister said she knew it was a good scream, or, yelled or something. It was what we all hoped and prayed for, but, probably not, I wasn't thinking that'd be the outcome.”
They say it's a miracle, and wasn't a bad fishing day either.
Eunice Throlson, wife: “He lost some walleyes and he likes walleyes.”
Eunice says this won't keep him from fishing in the future, he'll just need a new boat.
Officials say the man was very cold and dehydrated when he came out of the water, but is recovering well.

Wife recounts 73-year-old husband's Devils Lake survival story


The Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River in Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, U.S. June 24, 2011. REUTERS/Jim Urquhart/File Photo
A 21-year-old worker at the Yellowstone National Park plunged to her death early on Friday from the edge of a canyon while socializing with colleagues, park officials said.
Estefania Liset Mosquera Alcivar, a concession employee, was with a small group of coworkers at the rim of the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone shortly after 3:15 a.m. when she fell, according to accounts by her companions, the park's public affairs office said in a statement.
Her body was recovered about four hours later and the incident remains under investigation, the officials said. Alvicar is from Quito, Ecuador.
The incident along with three major wildfires burning in Yellowstone come at the height of the summer tourist season and as officials in both parks prepare for celebrations set for Thursday marking the 100th anniversary of the creation of the National Park Service.
The fires have prompted authorities to close the south entrance to the park, which last month saw an average of more than 2,400 vehicles per day.
Yellowstone, which occupies the northwestern corner of Wyoming and spills over into Idaho and Montana, was the first national park established in the United States and remains one of its most popular.

Yellowstone employee falls to death in park canyon


The Minnesota Vikings waived tight end Brian Leonhardt among eight others on Tuesday afternoon as the team inches its way toward the 75-man roster limit.
Minnesota's roster, which currently resides at 80 players, must be reduced prior to the 4 p.m. deadline on Tuesday.
Quarterback Brad Sorensen, wide receivers Terrell Sinkfield and Marken Michel, defensive end Theiren Cockran, guard Sean Hickey, defensive end Claudell Louis, Linebacker Terrance Plummer and guard Austin Shepherd were also cut by the Vikings.
Leonardt had seven receptions for 39 yards and one touchdown in 16 games over two seasons with Oakland and San Francisco.
Sorensen was signed by Minnesota on Aug. 20 while starter Teddy Bridgewater and backup Shaun Hill sat out practice with respective injuries. Joel Stave is expected to serve as the team's third-string quarterback.

Vikings waive TE Leonhardt, eight others


Aug 21, 2016; Kansas City, MO, USA; Minnesota Twins pitcher Ervin Santana (54) gets set before the first pitch against the Kansas City Royals during the first inning at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Peter G. Aiken-USA TODAY Sports
TORONTO—As veteran right-hander Ervin Santana took the mound Saturday in Toronto, he did so for perhaps the final time in a Twins uniform.
That's because the surging staff ace surprisingly cleared major league trade waivers in recent days, according to a person with direct knowledge, meaning he can be traded to any club the remainder of the season.
In order to be eligible for a team's postseason roster, however, a player must be a member of that organization by 11:59 p.m. on Aug. 31 (Wednesday). So time is running short if the Twins hope to offload the $28 million that remains on Santana's contract after this season.
That breaks down as $13.5 million in both 2017 and 2018, plus a $1 million buyout on a $14 million club option in 2019. Santana also had $2.66 million remaining on his 2016 obligation.
Santana, 33, entered Saturday's start at Rogers Centre 6-10 with a 3.33 earned run average in 23 starts this season. He had worked a team-high 140⅔ innings and was the only Twins pitcher to reach triple digits in strikeouts (109).
After landing on the disabled with a lower back issue in late April, Santana slowly rounded into form. Since allowed five earned runs in three consecutive June starts, he had gone 5-3 with a 1.79 ERA over his past 11 starts.
Holding opponents to a .241 on-base percentage and .202 batting average in that stretch, Santana had thrown two complete games and four other starts of seven innings or more.
Interim general manager Rob Antony made it clear at the Aug. 1 non-waiver trade deadline the Twins weren't looking to dump Santana's salary and would insist on fair value in any transaction involving him.
The fact no team claimed Santana this month would seem to indicate the Twins might have to offset a portion of Santana's remaining $30.66 million obligation in order to bring back younger talent in return.
Twins catcher Kurt Suzuki also cleared waivers this month. After Saturday the pending free agent will have $1.18 million left on his contract.
The Pioneer Press is a Forum News Service media partner.

Source: Twins' Santana clears trade waivers


U.S. President Barack Obama smiles while delivering remarks on the Affordable Care Act, commonly known as Obamacare, at an Organizing for Action grassroots supporter event in Washington, November 4, 2013. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
NEW YORK—Nearly a third of U.S. counties likely will be served by only one insurer that participates in an Affordable Care Act marketplace in 2017, according to an analysis published on Sunday by the Kaiser Family Foundation.
The 31 percent of U.S. counties that will have just a single option of insurers within the ACA's exchanges would represent an increase from 7 percent this year, the nonpartisan group found. Despite sharing a namesake, the Kaiser Family Foundation is not associated with healthcare provider Kaiser Permanente.
UnitedHealth Group Inc and Aetna Inc have decided to largely exit government-run online marketplaces in 2017 that sell subsidized plans created under President Barack Obama's national healthcare reform law, citing low enrollment and high service costs.
The bulk of the decrease in counties with a choice of insurers is due to UnitedHealth's pullback, which was announced in April.
The data underscores the degree to which industry retrenchment is curtailing individual's options within the marketplaces. Insurer departures may lead to higher costs within that market, analysts have said.
One county—Pinal County in Arizona—risks having no insurer options at all within the marketplace, the analysis found. The study's authors said another plan offered elsewhere in the state could expand to serve the county.
The foundation said it could take more months and more data for the full impact of the changes for 2017 to become clear.
"A number of steps remain before the full picture of this year's Marketplace competition is known but the ACA has greatly expanded the insurance options available to consumers in the individual marketplace," said Marjorie Connolly, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, in a statement.

More counties to see Obamacare marketplace monopoly, analysis says


This net is full of baby shrimp about half the size of an eyelash. Carolyn Lange / Forum News Service
Just in time for holiday grilling, fully-grown shrimp, like this one, will be for sale starting tomorrow at West Central Bait in New London. Mark Tanner is raising the saltwater shrimp as a sideline to his walleye stocking business. Carolyn Lange / Forum News Service
The saltwater in Mark Tanner's salt-water shrimp tanks are tested every day to ensure there's the proper level of things like salinity and oxygen. Carolyn Lange / Forum News Service
Mark Tanner is raising the saltwater shrimp as a sideline to his walleye stocking business. They will be available for sale starting Wednesday at West Central Bait in New London. Carolyn Lange / Forum News Service
A network of heating, feeding and oxygen tubes are connected to tanks of saltwater shrimp that Mark Tanner is raising for human consumption.The shrimp will be available for sale starting Wednesday at West Central Bait in New London. Carolyn Lange / Forum News Service
Mark Tanner holds beaker full of saltwater and baby shrimp at his New London fisheries business. The first batch of shrimp will be ready for sale this week. Carolyn Lange / Forum News Service
Mark Tanner is raising the saltwater shrimp as a sideline to his walleye stocking business. They will be available for sale starting Wednesday at West Central Bait in New London. Carolyn Lange / Forum News Service
The saltwater in Mark Tanner's salt-water shrimp tanks are tested every day to ensure there's the proper level of things like salinity and oxygen. Carolyn Lange / Forum News Service
NEW LONDON, Minn.—Mark Tanner's business of raising walleye to stock popular fishing lakes is about as Minnesotan as you can get.
But he hopes his new sideline business of raising saltwater shrimp for people to buy fresh by the pound and take home to grill, boil or saute with butter will become a new Minnesota tradition.
"They're good," said Tanner, commenting on the home-grown shrimp he taste-tested recently.
Locals will have a chance to find that out for themselves this week when his first batch of shrimp goes on sale.
Starting Wednesday, customers can come to West Central Bait and Fisheries Company on the west edge of New London and Tanner will scoop up a net full of shrimp and toss them on ice.
They'll be sold until the tank is empty.
Tanner is hoping to produce about 300 pounds of shrimp each month.
Unlike many commercial shrimp that are imported and eaten in the the U.S., Tanner said his locally grown shrimp are chemical-free and are not given antibiotics.
He intends to sell them for $20 a pound with the guarantee that they will be fresh.
"They'll be swimming until you walk in the door and tell me what you want," Tanner said, adding that taking the shrimp from their 85-degree water habitat and putting them on ice is a humane way of killing them.
Raising shrimp is Tanner's effort to expand his fisheries business beyond hatching and raising walleye for stocking lakes, which he said is very competitive in Minnesota.
The "pie just isn't big enough" to support all the fisheries in the state, he said.
A big fish kill late this summer when deadly blue-green algae hit one of his brood lakes—it will take him five years to recover—also reinforced Tanner's desire to diversify his business.
"It's good not to put all your eggs in one basket," he said.
Tanner began working with the state Department of Natural Resources in February of 2015 to become licensed to raise shrimp.
He got his first batch of 12,500 very tiny shrimp a year later from a Miami hatchery.
When they arrived, they were about "half the size of an eyelash," Tanner said. "Twenty thousand will fit in the palm of my hand."
Two weeks later they were the full size of an eyelash.
Tanner isn't the only Minnesotan looking to generate income by growing and selling shrimp.
Raising shrimp in a confined environment is being researched in Balaton in southern Minnesota. There Marshall-based Tru Shrimp Systems of Ralco Nutrition has teamed up with Texas A&M University, which has patented a technology to raise shrimp far away from coastal waters.
A research lab is testing the shrimp-raising waters and a large-scale commercial shrimp farm is planned to be built next year in Tracy.
Tanner has done his own research, and is using the expertise of a consultant, to raise shrimp here as economically as possible by retrofitting large, concrete tanks left over from when the company had a commercial bait business.
He has installed a water heating and feeding system that he designed that goes to separate tanks that have batches of shrimp in various sizes.
"I'm not afraid of new challenges," Tanner said.
Since February, he has received four batches of shrimp, with an expected maturity time of about five months.
The first batch has taken a bit longer to get to full size, in part because it takes a while to establish the correct balance of salinity, dissolved oxygen, temperature, pH and food in the water.
And it takes a while to learn how to raise shrimp compared to raising walleye.
"This is like one big science project," Tanner said, adding with a quick grin, "And I should've paid more attention in biology class."
There are more empty tanks in his facility that he intends to fill with shrimp.
Tanner estimates it will take two years to fine-tune his system and determine if it's financially feasible to expand beyond that.
"We're still in that experimental stage," he said. "I'm hoping to do it full-time, but we have to crawl before we can run."
The community gets to benefit from his science project by having fresh shrimp available for sale. The first batch of shrimp will be for sale on a walk-in basis, from Wednesday through Sunday, while they last.
For more information call (320) 354-5533.

