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Alaska Airlines said Monday that it was working to restore normal service after an IT outage prompted a three-hour ground stop that disrupted operations at the carrier and at affiliate Horizon Air.”We’re working to get our operations back on track today,” Alaska Airlines said in a statement to AFP.”Since Sunday evening, we’ve had more than 150 flight cancellations, including 64 cancellations today,” said the carrier, the fifth largest US airline. “Additional flight disruptions are likely as we reposition aircraft and crews.”The outage started at around 0300 GMT and ended at around 0600 GMT, according to Alaska Airlines messages on social media.The airline apologized for the disruption, saying it “will take some time to get our overall operations back to normal.”Alaska Airlines attributed the problem to the failure of “a critical piece of multi-redundant hardware at our data centers.””The safety of our flights was never compromised,” it added.The airline’s outage comes a day after Microsoft warned of “active attacks” targeting server software used by businesses to share internal documents and urged security updates. But Alaska Airlines said the outage was “not related to any other current events, and it’s not a cybersecurity event,” adding that it was working to replace hardware equipment.The grounding drew a backlash from frustrated passengers.”This is brutal. We’ve been sitting at the airport for two hours,” wrote an X user named Caleb Heimlich.”It’s 10:20 pm, people are tired, hungry, etc. This is not okay,” said another.Alaska last year also experienced an IT outage that caused disruption and delayed flights.The incident also comes more than a year after a door plug section of a new Boeing 737 Max 9 blew out during an Alaska Airlines flight between Portland, Oregon and Ontario, California.The 171 passengers and six crew members survived the rapid decompression, but the FAA temporarily grounded many Boeing 737-9 aircraft operated by US airlines.  

Notorious Ecuadoran drug trafficker Adolfo Macias, alias “Fito,” pleaded not guilty to narcotics charges in a US court Monday, a month after he was recaptured following a 2024 escape from a maximum security penitentiary.The leader of the Los Choneros gang delivered his “not guilty” plea in a Brooklyn federal court through his lawyer and with the help of an interpreter, an AFP correspondent saw.He denied seven charges, including drug trafficking and arms trafficking, punishable by 20 years to life imprisonment.”As alleged, the defendant served for years as the principal leader of Los Choneros, a notoriously violent transnational criminal organization, and was a ruthless and infamous drug and firearms trafficker,” US attorney Joseph Nocella said in a statement ahead of Monday’s hearing. “The defendant and his co-conspirators flooded the United States and other countries with drugs and used extreme measures of violence in their quest for power and control.”The US Attorney’s Office filed charges in April against Macias on suspicion of cocaine distribution, conspiracy and firearms violations, including weapons smuggling. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on X that the defendant “will soon face justice in the US for leading a vicious transnational criminal organization.”The flight transporting Macias from Ecuador landed in New York state late Sunday.The former taxi driver turned crime boss agreed in a Quito court last week to be extradited to the United States to face the charges.- Gang warfare -Macias is the first Ecuadoran extradited by his country since a new measure was written into law last year, after a referendum in which President Daniel Noboa sought approval to intensify his war on criminal gangs.Ecuador, once a peaceful haven between the world’s two top cocaine exporters Colombia and Peru, has seen violence erupt in recent years as enemy gangs with ties to Mexican and Colombian cartels vie for control.Soon after Macias escaped from prison in January 2024, Noboa declared Ecuador to be in a state of “internal armed conflict” and ordered the military and tanks into the streets to “neutralize” the gangs.  The move was criticized by human rights organizations.Los Choneros has ties to Mexico’s Sinaloa cartel, Colombia’s Gulf Clan — the world’s largest cocaine exporter — and Balkan mafias, according to the Ecuadorian Organized Crime Observatory. Macias’s escape from prison prompted widespread violence and a massive military and police recapture operation, including government “wanted” posters offering $1 million for information leading to his arrest.On June 25, Macias was found hiding in a bunker concealed under floor tiles in a luxury home in the fishing port of Manta, the center of operations for Los Choneros. Noboa declared he would be extradited, “the sooner the better.””We will gladly send him and let him answer to the North American law,” Noboa told CNN at the time.More than 70 percent of all cocaine produced in the world now passes through Ecuador’s ports, according to government data.In 2024, the country seized a record 294 tons of drugs, mainly cocaine. 

