Tuesday morning news: October 15, 2019

White House orders Turkey sanctions » The Trump administration has announced new sanctions against Turkey following its assault on Kurdish fighters in northern Syria.

Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin…

MNUCHIN: Effective immediately, we have sanctioned three of the ministers, the Minister of Defense, the Minister of Interior, and the Minister of Energy. 

He said the United States has also sanctioned Turkey’s departments of defense and energy. 

That follows news that Kurdish forces are now allied with the Syrian government. Syrian forces are moving into northern Syria—raising fears the bloodshed is about to get much worse. 

Vice President Mike Pence said Monday that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan reached out to President Trump … and that the two have spoken directly.

PENCE: President Trump communicated to him very clearly that the United States of America wants Turkey to stop the invasion, to implement an immediate ceasefire, and to begin to negotiate with the Kurdish forces in Syria to bring an end to the violence. 

President Trump also announced on Monday that he’s halting trade negotiations with Turkey and raising steel tariffs. 

So far Turkey has shown no signs of relenting.

Family of Texas woman killed by police calls for accountability » Prosecutors on Monday charged a white Fort Worth police officer with murder. They say he shot and killed an African-American woman inside her home without justification.  

Interim Police Chief Ed Kraus said the officer, 34-year-old Aaron Dean, resigned after the shooting. And he said there’s no doubt that he “acted inappropriately.” 

KRAUS: Had the officer not resigned, I would have fired him for violations of several policies, including our use of force policy, our deescalation policy, and unprofessional conduct. 

The incident happened on Saturday when police arrived at 28-year-old Atatiania Jefferson’s house for a wellness check. A neighbor had called police to report that her front door had been left open for several hours. Family members said Jefferson thought she heard a prowler and went to the window to check. Moments later, Dean allegedly shot her through her bedroom window. 

A police statement said that Dean said he perceived a threat, but it’s not clear why. Police spokesman Lt. Brandon O’Neil said the officer called for her to raise her hands before firing the shot. However…

O’NEIL:  The officer did not announce that he was a police officer prior to shooting. What the officer observed and why he did not announce police will be addressed as the investigation continues. 

Family members say Jefferson was playing video games with her 8-year-old nephew when officers arrived. And the boy was in the room when the police bullet struck her through the window. 

Calif law to require abortion pills at public universities » Pro-life activists say a new California law will turn campus health centers at public universities into abortion facilities. WORLD Radio intern Michelle Schlavin explains.

MICHELLE SCHLAVIN, REPORTER: California Governor Gavin Newsom signed the bill into law on Friday. It’s the first of its kind in the nation. It requires public universities to offer abortion-inducing pills at their health centers starting in 2023.

Taxpayers and students will likely be footing part of the bill. The California Department of Finance says private grants will pay for most but not all of the costs associated with the program. 

Doctors often prescribe the abortion pill to women who are less than 10 weeks pregnant.

Kristin Hawkins is president of Students for Life of America. She calls the law “Planned Parenthood’s new money-making machine.” Hawkins says the pill could cause other medical issues for women that most university health centers are not equipped to handle.

Reporting for WORLD Radio, I’m Michelle Schlavin.

Catalan leaders jailed for sedition » AUDIO: [Sound of demonstrators in Barcelona]

Demonstrators poured into the streets of Barcelona on Monday—many waving flags and blocking traffic…

AUDIO: [Sound of demonstrators in Barcelona]

Protesters gathered after the Spanish Supreme Court sentenced nine Catalan separatist leaders to prison for nine to 13 years.  

Spanish courts convicted them for organizing a 2017 referendum in Catalonia on whether the semi-autonomous region should declare independence from Spain. Madrid deemed that vote to be illegal. 

Protesters converged on El Prat airport on Monday. They clashed with police, who fired non-lethal bullets and used batons against the protesters. A dozen people were treated for minor injuries at the scene.

Spain’s caretaker prime minister, Pedro Sánchez said the court’s verdict proved the 2017 secession attempt had become “a shipwreck.” He urged people to—quote—”set aside extremist positions.” and “embark on a new phase” for Catalonia.

Nearly 60 confirmed dead in Japan after powerful typhoon » Rescue crews in Japan dug through mudslides and searched near swollen rivers Monday as they looked for victims of a deadly typhoon. WORLD Intern John Vence reports. 

JOHN VENCE, REPORTER: Nearly 60 people are confirmed dead, with hundreds more injured. At least 17 remain missing. And those numbers are expected to climb. 

Typhoon Hagibis devastated the nation with torrents of rain and strong winds Saturday. Thousands of homes and surrounding roads are covered in mud and littered with the splintered remains of buildings.

The storm submerged a fleet of high-speed bullet trains and capsized a cargo ship miles from shore.

Tens of thousands are still without power, and remain in danger of deadly landslides. 

This storm comes on the heels of a typhoon in September that killed three and caused $7 billion worth of damage. Typhoon Hagibis is now considered the most powerful typhoon since 1958. 

Reporting for WORLD Radio, I’m John Vence.

(AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti) Catalan police officers stand guard as pro-independence demonstrators march during a protest in Sabadell, near Barcelona, Spain, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2019. 

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