Minn. business expands to raise saltwater shrimp you can eat


Helmut Schmidt was born in Germany, but grew up in the Twin Cities area, graduating from Park High School of Cottage Grove. After serving a tour in the U.S. Army, he attended the University of St. Thomas in St Paul, Minn., graduating in 1984 with a degree in journalism. He then worked at the Albert Lea (Minn.) Tribune and served as managing editor there for three years. He joined The Forum in October 1989, working as a copy editor until 2000. Since then, he has worked as a reporter on several beats, including education, Fargo city government, business and military affairs. He is currently The Forum's K-12 education reporter.
(701) 241-5583

Vandals spray-paint drug-related messages on Valley City floodwall


WASHINGTON -- The FBI plans to hand over some of its notes from its interview with U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton regarding her use of private email while secretary of state to news outlets that requested them, CNN reported on Tuesday, Aug. 30.
However, the Federal Bureau of Investigation will not yet release other notes from the law enforcement agency's interviews with Clinton aides or turn over other investigative material, CNN said, citing unnamed sources.
The materials could be released as soon as Wednesday, Aug. 31, to media companies that formally sought them under the Freedom of Information Act, according to CNN.
FBI representatives declined to confirm the report to Reuters.
In addition to the notes, CNN said the FBI will give the news outlets the roughly 30-page report it sent to the U.S. Department of Justice last month when it recommended against pursuing criminal charges against Clinton, who is vying for the White House in the Nov. 8 U.S. election.
The Clinton campaign, which had expressed concern about selective leaks from the notes, welcomed the release.
"This is something that we wanted to have happen," campaign spokeswoman Kristina Schake told CNN in an interview.
Several media outlets, including Reuters, have made FOIA requests for a summary of the interview. Such requests are often returned with sensitive information redacted.
FBI Director James Comey told Congress that the interview was not recorded, so the agency would only be able to provide a summary.

U.S. FBI to give media some Clinton notes over email use


Everything you need to know about 2016 Formula 1 season


Minnesota Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater (5) throws the ball during the first quarter in a preseason game against the San Diego Chargers at U.S. Bank Stadium. Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports
Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater went down with an apparently serious injury during practice on Tuesday and was taken away by ambulance.
The third-year quarterback didn’t appear to be touched when he went down in the pocket and grabbed his left knee.
The team canceled practice after about 25 minutes and an ambulance was called. All but a few players surrounding a prone Bridgewater left the field. Linebacker Eric Kendricks threw his helmet to the ground and cursed; running backs Adrian Peterson, Matt Asiata and receiver Adam Thielen locked arms and appeared to pray for their teammate.
The Vikings have two healthy quarterbacks after releasing quarterback Brad Sorensen on Tuesday, backup Shaun Hill and former Wisconsin starter Joel Stave.
The Vikings scheduled a press conference with coach Mike Zimmer at 4 p.m.
Before the injury, the Vikings’ biggest task was cutting the roster to 75 players by the NFL deadline of 3 p.m. Among cuts was veteran center John Sullivan, whom the team was trying to trade.

Vikings QB Bridgewater injured in practice; news conference at 4 p.m.