Alaska Airlines said Monday it had resumed operations after hours earlier requesting its fleet be grounded because of an “IT outage.”The airline apologized for the disruption, and urged travelers to check their flight status before heading to the airport — adding it “will take some time to get our overall operations back to normal”.The airline earlier told AFP it “experienced an IT outage that’s impacting our operations” and that it had “requested a temporary, system-wide ground stop for Alaska and Horizon Air flights until the issue is resolved.” Before the grounding was lifted, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) status page showed all destinations affected by the halt of Alaska’s mainline aircraft. “We apologize for the inconvenience,” Alaska Airlines said in a statement.”As we reposition our aircraft and crews, there will most likely be residual impacts to our flights.”In a separate statement posted on X, the airline said it has “resolved its earlier IT outage”, without giving details. The grounding drew a backlash from frustrated passengers.”This is brutal. We’ve been sitting at the airport for two hours,” wrote an X user named Caleb Heimlich in one of such replies.”It’s 10:20 pm, people are tired, hungry, etc. This is not okay,” said another.Alaska last year also experienced an IT outage that caused significant disruption to its operations, including delayed flights.At the time, multiple users complained they were facing difficulties accessing its app and website. – Active attacks? – The airline’s latest outage comes a day after Microsoft warned of “active attacks” targeting server software used by businesses to share internal documents and urged security updates. Alaska Airlines did not immediately respond to AFP’s request to clarify whether the outage was linked to the Microsoft issue.The incident also comes more than a year after a door plug section of a newly delivered Boeing 737 Max 9 blew out during an Alaska Airlines flight between Portland, Oregon and Ontario, California in January last year.The 171 passengers and six crew members survived the rapid decompression, but the FAA later grounded many Boeing 737-9 aircraft operated by US airlines.  Last month, US investigators said Boeing’s failure to provide adequate training to manufacturing staff was a driving factor in the near-catastrophic Alaska Airlines mid-flight blowout. Alaska Air Group has a fleet of 325 aircraft, comprising 238 Boeing 737 planes and 87 Embraer 175 aircraft, according to its website.

Alaska Airlines has requested a ground stop for all its mainline aircraft according to an advisory notice by the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), with the company citing an “IT outage.”The airline told AFP that on Sunday it “experienced an IT outage that’s impacting our operations” and that it “requested a temporary, system-wide ground stop for Alaska and Horizon Air flights until the issue is resolved.” The FAA status page showed all destinations being impacted by the ground stop of Alaska’s mainline aircraft.It did not immediately respond to AFP’s requests for comment.Alaska Airlines apologized for the disruption, urging travelers to check their flight status before heading to the airport.”We apologize to our guests for this inconvenience,” it said in a statement.”There will be residual impacts to our operation throughout the evening.”The statement, also posted on X, drew a backlash from what appeared to be frustrated passengers.”This is brutal. We’ve been sitting at the airport for two hours,” wrote an X user named Caleb Heimlich in reply.Another user, BetterDays, commented: “This started at 8 pm & you’re just posting this now?! Your service has gone way down over the last 5 years.”The incident comes more than a year after a door plug section of a newly delivered Boeing 737 Max 9 blew out during an Alaska Airlines flight between Portland, Oregon and Ontario, California in January last year.The 171 passengers and six crew members survived the rapid decompression, but the incident focused minds at the FAA, which grounded many Boeing 737-9 aircraft operated by US airlines.  Last month, US investigators said Boeing’s failure to provide adequate training to manufacturing staff was a driving factor in the near-catastrophic Alaska Airlines mid-flight blowout. Alaska Air Group has a fleet of 325 aircraft, comprising 238 Boeing 737 planes and 87 Embraer 175 aircraft, according to its website.

The Ecuadoran government on Sunday extradited notorious drug trafficker Adolfo Macias, alias “Fito,” to the United States, a month after he was recaptured following a 2024 escape from a maximum security penitentiary, the country’s prison authority said.The flight transporting Macias landed in New York state on Sunday night, according to the Flightradar tracking site.The US Attorney’s Office filed charges in April against Macias, the head of the “Los Choneros” gang, on suspicion of cocaine distribution, conspiracy and firearms violations, including weapons smuggling. A letter filed by the US Department of Justice on Sunday said Macias was due to appear in a federal court on Monday “for an arraignment on the Superseding Indictment in this case.”The drug lord on Sunday was removed from custody at a maximum security prison in Ecuador’s southwest “for the purposes that correspond to the extradition process,” Ecuador’s prison authority SNAI said in a statement to reporters.Macias, a former taxi driver turned crime boss, agreed in a Quito court last week to be extradited to the United States to face the charges.He is the first Ecuadoran extradited by his country since a new measure was written into law last year, after a referendum in which President Daniel Noboa sought the approval of moves to boost his war on criminal gangs.- ‘Sooner the better’ -Ecuador, once a peaceful haven between the world’s two top cocaine exporters Colombia and Peru, has seen violence erupt in recent years as enemy gangs with ties to Mexican and Colombian cartels vie for control.Soon after Macias escaped from prison in January 2024, Noboa declared Ecuador to be in a state of “internal armed conflict” and ordered the military and tanks into the streets to “neutralize” the gangs.  The move has been criticized by human rights organizations.Macias’s Los Choneros has ties to Mexico’s Sinaloa cartel, Colombia’s Gulf Clan — the world’s largest cocaine exporter — and Balkan mafias, according to the Ecuadorian Organized Crime Observatory. The crime boss’ escape from prison prompted widespread violence and a massive military and police recapture operation, including government “wanted” posters offering $1 million for information leading to his arrest.On June 25, Macias was found hiding in a bunker concealed under floor tiles in a luxury home in the fishing port of Manta, the center of operations for Los Choneros. Noboa declared he would be extradited, “the sooner the better.””We will gladly send him and let him answer to the North American law,” Noboa told CNN at the time.More than 70 percent of all cocaine produced in the world now passes through Ecuador’s ports, according to government data. In 2024, the country seized a record 294 tons of drugs, mainly cocaine. 