Destroyed buildings from clashes are seen on the outskirts of Falluja, Iraq, June 20, 2016. REUTERS
Damaged mosque is seen in Falluja, Iraq, after government forces recaptured the city from Islamic State militants, June 30, 2016. REUTERS
WASHINGTON—Shi'ite militias in Iraq detained, tortured and abused far more Sunni civilians during the American-backed capture of the town of Falluja in June than U.S. officials have publicly acknowledged, Reuters has found.
More than 700 Sunni men and boys are still missing more than two months after the Islamic State stronghold fell. The abuses occurred despite U.S. efforts to restrict the militias' role in the operation, including threatening to withdraw American air support, according to U.S. and Iraqi officials.
The U.S. efforts had little effect. Shi'ite militias did not pull back from Falluja, participated in looting there and now vow to defy any American effort to limit their role in coming operations against Islamic State.
All told, militia fighters killed at least 66 Sunni males and, all told, abused at least 1,500 others fleeing the Falluja area, according to interviews with more than 20 survivors, tribal leaders, Iraqi politicians and Western diplomats.
They said men were shot, beaten with rubber hoses and in several cases beheaded. Their accounts were supported by a Reuters review of an investigation by local Iraqi authorities and video testimony and photographs of survivors taken immediately after their release.
The battle against Islamic State is the latest chapter in the conflict between Iraq's Shi'ite majority and Sunni minority, which was unleashed by the 2003 U.S.-led invasion. The war ended decades of Sunni rule under Saddam Hussein and brought to power a series of governments dominated by Shi'ite Islamist parties patronized by Iran.
Washington's inability to restrain the sectarian violence is now a central concern for Obama administration officials as they move ahead with plans to help Iraqi forces retake the much larger city of Mosul, Islamic State's Iraqi capital. Preliminary operations to clear areas outside the strategic city have been under way for months. Sunni leaders in Iraq and Western diplomats fear the Shi'ite militias might commit worse excesses in Mosul, the country's second-largest city. Islamic State, the Sunni extremist group, seized the majority-Sunni city in June 2014.
'Central topic'
U.S. officials say they fear a repeat of the militia abuses in Mosul could erase any chances of reconciling Iraq's Sunni and Shia communities. "Virtually every conversation that we have had internally with respect to planning for Mosul—and virtually every conversation that we've had with the Iraqis—has this as a central topic," said a senior Obama Administration official.
In public, as reports of the abuses in Falluja emerged from survivors, Iraqi officials and human rights groups, U.S. officials in Washington initially played down the scope of the problem and did not disclose the failed American effort to rein in the militias.
Brett McGurk, the special U.S. envoy for the American-led campaign against Islamic State, expressed concern to reporters at a June 10 White House briefing for reporters about what he called "reports of isolated atrocities" against fleeing Sunnis.
Three days before the briefing, Gov. Sohaib al-Rawi of Anbar Province informed the U.S. ambassador that hundreds of people detained by Shi'ite militias had gone missing around Falluja, the governor told Reuters. By the time of the White House briefing, Iraqi officials, human rights investigators and the United Nations had collected evidence of scores of executions, the torture of hundreds of men and teenagers, and the disappearance of more than 700 others.
Nearly three weeks later, on June 28, McGurk struck a measured tone during testimony to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He said reports of abuses had been received in the early days of the operation, "many of which have turned out not to be credible but some of which appear to be credible."
McGurk declined a request for an interview. Mark Toner, the State Department's deputy spokesperson, said American officials had expressed "concern both publicly and privately" about reported atrocities. "We find any abuse totally unacceptable," Toner said, and "any violation of human rights should be investigated with those responsible held accountable."
Militia leaders deny that their groups mistreated civilians. They say the missing men were Islamic State militants killed in battle.
Exacting revenge
Iraqi government officials also challenged the reports of widespread violence against civilians. In an interview, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Al Abadi's deputy national security adviser, Safa al-Sheikh, said there were a few incidents, but added: "There are a lot of exaggerations, and some of the reports didn't have any basis."
Iraq's main Shi'ite militias, trained and armed by Tehran, emerged during the 2003-2011 U.S. occupation and have grown in power and stature. After helping the government defend Baghdad when Islamic State seized Mosul in 2014, the militias became arms of the Iraqi government. Islamic State has slaughtered thousands of Iraqis, of all faiths.
There now are more than 30 Shi'ite militias whose members receive government salaries. The major groups have government posts and parliament seats.
Their might has also been enhanced by some of the more than $20 billion in military hardware the United States has sold or given to Iraq since 2005. Their weaponry includes armored personnel carriers, trucks, Humvees, artillery and even tanks, according to U.S. officials, independent experts and pictures and videos militia members have posted on the internet.
Collectively, the Shi'ite militias are known as the Hashid Shaabi, or Popular Mobilization Forces. The militias officially answer to Abadi. In reality, the main groups answer only to themselves, display their own flags and emblems, and are advised by the Quds Force—Iran's elite foreign paramilitary and intelligence service.
The Falluja offensive began on May 22. For more than a year, American officials had warned Iraqi officials repeatedly that the United States would suspend air support in areas where militias were operating outside the Iraqi military's formal chain of command. The policy was designed to prevent American planes from inadvertently bombing Iraqi forces and to restrain militias from entering areas considered sensitive to Sunnis, according to U.S. officials.
In the first two days of the Falluja offensive, reports emerged of militiamen separating males from fleeing families. American, Western and U.N. diplomats pressured Abadi, other top Iraqi officials and militia leaders to stop the abuses. Abadi and other political leaders publicly called for protection of civilians.
'Don't be treacherous'
The Americans' influence was hindered by the fact they had no forces in Falluja and couldn't observe specific abuses, according to the Western diplomat who tracked the campaign.
On May 26, Ayatollah Ali Sistani, Iraq's leading Shi'ite cleric, pleaded with combatants to protect civilians. Aid agencies estimated at the time that as many as 100,000 people remained inside Falluja.
"Don't be extreme ... don't be treacherous. Don't kill an old man, nor a boy, nor a woman. Don't cut a tree unless you have to," Sistani said, citing sayings of the Prophet Mohammed.
Sistani's pleas and the American threats fell on deaf ears.
The first known instance of systematic abuse by the militias in the Falluja offensive occurred May 27 northeast of the city, in the farming region of Sejar. Militiamen and security forces stopped a group of fleeing Sunnis, pulled aside somewhere between 73 and 95 males aged 15 and older and took them away, according to Gov. al-Rawi of Anbar Province and a Western diplomat who monitored the offensive. Women and children were freed.
"We are still in contact with women and children who were handed to government people," said the Western diplomat. "They still don't know where the men are."
On May 29, militiamen just west of the farming areas of Sejar, separated 20 men from a group of fleeing Sunnis and "started killing them," said the Western diplomat. "The police arrived when there were three left alive. The police took the three and dumped them" in a camp east of Falluja for people displaced by the civil war.
Terrified that the militias would storm the camp and kill them, the trio arranged protection for themselves in Baghdad, the diplomat said. Gov. al-Rawi confirmed this account.
A Sunni academic said he spoke to three survivors of the alleged massacre, two brothers and their cousin. The men said the killings occurred during fighting between Iraqi federal police forces and Islamic State, according to the academic.
Survivor accounts
The three survivors told the academic that they were among some 50 people who had sought shelter in a house when they saw federal police raise the Iraqi flag at a nearby school. The group waved white cloths and was directed to leave the house by the police.
When the group emerged, the three said, the police separated the men from their families. One officer then opened fire and killed 17 men, the academic quoted the survivors as saying, adding that the three were spared when another officer intervened. The shooter was arrested, according to the Anbar governor.
Worse was to come. Shi'ite militiamen seeking vengeance against Islamic State rounded up Sunnis on June 3 from the town of Saqlawiya, according to witnesses interviewed by Reuters, U.N. workers, Iraqi officials and Human Rights Watch.
According to these accounts, more than 5,000 Sunnis, mostly members of the al-Mohamda tribe, left Saqlawiya, a farming community five miles northwest of Falluja. The Sunnis made their way toward what they thought was the safety of government lines marked by Iraqi flags. A gray-haired man described the scene in a video recorded by local officials after he and 604 other men were freed two days later.
"When we arrived there, we discovered they were the Hashid," the Shi'ite militias, the witness said.
U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Raad al-Hussein, two senior Iraqi officials, and a 69-year-old survivor interviewed by Reuters identified the militiamen as members of Kataib Hezbollah. One of the most powerful Shi'ite paramilitaries, Kataib Hezbollah was organized by and retains close ties to Iran's Quds Force. Both are deemed to be terrorist groups by the United States.
Kataib Hezbollah denied being involved in abuses in Falluja. "They make these claims based on accusations from politicians that ISIS is depending on," said Kataib spokesman Jaafar al-Husseini. "They are trying to keep us far from the operations of Anbar and Mosul."
The militiamen separated out an estimated 1,500 males aged 15 and older and moved them in groups to different locations, including warehouses and an Iraqi base called Camp Tariq, according to survivors, U.N. investigators and Human Rights Watch.
'Fists, knives and cables'
The survivors described being crammed into small rooms and halls and denied food and water, straining to breathe in the stifling heat. Militiamen using sticks, pipes and hoses beat the detainees and declared that they were taking revenge for Camp Speicher—a June 2014 massacre by Islamic State of 1,566 Shi'ite and other non-Sunni air force cadets.
A 32-year-old man, one of six survivors Reuters interviewed, said he was packed into a room with dozens of other captives, his hands tied behind his back.
"They started hitting us with their fists, knives and cables," he said. "When people fainted, we yelled they were going to die, and the guards told us that's what they wanted."
The guards, the survivor said, told the captives they were avenging the deaths of hundreds of Iraqi soldiers killed in fighting around Falluja since 2014.
In a video recorded by local officials, another survivor told how men craving water were given bottles in which to urinate and told to drink their own waste.
A 47-year-old survivor described how he watched militiamen repeatedly beat his 17-year-old son and carry off the corpses of 15 men who appeared to have been beaten to death. The man was one of the 605 survivors released on June 5. His son was not among them, he said; the boy hasn't been seen since.
"We want to know the destiny of our sons," the man told Reuters. "We consider the Americans responsible for everything that has happened."
Unaccounted for
In all, militiamen killed at least 49 men who were detained in Saqlawiya, four of whom were beheaded, according to the U.N.'s Zeid.
The brutality ended without explanation for some 800 detainees after two days. But 643 Saqlawiya detainees remain unaccounted for. Their names are recorded on a list circulated by local officials to the United Nations, Human Rights Watch and government investigators and reviewed by Reuters.
On June 7, Sheikh Ali Hamad, a leader of the Mohamda, a Sunni tribe, decried on television what he called "a genocidal crime" and the deaths of "tens of our sons."
The same day, the Anbar governor informed U.S. Ambassador Jones that hundreds of Sunni men were missing. U.N. envoy Zeid issued a statement citing "extremely distressing, credible reports" of abuse, including summary executions of men and boys by militiamen.
On June 9, the day before McGurk's White House briefing, Human Rights Watch issued a report on the alleged atrocities in Sejar and Saqlawiya.
The regular Iraqi security forces, including the U.S.-trained Counter-Terrorism Service, eventually established safe corridors and guided civilians out of the city. Some 100,000 civilians escaped as a result.
A piece of the action
Today, the Shi'ite militias are clamoring to join the Mosul offensive, fired by zeal, a desire for revenge and hopes of burnishing their political standing within their sect.
"They will want a piece of the climactic battle," said Kenneth Pollock, a former CIA analyst now with the Brookings Institution, a Washington policy institute.
Ryan Crocker, a career diplomat who served as U.S. ambassador to Iraq from 2007 to 2009, said the Obama administration has downplayed abuses by both militia and Iraqi forces. "This administration is so determined to be able to declare victory over ISIL (that) they don't really care about any of the rest of it," said Crocker.
Over the disapproval of the Mosul provincial government, Abadi and militia leaders have said that militias will participate in the campaign to liberate the city.
The chief PMF administrator is Jamal Ibrahimi. Known by the nom de guerre Abu Mahdi al-Mohandis, he is on the U.S. international terrorist list.
U.S. officials say Ibrahimi is the leader of Kataib Hezbollah, the militia that Iraqi officials, Western diplomats and others hold primarily responsible for the atrocities committed in the Falluja offensive.
Ibrahimi and the militia deny that he heads Kataib Hezbollah.
Abadi's office has announced that a committee will investigate allegations of rights abuses in Falluja. It is uncertain if the inquiry will find anyone responsible beyond a handful of low-level suspects whose arrests Abadi reported on June 13.

New massacre reports show U.S. inability to curb Iraq militias


LOS ANGELES -- Gene Wilder, who regularly stole the show in such comedic gems as "The Producers," "Blazing Saddles," "Young Frankenstein," "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" and "Stir Crazy," died Monday at his home in Stamford, Conn. His nephew Jordan Walker-Pearlman said he died of complications from Alzheimer's disease. He was 83.

'Willy Wonka' star Gene Wilder dies at 83


HILLSBORO, N.D. - Major weather damage has been reported near Hillsboro after a tornado ripped through the area.

Tornado reportedly causes damage near Hillsboro


WILLISTON, N.D.—A Williston woman was arrested for carrying more than $13,000 worth of drugs after police say they fell out of her clothes while she was being questioned on other charges.
Bags of drugs fell from the groin area of Stephanie White, who was being questioned at the county jail in connection with alleged retaliation for a robbery, police say.
White, 33, told detectives she wanted a cigarette, but as she was walking toward the smoking area at the Williams County Correctional Center, small bags containing drugs began to tumble out of her clothes, according to police.
Authorities say she was carrying more than 40 grams of black tar heroin and smaller amounts of cocaine and methamphetamine worth a total of about $13,000.
She was charged with possession of heroin with intent to deliver, a Class A felony, two counts of possession of a controlled substance and two counts of possession of drug paraphernalia.
White, who's lived in Williston for a short time, was being questioned last week along with three other people after an altercation between the group over thousands in stolen cash threatened to become violent.
According to records, four acquaintances in two separate cars clashed that night, following each other on Williams County and Williston roads until officers intervened.
"They didn't try to run from the police, they were engaged in their activities," said Sgt. Detective Amy Nickoloff of the Williston Police Department said Monday. "No gun was located, but there was believed to be a gun involved."
Tyler McGirt, 20, of Watford City, was also arrested and charged with theft of property, a Class B felony, for allegedly stealing about $12,000 on Aug. 20 from one of the men involved.
McGirt was in a car with Heather Scallion, who was charged with possession of drug paraphernalia.
White was in the other car along with Larry Norwood, 25, who was charged with two counts of possession of drug paraphernalia.
Allegations against Scallion and Norwood were based on police searches of the cars and Norwood's apartment.
More charges are expected in the coming days, Williams County prosecutor Nathan Madden said Monday.
White is being held on $50,000 bond at the Williams County Correctional Center. McGirt's bond was set at $5,000, and Norwood's at $7,500.
All three are due back in court Oct. 20 for a preliminary hearing. Scallion's next court date is Sept. 23.

$13,000 in drugs fall out of woman's groin while being questioned in jail


Hundreds of people walked from Fargo's Oak Grove Park on Saturday, Aug. 27, 2016, and gathered on Veterans Memorial Bridge to show solidarity with the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation and those protesting the Dakota Access Pipeline. Ryan Johnson / The Forum
Whitney Black, right, along with her daughters, Avery, BreElle and Taylor Leben along with Lois Leben from Spirit Lake make signs Saturday, August 27, 2016, at Fargo Oak Grove Park for the march against the Dakota Access pipeline.David Samson / The Forum
Lois Leben wanted to show her three young granddaughters the importance of standing up for the environment, while Birgit Pruess hoped to make a point about the need for alternatives to oil.
They didn't all share the same motivations, but hundreds of people turned out Saturday, Aug. 27, for a walk along the Red River that started in Fargo's Oak Grove Park and ended on the Veterans Memorial Bridge to show their solidarity with Dakota Access Pipeline protesters near Standing Rock Sioux Reservation.
Leben came with her family from Spirit Lake Reservation near Devils Lake, N.D., to support the protestors working to stop the pipeline, which would transport crude oil from North Dakota's Bakken Formation to Patoka, Ill., and cross the Missouri River less than a mile from Standing Rock.
For Leben, it's important that federal officials and pipeline builders honor treaties between the U.S. government and tribes, and she said the wishes of the tribe must be respected. She also wanted her three granddaughters, ages 3 to 8, to be at the walk along the river in Fargo and Moorhead.
"They need to know that they should protect Mother Earth," she said.
'Water really is life'
Fargo resident Theresa Ellis, 28, said she supports Standing Rock protestors because of the risk of the pipeline leaking and contaminating the Missouri River.
"Water really is life," she said.
Like many of the people who gathered in Oak Grove before the walk started, Ellis made a sign to display her message. In a combination of English and Ojibwe, her sign read, "Pray for our water and the Grandmother Earth."
Pruess said she's read about what's happening at Standing Rock and wanted to get involved as a way to raise awareness about the environmental risks. There are alternative or renewable energy sources other than oil, she said, and she hoped the event in Fargo could help others realize the issues affect more than the residents of that one reservation.
"They should, in theory, have support," she said. "They shouldn't have to be the only ones."
Fargo resident MaryJo Cayley also worried about the environmental damage that could happen if the pipeline is built as currently planned.
"Water itself is a finite resource, and if we keep polluting it, where will we all be?" she said. "The plants need water to live; we need water to live, and we just don't want it polluted. Why take a chance?"
She said she keeps thinking about a quote she recently heard on National Public Radio—"The era of consumption without consequence is over"—and she believes Americans need to figure out how to be wiser consumers who waste less and use less.
Jensen, a 40-year-old Fargo resident, came to the park and walk with his fiancee to support Standing Rock.
He considers himself to be an environmentalist, and said even though he doesn't have a personal connection to the reservation that's hundreds of miles from Fargo, he has enjoyed the Missouri River for its fishing in the past. He said he doesn't want to see it "destroyed" by oil—and said he'd have the same concerns if the pipeline was slated to run underneath the Red River near Fargo.
"I just think about what happens if it was going through the Red River and broke and contaminated our water," he said. "How would we feel?"

Hundreds walk in Fargo to show solidarity with Standing Rock pipeline protesters


Apple Operations International, a subsidiary of Apple Inc, is seen in Hollyhill, Cork, in the south of Ireland August 30, 2016. REUTERS/Stringer
An Apple logo is seen in the window of an authorised apple reseller store in Galway, Ireland August 30, 2016. REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne
BRUSSELS—EU antitrust regulators ordered Apple on Tuesday, Aug. 30, to pay up to $14.5 billion in taxes plus interest to the Irish government after ruling that a special scheme to route profits through Ireland was illegal state aid.
The massive sum, 40 times bigger than the previous known demand by the European Commission to a company in such a case, could be reduced, the EU executive said in a statement, if other countries sought more tax themselves from the U.S. tech giant.
Apple, which with Ireland said it will appeal the decision, paid tax rates on European profits on sales of its iPhone and other devices and services of between just 0.005 percent in 2014 and 1 percent in 2003, the Commission said.
"Ireland granted illegal tax benefits to Apple, which enabled it to pay substantially less tax than other businesses over many years," said Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager, whose crackdown on mainly U.S. multinationals has angered Washington which accuses Brussels of protectionism.
Online retailer Amazon.com Inc and hamburger group McDonald's Corp face probes over taxes in Luxembourg, while coffee chain Starbucks Corp has been ordered to pay up to $33 million to the Dutch state.
A bill of $330 million this year for Swedish engineer Atlas Copco AB to pay Belgian tax is the current known record. Other companies ordered to pay back taxes in Belgium, many of them European, have not disclosed figures.
For Apple, whose earnings of $18 billion last year were the biggest ever reported by a corporation, finding several billion dollars should not be an insurmountable problem. The 13 billion euros represents about 6 percent of the firm's cash pile.
As of June, Apple reported it had cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities of $231.5 billion, of which 92.8 percent, or $214.9 billion, were held in foreign subsidiaries. It paid $2.67 billion in taxes during its latest quarter at an effective tax rate of 25.5 percent, leaving it with net income of $7.8 billion according to company filings.
The European Commission in 2014 accused Ireland of dodging international tax rules by letting Apple shelter profits worth tens of billions of dollars from tax collectors in return for maintaining jobs. Apple and Ireland rejected the accusation.
"I disagree profoundly with the Commission," Irish Finance Minister Michael Noonan said in a statement. "The decision leaves me with no choice but to seek cabinet approval to appeal.
"This is necessary to defend the integrity of our tax system; to provide tax certainty to business; and to challenge the encroachment of EU state aid rules into the sovereign member state competence of taxation."
Ireland also said the disputed tax system used in the Apple case no longer applied and that the decision had no effect on Ireland's 12.5 percent corporate tax rate or on any other company with operations in the country.
Apple said in a statement it was confident of winning an appeal.
"The European Commission has launched an effort to rewrite Apple's history in Europe, ignore Ireland's tax laws and upend the international tax system in the process. The Commission's case is not about how much Apple pays in taxes, it's about which government collects the money. It will have a profound and harmful effect on investment and job creation in Europe."
"Reverse Engineering"
When it opened the Apple investigation in 2014, the Commission told the Irish government that tax rulings it agreed in 1991 and 2007 with the company amounted to state aid and might have broken EU laws.
The Commission said the rulings were "reverse engineered" to ensure Apple had a minimal Irish bill and that minutes of meetings between Apple representatives and Irish tax officials showed the company's tax treatment had been "motivated by employment considerations."
Apple employs 5,500, or about a quarter of its Europe-based staff, in the Irish city of Cork, where it is the largest private sector employer. It has said it paid Ireland's 12.5 percent rate on all the income that it generates in the country.
Ireland's low corporate tax rate has been a cornerstone of economic policy for 20 years, drawing investors from multinational companies whose staff account for almost one in 10 workers in Ireland.
Some opposition Irish lawmakers have urged Dublin to collect whatever tax the Commission orders it to. But the main opposition party Fianna Fail, whose support the minority administration relies on to pass laws, said it would support an appeal based on reassurances it had been given by the government.
The U.S. Treasury Department published a white paper last week that said the EU executive's tax investigations departed from international taxation norms and would have an outsized impact on U.S. companies. The Commission said it treated all companies equally.

EU demands $14.5 billion bite in Apple taxes


LOS ANGELES—Donald Trump's controversial candidacy is already dampening political ad spending, and there are reasons to believe the negative Trump effect could get worse.
All the major TV station owners have reported second-quarter results, and the political-spending sector was a mixed bag.
The pattern is quite different this year from 2012. During the Barack Obama vs. Mitt Romney general election, spending ramped up quickly in the second quarter, right after the Republican primary. This year, the percentage of total ad spending from political advertising dropped from the first to second quarters at all four major companies. Three of the four saw a lower percentage of political ad spending in the second quarter 2016 than in second quarter 2012. (Meredith saw a slight increase.)
Commentary from these and other companies that own local TV stations suggests they're putting on a brave face. Some argue that the drawn-out primaries on both sides pushed spending into the third quarter; others say presidential election years are always back-loaded and are confidently projecting higher spending in Q3 and Q4.
But the fact remains that Trump isn't spending on advertising. According to Advertising Analytics, the Hillary Clinton campaign and pro-Clinton PACs have spent more than $90 million on political ads since the end of the primaries. Trump, amazingly, has spent zero. (Trump PACs have spent $8.2 million.)
And there may be a secondary Trump effect. If the polls continue to show massive leads for Clinton even in what are normally major battleground states, her campaign may decide that it simply doesn't need to spend as much as it otherwise would have. Advertising is always heavily concentrated on states where the race is the closest; if there are fewer of those states, spending could be pared back.
Bear in mind that presidential ad spending is a small component of overall political spending. Most observers peg combined candidate and PAC spending for the presidential election at one-third of total political spending, while outliers like Meredith project an even lower contribution.
As such, many station owners are banking on strong spending by candidates for Senate, House, and gubernatorial races to deliver strong numbers through the rest of the year, even if spending for presidential campaigns remains weak. In some cases, the presence of less palatable candidates at the top of the ballot may force down-ballot candidates to spend more in order to get the word out. The big question is whether that spending will be enough to make up the difference. With most station owners having projected a big year due to the elections, there's quite a bit at stake.

Trump's candidacy taking a toll on political ad spending


Aug 28, 2016; Minneapolis, MN, USA; A general view of U.S. Bank Stadium during the first quarter in a preseason game between the Minnesota Vikings and the San Diego Chargers at U.S. Bank Stadium. The Vikings won 23-10. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports
MINNEAPOLIS—The ceremonial first coin has been tossed and the ceremonial first beer has been guzzled. And afterwards the "Home Sweet Home" sign was hung out front.
"It feels like home," wide receiver Charles Johnson noted.
The Vikings christened their new football residence on Sunday. It's flamboyant and ostentatious, marked with hard edges and steel beams—the perfect NFL playhouse. In fact, Sunday's exhibition contest against the San Diego Chargers was more housewarming party than football game. The primary activity was staring in wonderment.
For the record, the Vikings beat the Chargers 23-10. And as usually happens in these exhibition games, the second half became tedious as the third and fourth stringers took over. Putting those fellows on the field of such a grandiose stadium may be like putting a fleet of Geo Metros in Jay Leno's garage, but on Sunday it just gave the cash customers more time to look around and soak up the opulence.
There still were a few minor glitches, such as long lines at concessions and restrooms. The acoustics were rather murky. And there was an absence of pertinent information that should have been displayed somewhere, such as down and distance. Even the score sometimes was difficult to find. And not just for the fans.
"It's a new experience for us too," Mike Zimmer said. "There was a lot of new things that happened today at the stadium, different things. I'm still trying to find things. I had to ask where the timeouts were a couple of times. I didn't see those little dots under there."
As former Vikings quarterback Christian Ponder used to say after getting beaten to a pulp: "All correctable." Besides, what do you want for $1.1 billion? A buck doesn't stretch as far as it used to.
"I think it's good and now we can start feeling more comfortable and just come in here and get going," Zimmer added.
As for new things, Zimmer walked into his postgame press conference and received a standing ovation. Not from the media. Some of us are still ticked off at him for his handling of the Teddy Bridgewater injury situation. But next to the interview room there is a bar full of well-oiled suite-dwellers. They can peer through the glass and listen in on the question and answer session.
Apparently, management can flick a switch and a heavy curtain will come down and separate the two sides. Yet on this happy day, the decision was made to allow the eavesdropping. And many of Zimmer's responses were met with wild cheers, which took the coach aback.
Anyway, I'm sure those fans paid heavily for the privilege. So I don't begrudge them.
Traffic patterns on the concourse eventually should even out when people start spending more time in their seats. And the information shortcomings can easily be rectified. Most important, the view was good and the place was pleasing to the NFL eye. Plus, it's still clean. Afterwards, no one from the organization demanded improvements or revisions. So clearly we have entered an era of stadium détente here in Minnesota.
Sunday's attendance of 66,143 is a record that will not be broken until the Vikings find a way to seat people up on those steel girders. And they will as soon as the liability issues have been identified. For now, everyone seems thrilled with things just as they are.
Now, I wouldn't come to the stadium overly hungry or thirsty unless you have sufficient property to mortgage. Food and drink are expensive. That's just how it is at all the new stadiums. It's a fact of life. And the Vikings no doubt hope that after the first 20-ounce beer, that second one doesn't look quite so pricey.
There is one more exhibition, Thursday night against the newly relocated Los Angeles Rams, before the real home opener. That's Sept. 18 against the Green Bay Packers. The players already are fired up thinking about that one.
"I can't wait to get out there against the Packers and open this place for real," tight end Kyle Rudolph said.
"It's going to be very loud," Harrison Smith said. "It's kind of cool that they're (fans) so close. They get to be a part of it."
So we've had a soccer game, two concerts and, finally, a football game in the Vikings' new home.
"Everything echoes a little bit more in here," Charles Johnson said. "It's loud, and it's nice."
Loud and nice. There might be some of the usual NFL pretentiousness involved, some of the "can you top this" in play. But, overall, loud and nice probably sums it up as best as any mere mortal can.
The Pioneer Press is a Forum News Service media partner.

POWERS: What did Vikings get for $1.1B? 'Nice' and 'loud'


iPhones sit on display during a preview event at the new Apple Store Williamsburg in Brooklyn, New York, U.S., July 28, 2016. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly
SAN FRANCISCO—Apple Inc issued a patch on Thursday, Aug. 25, to fix a dangerous security flaw in iPhones and iPads after researchers discovered that a prominent United Arab Emirates dissident's phone had been targeted with a previously unknown method of hacking.
The thwarted attack on the human rights activist, Ahmed Mansoor, used a text message that invited him to click on a web link. Instead of clicking, he forwarded the message to researchers at the University of Toronto's Citizen Lab.
The hack is the first known case of software that can remotely take over a fully up-to-date iPhone 6.
Experts at Citizen Lab worked with security company Lookout and determined that the link would have installed a program taking advantage of a three flaws that Apple and others were not aware of. The researchers disclosed their findings on Thursday.
"Once infected, Mansoor's phone would have become a digital spy in his pocket, capable of employing his iPhone's camera and microphone to snoop on activity in the vicinity of the device, recording his WhatsApp and Viber calls, logging messages sent in mobile chat apps, and tracking his movements," Citizen Lab wrote in a report released on Thursday.
The researchers said they had alerted Apple a week and a half ago, and the company developed a fix and distributed it as an automatic update to iPhone 6 owners.
Apple spokesman Fred Sainz confirmed that the company had issued the patch after being contacted by researchers.
The Citizen Lab team attributed the attack software to a private seller of monitoring systems, NSO Group, an Israeli company that makes software for governments which can secretly target mobile phones and gather information. Tools such as that used in this case, a remote exploit for a current iPhone, cost as much as $1 million.
NSO Chief Executive Shalev Hulio referred questions to spokesman Zamir Dahbash, who said the company "cannot confirm the specific cases" covered in the Citizen Lab and Lookout reports.
Dahbash said NSO sells within export laws to government agencies, which then operate the software.
"The agreements signed with the company's customers require that the company's products only be used in a lawful manner," he added. "Specifically, the products may only be used for the prevention and investigation of crimes."
Dahbash did not answer follow-up questions, including whether the exposure of the tools use against Mansoor in UAE and a Mexican journalist would end any sales to those countries.
NSO has kept a low profile in the security world, despite its 2014 sale of a majority stake for $120 million to California private equity firm Francisco Partners. That company's chief executive, Dipanjan Deb, did not return a call on Thursday. In November 2015, Reuters reported that NSO had begun calling itself "Q" and was looking for a buyer for close to $1 billion.
Sarah McKune, senior legal adviser to Citizen Lab, said Israel tries to follow the strictures of the Wassenaar Arrangement, which puts controls on the international sale of nuclear and chemical weapons technology and more recently cyber intrusion tools.
NSO may have had to apply for an export license, she added, saying that raised questions about "what consideration was given to the human rights record of UAE."
The Israeli embassy in Washington did not respond to an email seeking comment.
NSO marketing material says that it also has capabilities for Android and BlackBerry devices. No version of the software has been exposed, indicating it remains effective.
Citizen Lab did not directly accuse UAE of carrying out the attack on Mansoor with NSO gear called Pegasus, but it said other NSO attacks on critics of the regime were connected to the government.
It also said a Mexican journalist and a minority party politician in Kenya had been targeted with NSO software and that domain names set up for other attacks referred to entities in Uzbekistan, Thailand, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and other nations, suggesting that other targets lived in those nations.
A call to the UAE embassy in Washington was not immediately returned.
The market for "lawful intercept," or government hacking tools, has come under increased scrutiny with revelations about authoritarian customers and noncriminal victims.
Two popular vendors, Hacking Team of Italy and Gamma Group of the United Kingdom, have had their wares exposed by researchers or hackers.
Mansoor had previously been targeted with software from both of those companies, according to Citizen Lab.
"I can't think of a more compelling case of serial misuse of lawful intercept malware than the targeting of Mansoor," said one of the Citizen Lab researchers, John Scott-Railton.

Apple fixes security flaw where hacking software could take over entire device


WINNIPEG, Man.—For the second time in less than a year, two men from the same remote Canadian community have discovered they were switched at birth, prompting outrage and new questions about substandard healthcare for Canada's indigenous people.
David Tait and Leon Swanson were swapped in the government-run Norway House Hospital in 1975 in the western Canadian province of Manitoba, DNA testing confirmed.
"I want answers so bad," Tait said, choking back tears at a press conference in Winnipeg on Friday. He added that he felt "distraught, confused (and) angry."
Tait's biological mother ended up raising Swanson instead, and Swanson's birth mother raised Tait, the Canadian Broadcasting Corp reported.
Norway House is made up of two northern Manitoba communities and has a population of about 5,000 predominantly indigenous Cree Nation people. It is accessible by airplane and a long indirect road linking it with Winnipeg, about 500 miles to the south.
In November, the Manitoba government said two other men who were close friends were also switched at birth in 1975, at the same Norway House Hospital. As they grew up, people noticed how they resembled each other's family more than their own.
Eric Robinson, a former Manitoba cabinet minister who is helping the men in the latest case, said there were always suspicions in the community about their parentage. He suspects there are more undiscovered cases.
"The federal government owes these people," he told reporters. "What happened to them is criminal."
Canada's health department operates the Norway House hospital.
Canadian Health Minister Jane Philpott said the second case "deeply troubled" her. She said the health department would hire an independent party to investigate hospital records and look into whether there are other such cases.
"Cases like this are an unfortunate reminder to Canadians of how urgent the need is to provide all Indigenous people with high-quality health care," Philpott said in a statement.
Canada's 1.4 million indigenous people often live in dire social and economic conditions with subpar health and education services.
Practices to ensure the identities of newborns have improved since the 1970s, and Norway House Hospital now fits infants with identification bands, the health department said in a statement.

Second case of babies switched in Canadian hospital shakes community


WASHINGTON—The FBI is urging U.S. election officials to increase computer security after it uncovered evidence that hackers have targeted two state election databases in recent weeks, according to a confidential advisory.
The warning was in an Aug. 18 flash alert from the FBI's Cyber Division. Reuters obtained a copy of the document.
Yahoo News first reported the story Monday, citing unnamed law enforcement officials who said they believed foreign hackers caused the intrusions.
U.S. intelligence officials have become increasingly worried that hackers sponsored by Russia or other countries may attempt to disrupt the November presidential election.
Officials and cyber security experts say recent breaches at the Democratic National Committee and elsewhere in the Democratic Party were likely carried out by people within the Russian government. Kremlin officials have denied the allegations of Moscow's involvement.
Concerns about election computer security prompted Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson to convene a conference call with state election officials earlier this month, when he offered the department's help in making their voting systems more secure.
The FBI warning did not identify the two states targeted by cyber intruders, but Yahoo News said sources familiar with the document said it referred to Arizona and Illinois, whose voter registration systems were penetrated.
Citing a state election board official, Yahoo News said the Illinois voter registration system was shut down for 10 days in late July after hackers downloaded personal data on up to 200,000 voters.
The Arizona attack was more limited and involved introducing malicious software into the voter registration system, Yahoo News quoted a state official as saying. No data was removed in that attack, the official said.

FBI detects breaches against two state voter systems


Minnesota Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater (5) throws the ball during the first quarter in a preseason game against the San Diego Chargers at U.S. Bank Stadium. Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports
EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. -- Minnesota Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer said his third-year quarterback Teddy Bridgewater suffered a "significant knee injury" during a non-contact drill during Tuesday's practice and said it's possible Bridgewater could be lost for the season.
"Possible, yeah," Zimmer said during an afternoon news conference to discuss the injury.
The third-year quarterback didn’t appear to be touched when he went down in the pocket and grabbed his left knee.
"Today is a disappointing day because the number one thing is Teddy is such a great kid, everyone loves him," Zimmer said. "Everyone was disappointed."
Veteran Shaun Hill is the backup to Bridgewater, though Zimmer said he and Vikings GM Rick Spielman discussed the possibility Tuesday of adding a veteran quarterback.
"I have confidence in Shaun," Zimmer said. "He's played great this preseason in two-minute drills."
Hill is no stranger to stepping up in the face of injury, as the veteran replaced Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford in 2010 and Sam Bradford four years later after he tore his ACL with the then-St. Louis Rams.
Earlier on Tuesday, the Vikings waived quarterback Brad Sorensen.
Zimmer stressed that his football team is more than just his quarterback, pointing out a revamped offensive line, Adrian Peterson, among other aspects.
"This is about a team and about us trying to find a way to win football games," he said.
Zimmer said he talked to Bill Parcells, and his dad in spirit, saying, "Everyone can count us out if they want, but that would be the wrong thing to do.”
Zimmer said Bridgewater is having an MRI done on his leg and halted questioning about the hospital that was treating him.
"Let's let the kid get healthy and taken care of. Please," Zimmer told a reporter. "I love this kid. Our fans love this kid.”
The team canceled practice after about 25 minutes and an ambulance was called. All but a few players surrounding a prone Bridgewater left the field. Linebacker Eric Kendricks threw his helmet to the ground and cursed; running backs Adrian Peterson, Matt Asiata and receiver Adam Thielen locked arms and appeared to pray for their teammate.
The Vikings have two healthy quarterbacks after releasing quarterback Brad Sorensen on Tuesday, Hill and former Wisconsin starter Joel Stave.
The Vikings scheduled a press conference with coach Mike Zimmer at 4 p.m.
Before the injury, the Vikings’ biggest task was cutting the roster to 75 players by the NFL deadline of 3 p.m. Among cuts was veteran center John Sullivan, whom the team was trying to trade.

Zimmer: It's 'possible' Bridgewater could be out for season


Daisy Ridley arrives at the 88th Academy Awards on Sunday, Feb. 28, 2016, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood. (Jay L. Clendenin/Los Angeles Times/TNS)
On a recent episode of the podcast "My Dad Wrote a Porno"—a delightful show about a man who discovered that his dad wrote an outlandish dirty book, and rather than keep it to himself, he's reading it out loud for the world to enjoy—Daisy Ridley confessed that she was, at one point, told a title for the film.
"I heard a title, and I'm not sure if it's going to be that. I really don't know much about anything," she said, trying to avoid the question. Then she added, "I have heard it, but I heard it a long time ago before we started filming. So I feel like some things have tweaked slightly during [production], but it's going to be a while before it's released, I'd imagine."
In addition to Ridley, "Episode VIII" sees the return of Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Adam Driver, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong'o, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, Gwendoline Christie and Andy Serkis.
It's set to open on Dec. 15, 2017. The untitled Han Solo standalone movie will bow on May 25, 2018.

'Star Wars: Episode VIII': Daisy Ridley says 'It will be a while' before title is revealed


FISHER, Minn.—Neither Pelon Pruneda nor Paul Gapp has ever gone to the sideline and suggested to coaches that he get more carries.
"We'd get yelled at by the coaches if we did,'' Pruneda said with a smile.
Instead, the two wingbacks figure to be key components again in the share-the-ball offense of the Polk County West High School football team.
A balanced running game was a key factor last season when the second-year co-op went 8-3 and reached the championship game of the Section 8A playoffs, where the Thunder lost 44-7 to perennial 8A power Mahnomen.
Leading rusher Riley Wavra (189 carries-1,058 yards) graduated. But Gapp (100-813) and Pruneda (73-745) return. Both seniors have big-play potential, Pruneda averaging 10.2 yards per carry and Gapp 8.1 yards per carry.
"We're better players sharing the ball,'' Gapp said. "If I was getting 20-30 carries a game, I'd be too tired by the end of the game. I wouldn't be able to run as hard.''
Said Pruneda: "We're both pretty fast. I think defenses wear down having to chase both of us.''
Gapp lines up on the right side in the backfield and Pruneda on the left side. Pruneda had four 100-yard games last season with a high of 159. Gapp had a single 100-yard game, picking up 169, but was the more consistent of the two with seven games with more than 80 rushing yards.
They're on opposite sides of the field in the PCW offense. But they're mirror images of each other.
"They're both fast,'' Thunder coach Darrin Byklum said. "They're not afraid of contact; they don't back down to anybody. But they're at the wings for a reason. We want to run sweeps and get them open on the outside where they can use their speed.
"They're similar in speed and they run the ball the same way. They're probably as close to being the same style of running back as you'll find on a team.''
Matt Knutson is expected to step into Wavra's starting spot at fullback and provide another backfield option. Byklum said that, like Wavra, Knutson runs with power and he brings a little more speed to the offense than Wavra did.
The Thunder plan is to remain a run-first offense. That's helped by having a veteran offensive line, with Zach Cameron, Isaiah Bartels and Dyllon Mclean all returning regulars.
Who is running the ball, however, will vary from game to game.
"I always try to make sure we divide the carries up pretty evenly,'' Byklum said. "And so much of what we do is determined by what the defense is doing against us, what it is giving us. If the sweep is working better one way or the other, we'll go with that. If the trap is there up the middle, we'll keep going with the fullback.
"If these guys were on another team, they probably would be getting the ball more. But when that happens, there's also a better chance of wearing down or getting hurt. In our system, they stay fresh and defenses can't key on any one back.''
Byklum hears no complaints from the running backs.
"With three good backs, we're going to wear defenses down,'' Gapp said.
Polk Co. West at a glance
Coach: Darrin Byklum.
2015 results: 8-3, Section 8A runner-up.
Key graduation losses: Riley Wavra, Devin Evavold, Ryan Holte, Beau Byklum, Matt Vanyo, Jonan Garcia, Joe Sullivan, Dylan Brandner.
Returning offensive regulars: Sr. TB Pelon Pruneda, sr. TB Paul Gapp, sr. OL Zach Cameron, sr. OL Dyllon Mclean, jr. OL Isaiah Bartels.
Returning defensive regulars: DL Cameron, LB Gapp, jr. LB Matt Knutson, FS Pruneda.
Potential new impact players: Soph. QB/CB Evan Sczepanski, sr. TE/DE Tristan Rowley, soph. C/DL Grant Sullivan, soph. TE Trea Byklum, sr. LB Josh Sanchez, fr. G Myles Smith, fr. G James Fontaine, fr. S Josh Wagner.
Top returning rushers: Gapp 100-813, Pruneda 73-745, Knutson 23-179.
Top returning passer: Gapp 1-1-0, 11 yards.
Top returning receivers: Gapp 10-197, Pruneda 4-32, Knutson 2-28.
About the offense, coach Byklum says: "It will be the same offense—we run the ball. We don't have a veteran quarterback, so we may rely more on the run, leaning more on the run at least at the start of the season. Our wingbacks are definitely fast and Knutson (at fullback) will give us a power back to go with them. Our line is looking like a pleasant surprise. Cameron, Mclean and Bartels are a good group to build around and the new guys are stepping up.''
About the defense, coach Byklum says: "It starts up front. We have good players and good experience on the line. They can control the gaps. And we're fairly deep at linebacker. We are going to be young in the secondary.''


Iran's national flags are seen on a square in Tehran February 10, 2012, a day before the anniversary of the Islamic Revolution. REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl
DUBAI—Iran has arrested a member of the negotiating team that reached a landmark nuclear deal with world powers on suspicion of spying, a judiciary spokesman said on Sunday.
The suspect was released on bail after a few days in jail but is still under investigation, Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei said at a weekly news conference, calling the unidentified individual a "spy who had infiltrated the nuclear team," state media reported.
The deal that President Hassan Rouhani struck last year has given Iran relief from most international sanctions in return for curbing its nuclear program, but it is opposed by hardliners who see it as a capitulation to the United States.
Ejei was responding to a question about an Iranian lawmaker's assertion last week that a member of the negotiation team who had dual nationality had been arrested on espionage charges.
Tehran's prosecutor general on Aug. 16 announced the arrest of a dual national he said was linked to British intelligence, but made no mention of the person being in the nuclear negotiations team. On Sunday, Ejei did not explicitly confirm that the arrested person had a second nationality.
Britain said on Aug. 16 that it was trying to find out more about the arrest of a joint-national.

Iran arrests nuclear negotiator suspected of spying


Shoes made for U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's wife Melania are seen in shoe factory Bema in Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina, August 29, 2016. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic
Shoes made for U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's wife Melania are seen in shoe factory Bema in Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina, August 29, 2016. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic
Shoes made for U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's wife Melania are seen in shoe factory Bema in Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina, August 29, 2016. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic
Shoes made for U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's wife Melania are seen in shoe factory Bema in Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina, August 29, 2016. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic
BANJA LUKA, Bosnia—A Bosnian Serb factory on Monday, Aug. 29, presented two pairs of shoes as a gift for the wife of U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, Slovenian-born Melania, in a gesture of support for Trump's White House campaign.
Many Serbs in the Balkans back Trump, ill-disposed to rival Hillary Clinton whose husband Bill backed NATO air strikes on Bosnian Serb positions toward the end of the 1992-95 Bosnian war. He also advocated a 1999 NATO bombing of then-Yugolsavia to halt the killing and expulsion of ethnic Albanians.
Marinko Umicevic, technical director at the Banja Luka shoe factory Bema, said the gift countered what she called a "dirty campaign" against the aspiring First Lady whose homeland, like Bosnia, was a part of Yugoslavia when she was born.
Melania Trump's speech at the Republican National Convention in July ignited controversy, containing a section strikingly similar to words delivered at the Democratic convention in 2008 by President Barack Obama, Michelle.
"The shoes for Melania Trump are our response to the dirty comments she has been exposed to as a wife and a mother," said Umicevic.
The shoes, to be sent by express post, were displayed for media on a table, set in a display of white roses. One pair was gold-colored, with cushioned soles fashioned, according to Umicevic, to help Melania follow her husband's campaign across America. The others were white stilettos for a triumphant walk into the White House.
Umicevic said the shoe moulds were made by a factory in Melania Trump's hometown of Sevnice and designed by Bema's best shoe designers.
"We hope that America will stop being the world policeman," Umicevic told Reuters. "We are hoping a friendship will come in the future from the United States instead of bombs that Serbs got from Bill Clinton," he added.

Bosnian Serbs make shoes for Melania Trump's White House march


In the Washington Post today is a lengthy profile about Families Advocating for Campus Equality, or FACE, a group founded by a Fargo mom after her son was falsely accused of sexual misconduct at the University of North Dakota.

Port: ND mom fights to make college campuses safe for young ...


Wheat is seen in a field during the harvest on Qalyub farm in the El-Kalubia governorate, northeast of Cairo, Egypt May 1, 2016. Picture taken May 1, 2016. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh
CAIRO/ABU DHABI—Egypt reinstated on Sunday a controversial ban on wheat shipments containing even the slightest amount of a common grain fungus, baffling traders who had returned to the Egyptian market just last month when the ban was lifted.
The world's largest wheat importer said on Sunday it was re-introducing its zero tolerance policy on ergot - which can lead to hallucinations in large quantities but is considered harmless at minor levels - and would apply the decision retroactively.
"The ban will be applied to every grain of wheat entering the country. As of now no infected wheat will enter either from upcoming tenders or previous ones," agriculture ministry spokesman Eid Hawash said, giving no reason for the decision.
Just last month, Egypt said it would accept imported wheat shipments containing 0.05 percent, a common international standard, of ergot in imports, settling a dispute with suppliers that had hampered the country's massive purchasing program.
A Food and Agriculture Organization risk assessment conducted earlier this year concluded that ergot posed no threat to Egyptian crops, but the agriculture ministry said at the time it would reinstate zero tolerance if future studies showed ergot affecting crops.
On Sunday, the head of the country's plant pathology centre told Reuters a follow-up study found that ergot did pose a risk to crops if it entered the country, and that the FAO report had not taken into consideration the different strands of ergot and Egypt's hot climate.
"There are 15 countries with ergot but we won't stop dealing with them entirely we will just make sure that when wheat is imported from these countries it comes from areas of those countries free of ergot," Ashraf Khalil said.
The July decision resulted in larger numbers of suppliers participating in General Authority for Supply Commodities' state tenders.
But Sunday's reversal means suppliers risk having cargoes of previously agreed shipments rejected and that Egypt may face a renewed boycott of state grain tenders and raised prices. The move could hinder state grain importer GASC from making purchases needed to fill the country's large supply gap.
Suppliers have long maintained that guaranteeing zero ergot is nearly impossible. Some told Reuters they would likely not participate in tenders following Sunday's decision.
"It's going to be a disaster," one Cairo-based trader said.
The General Authority for Supply Commodities, which is in favour of the international 0.05 percent standard, was not immediately available for comment.

In about turn, Egypt bans ergot fungus in wheat again


In this image from video, flooding is seen in Alexandria.
ALEXANDRIA, Minn. - After heavy rain early Monday morning, a flash flood warning has been issued in southern Douglas County by the National Weather Service.
According to the NWS, rainfall rates of 3 inches per hour were observed in Alexandria, with 2 to 4 inches of rain falling in 90 minutes. The rain ended about 7 a.m. Monday.
Traffic near Broadway and Ninth Ave was monitored this morning, as parts of the roadway were flooded.
Additionally, the parking lot of Cornerstone Church on Seventh Avenue gathered a significant amount of water, with some cars partially submerged.
Scattered thunderstorms are expected to continue into Monday afternoon.

Minnesota's Douglas County in flash flood warning on Monday morning


MINNEAPOLIS -- A man reportedly attempted to open an exterior airplane door during a packed cross-country flight Monday, prompting an emergency landing at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.
Alaska Airlines flight 7, traveling from New York City to Seattle, made an emergency landing at the Twin Cities airport about 9:45 a.m., according to a spokeswoman for the airline.
Once on the ground, an “unruly passenger” who, according to flight crew, had attempted to open an exterior door on the plane was removed by law enforcement, said spokeswoman Halley Knigge.
The plane, a Boeing 737 900 ER carrying 181 passengers, was delayed for roughly two hours.
Knigge said such exterior doors are impossible to open in the air, as such an effort would have to overcome thousands of pounds of pressure.
An airport spokeswoman confirmed that a man was removed from the flight by police and taken to a nearby hospital, and that the investigation would be taken over by the FBI.
She added the man had been restrained on the flight and had his hands tied behind his back when airport police first made contact with him, but no injuries were reported.

Unruly passenger tries to open exterior door on jetliner in flight forcing plane to make emergency landing in Minnesota


JAMESTOWN, N.D. - The initial court appearance for Walter Grant Jr. on five felony charges only lasted a few minutes Thursday, Aug. 25, before he was sent back to a jail cell.
Grant, 59, 1018 4th Ave. SW Unit 29, appeared in Southeast District Court before Judge Jerod E. Tufte on charges of gross sexual imposition, burglary, terrorizing, aggravated assault and felonious restraint.
The initial appearance is conducted to read the charges to the defendant and determine if the defendant has an attorney or is qualified to have a public defender.
Grant, seated at the defendant's table, said he wouldn't answer any questions until he had a lawyer present. Tufte said Grant had the right to remain silent and not talk about the facts of the case, but he did want him to acknowledge that he understood what was said in the instructional video on court proceedings. Grant said again he would not say a word until he had a lawyer present. Grant then left the defendant's table and sat in a chair in the jury box with defendants in other cases waiting for their initial court appearance.
When Tufte asked Grant if he understood English, Grant said, "Yes, do you understand English?"
The judge asked Grant again if he understood the video, then asked the court clerk and court reporter to note that Grant had inserted his fingers in his ears. Tufte instructed the correctional officers in the courtroom to escort Grant back to the Stutsman County Correctional Center, where he is being held.
As he was walking out of the courtroom, Grant said, "There is only one judge in this world and that is God."
After Grant was out of the courtroom, Tufte told Stutsman County Assistant State's Attorney Katherine Naumann that the court would make a judge available if she wanted to arrange an initial appearance in the correctional center. Tufte also suggested that Grant be shackled so he could not stick his fingers in his ears.
Naumann said Grant did complete his initial appearance later Thursday afternoon.
Grant is accused of engaging in a sexual act with a woman in her apartment in southwest Jamestown against her will by threat of imminent death, serious bodily injury or kidnapping.
The woman reported at about 6:10 a.m. Tuesday that she had been assaulted in her home by Grant, escaped and fled to a neighbor's to call 911. Grant was apprehended by the stockyards on the west side of Jamestown with the help of the Stutsman County Sheriff's Office K-9 unit.
Bond was set at $250,000 cash or $500,000 surety. A surety bond is guaranteed by a person or institution to ensure the defendant is present for court dates.
No arraignment date was set, at which time Grant would enter a plea to the charges.
The gross sexual imposition charge is a Class A felony, burglary is a Class B felony, and the terrorizing, aggravated assault and felonious restraint charges are Class C felonies.
The maximum penalty for a Class A felony is 20 years in prison and a $20,000 fine. The maximum penalty for a Class B felony is 10 years in prison and $20,000. The maximum penalty for a Class C felony is five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

Defendant sticks fingers in ears before judge removes him from ND courtroom


Republican U.S. presidential candidate Sen. Marco Rubio, left, talks with rival candidate businessman Donald Trump during a break in the midst of the Republican U.S. presidential candidates debate sponsored by ABC News at Saint Anselm College in Manchester, New Hampshire Feb. 6, 2016. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri
WASHINGTON—Republican voters in Arizona and Florida are expected to pick Senators John McCain and Marco Rubio as their respective U.S. Senate nominees when they go to the polls on Tuesday, but one name not on either ballot, Donald Trump, looms large.
The Republican presidential nominee has endorsed both McCain and Rubio in their re-election bids even though he has rocky relations with both senators.
Trump offended McCain and many other Republicans last year by suggesting that the maverick senator and party's 2008 presidential nominee was anything but a war hero because he was captured during the Vietnam War after his airplane was shot down during a bombing mission.
In March, Trump ended Rubio's presidential bid by trouncing him in the Florida primary to cap a race in which the New York businessman taunted the first-term senator as "little Marco," and Rubio insulted Trump on everything from his hair color and the size of his hands to misspelled words in tweets.
During their re-election efforts, both McCain and Rubio have offered support for Trump as the party's White House nominee. But they have tiptoed around him, mainly out of concern that his provocative comments on illegal immigration, Muslims and U.S. support for NATO could alienate moderate and independent voters in their states.
At the same time, they have steered clear of attacks on Trump that might antagonize his core supporters.
Adding to the intrigue is that the fates of the two senators will likely play a big role in whether Republicans can upset expectations and maintain majority control of the Senate after the Nov. 8 election.
But first, McCain will have to win Tuesday's Republican primary in Arizona and Rubio will have to prevail in Florida.
McCain, who is trying to extend a 30-year Senate career, faces a challenge from physician and former state Senator Kelli Ward, who is aligned with the conservative Tea Party movement.
McCain leads Ward by 55 percent to 29 percent, according to a CNN opinion poll released last week. But Ward is ratcheting up her attacks, arguing: "It's time to defeat the establishment and retire McCain."
In an interview last week with Politico, Ward called McCain, 80, "a pretty sour old guy." Citing her medical background, she questioned whether he would even live long enough to complete another six-year Senate term.
Ward has aligned herself with Trump, who will face Democrat Hillary Clinton in November's presidential election.
Mixing the mortar
Echoing Trump's call for the building of a wall on the southern border with Mexico, Ward has boasted: "It's time to mix the mortar to fix the border."
Trying to neutralize Ward's appeal with conservatives, McCain has touted his support for gun rights, his vow to cut government waste and endorsements from anti-abortion leaders.
If McCain, who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee, wins on Tuesday, he would face Democratic U.S. Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick.
While McCain has said he is in the toughest re-election fight of his career, the CNN poll has him opening a 13-point lead over Kirkpatrick.
Rubio, who decided last year not to seek re-election to the Senate in order to pursue the Republican presidential nomination, jumped into the race in June after his failed White House bid.
His late decision to seek a second Senate term came at the urging of Republican Party leaders, who viewed him as their best hope for preventing Democrats from taking the seat.
That prompted the major Republican Senate candidates to quit, leaving Carlos Beruff, 58, a millionaire homebuilder and newcomer to politics, as Rubio's main primary challenger. Like Ward, Beruff has embraced Trump and has accused Rubio of "tap dancing" around the presidential nominee and only offering him lukewarm support.
Rubio is polling well ahead of Beruff. A win on Tuesday means Rubio would likely face U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy, who leads the Democratic field.

Trump hovers over McCain, Rubio U.S. Senate re-election contests


LOS ANGELES—Ben Affleck shared a video, which appears to be test footage of DC Universe villain Deathstroke, on all of his social media accounts on Monday morning. The actor-director posted the cryptic video without comment or explanation.
https://twitter.com/BenAffleck/status/770259217940746245
It's unclear what the video represents, and whether Deathstroke will be appearing in the upcoming "Justice League" movies or the "Batman" standalone film, but the former is more likely as the superhero mash up is currently filming in London.
Deathstroke, aka Slade Wilson, is a soldier-turned-assassin in the DC Universe. An experimental super-soldier project gave him superhuman strength and intelligence, in addition to regenerative abilities. Aside from Batman and the Justice League, he has also clashed with Green Arrow and the Teen Titans. The character was created by Marv Wolfman and George Perez, and first appeared in "The New Teen Titans #2" in 1980.
Affleck will next appear in and executive produce "Justice League" before toppling, directing, and co-writing the solo "Batman" film.
Directed by Zack Snyder, "Justice League" hits theaters on Nov. 10, 2017. Affleck, Henry Cavill, and Gal Gadot will be reprising their "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice" roles as Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman, respectively. They will be joined by Jason Momoa as Aquaman, Ray Fisher as Cyborg, and Ezra Miller as the Flash.
"Justice League: Part Two" is currently slated for June 14, 2019.

Ben Affleck teases DC Universe villain Deathstroke


LOS ANGELES - Facebook's popular Trending section suffered a major mishap Monday, just three days after its programming switched from human hands to an automated algorithm.
The section, which is featured on the top right of the social network's pages, posted an erroneous report that Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly was fired from the network. The Washington Post was first to report Facebook's error.
Kelly's name topped the Trending section on Monday morning. Before Friday, a brief description would appear alongside a topic, explaining why it was trending. However, Facebook removed the editor-written descriptions with the algorithm switch.
After the change, Facebook users could still hover above a trending topic and get a pop-up description. The headline for the one for Kelly read: "BREAKING: Fox News Exposes Traitor Megyn Kelly, Kicks Her Out For Backing Hillary."
It was followed by a typo-filled description that read, "The Klelly [sic] File's ratings have even fallen behind Maddow Show on MSNB [sic]." Those errors alone would've led human editors to question the legitimacy of the piece, but the story was posted regardless.
When rolling out the automated algorithm last Friday, Facebook explained "a search results page will include the news sources that are covering it, posts discussing it and an automatically selected original news story with an excerpt pulled directly from the top article itself." In this case, the original news story was factually incorrect.
The Kelly post was reportedly in the Trending section for several hours before it was removed. Facebook has yet to respond to the error.
The removal of human editors and hand-written descriptions last week came after Gizmodo reported stories with a conservative tone or subject were being suppressed from the Trending section back in May. CEO Mark Zuckerberg responded, "We take this report very seriously and are conducting a full investigation to ensure our teams upheld the integrity of this product." Following the investigation of political bias, Zuckerberg said, "We have found no evidence that this report is true." Zuckerberg also met with conservatives, including radio host Glenn Beck and Donald Trump policy advisor Barry Bennett, to discuss "Trending."

Facebook's automated trending section posts fake Megyn Kelly story


DULUTH, Minn.—Minnesota's bear population appears to be on the increase, Department of Natural Resources officials say, and the state has issued a few more permits this year than in recent years.
The state's black bear season opens Thursday and will continue through Oct. 16.
Minnesota's bear population is estimated at 12,000 to 15,000, said Dave Garshelis, DNR bear project leader. A total of 3,850 permits have been issued for the main bear range, the so-called "quota zone." That's up from 3,700 last year. Outside of that zone, hunters may buy bear licenses over the counter. Minnesota hunters typically must wait about three years before they're selected to receive a bear license in the state's lottery.
Last year, hunters took 1,971 bears, up from 1,627 in 2014 and 1,866 in 2013.
Hunters' success will be driven, as always, by how much natural food — berries, hazelnuts and acorns — is available in the woods. Bears are less apt to come to hunters' baits when natural foods are more plentiful.
Garshelis said the abundance of dogwood berries, blackberries, hazelnuts and other foods appears to be good. But he said those foods seem to have peaked early and may be on the decline now, which could bode well for hunters.
Dennis Udovich, a bear guide from Greaney, Minn., concurred with that assessment.
"We've got an exceptional crop of plums, lots of hazelnuts and chokecherries," said Udovich, president of the Minnesota Bear Guides Association, on Tuesday. "Right now, I'm excited. Every bait was hit today. They're hitting 'em pretty hard. There's lots of natural foods, but what we're doing is working pretty well."
Possible turnaround
The median age of harvested female bears in Minnesota was about 4 in the early 1990s, 3 years old in the early 2000s, and only 2.5 years in the past few hunting seasons, Garshelis said. Concurrently, the population was estimated to have declined from a high of 20,000 to 25,000 in the mid-1990s to its current level.
But last year, for the first time in many years, the median age of bears taken by hunters increased.
"That's a promising sign that the population may be rebounding," Garshelis said, and he said the median age of male bears killed last fall also was slightly higher than previous years — though he cautioned that one year's data doesn't indicate a trend.
The DNR estimates the age of harvested bears by counting rings in the bear teeth submitted by hunters.
Another interesting statistic in last fall's harvest of 1,971 bears is that 66 percent were males — the highest of any bear harvest since the establishment of bear license quotas in 1982. Just 666 females were taken, Garshelis said.
"It's a good thing in terms of allowing the population to increase," Garshelis said. "But we don't fully understand it."
Usually, male bears make up about 61 to 62 percent of the harvest, he said.
'Nuisance' bears
The number of bear permits was increased this fall primarily because of so-called "nuisance" bear activity in some areas, particularly west of Brainerd, Garshelis said. In that area, where demand for bear licenses is high, most hunters had been waiting at least four years to be selected for a license in the DNR's lottery. The number of permits in that zone was raised from 150 to 250, Garshelis said.
Also, the number of permits was increased in zone 51, west of Duluth, including parts of St. Louis, Aitkin and Carlton counties.
DNR asks hunters not to shoot research bears
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is asking hunters to avoid shooting research bears that are marked with large, colorful ear tags and have radio collars. While it is not illegal to shoot a research bear, the loss of those bears compromises the efforts of biologists to better understand the species' population dynamics.
Researchers with the DNR are monitoring about 30 radio-collared bears, most of them in the Chippewa National Forest between Grand Rapids and Bigfork. Others are near the Cloquet Forestry Station, in and around Camp Ripley, and in northwestern Minnesota, especially near Thief Lake Wildlife Management Area and the Agassiz National Wildlife Refuge.
"We're asking hunters not to shoot these valuable research bears. As researchers, we've already spent a great deal of time and expense monitoring these bears," said Dave Garshelis, DNR bear project leader. "We gain unique information from radio-collared bears over the long-term that aids in monitoring and managing the bear population."