Donald Trump’s past ties with Jeffrey Epstein are under scrutiny after the US president slammed a Wall Street Journal report that he sent a lewd letter to the infamous sex offender as “fake news.”AFP looks at the pair’s relationship as the Trump administration also faces demands to release all government files on Epstein’s alleged crimes and his death.- Parties and private jets -Trump, then a property mogul and self-styled playboy, appears to have known Epstein, a wealthy money manager, since the 1990s.They partied together in 1992 with NFL cheerleaders at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, according to footage from NBC News, which shows the pair talking and laughing.The same year, Epstein was Trump’s only guest at a “calendar girl” competition he hosted involving more than two dozen young women, The New York Times reported. In a display of their close ties, Trump flew on Epstein’s private jet at least seven times during the 1990s, according to flight logs presented in court and cited by US media. He has denied this, and in 2024 said he was “never on Epstein’s plane.”In 1993, according to The New York Times, Trump allegedly groped swimsuit model Stacey Williams after Epstein introduced them at Trump Tower — a claim the president has refuted.Separate from his links to Epstein, Trump has been accused of sexual misconduct by around 20 women. In 2023, he was found liable of sexually abusing and defaming American journalist E. Jean Carroll in a civil trial. – ‘Terrific guy’ -Virginia Giuffre, one of Epstein’s main accusers who died by suicide this year, said she was recruited into his alleged sex-trafficking network aged 17 while working at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in 2000. Giuffre claimed she was approached there by Ghislaine Maxwell, who was jailed in 2022 for helping Epstein sexually abuse girls.Trump seemed to be on good terms with Epstein during this time, praising him as a “terrific guy” in a 2002 New York Magazine profile.”He’s a lot of fun to be with. It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side,” Trump said.In 2003, according to a Wall Street Journal report, Trump penned a letter for Epstein’s 50th birthday featuring a drawing of a naked woman, with his signature “Donald” mimicking pubic hair.His apparent message — Trump dismissed the letter as a “fake thing” — read: “Happy Birthday — and may every day be another wonderful secret.”- ‘I wasn’t a fan’ -The pair reportedly had a rupture in 2004 as they competed to buy a waterfront property in Florida, which Trump eventually snagged.The two men were hardly seen together in public from that point. Trump would later say in 2019 that they had a “falling out” and hadn’t spoken in 15 years.Shortly after the property auction, police launched a probe that saw Epstein jailed in 2008 for 13 months for soliciting an underage prostitute.He was arrested again in 2019 after he was accused of trafficking girls as young as 14 and engaging in sexual acts with them.Trump, then serving his first term as president, sought to distance himself from his old friend. “I wasn’t a fan,” he told reporters when the charges were revealed.In 2019, Epstein was found hanging dead in his prison cell awaiting trial. Authorities said he died by suicide.Since then, Trump has latched onto and fueled conspiracy theories that global elites including former president Bill Clinton were involved in Epstein’s crimes or death.Those same theories now threaten to destabilize Trump’s administration, despite his attempts to dismiss the saga as a “hoax” created by political adversaries.

The Man of Steel has staying power: “Superman” topped the North American box office for a second week running and surpassed the $400 million mark worldwide, industry estimates showed Sunday.Riding largely positive reviews, the latest big-budget action film featuring the iconic superhero from Warner Bros. and DC Studios earned $57.3 million in the United States and Canada, Exhibitor Relations said.That puts its North American take at $235 million and its international sales at $171 million — or $406 million globally.”Jurassic World: Rebirth” — the latest installment in the blockbuster dinosaur saga — also held its ground in second place at $23.4 million. Its worldwide total stands at $647.2 million.The Universal film, starring Scarlett Johansson, Jonathan Bailey and Mahershala Ali, takes viewers to an abandoned island research facility, where secrets — and genetically mutated dinosaurs — are lurking. “I Know What You Did Last Summer,” a sequel to two 1990s slasher hits that bring back the franchise’s original stars Freddie Prinze Jr and Jennifer Love Hewitt, opened in third place at a disappointing $13 million.”This is another horror series returning after a long layoff, in this case after 27 years,” said industry analyst David A. Gross of Franchise Entertainment Research.”Generally, the layoffs don’t bother these films; in fact, they get stronger… that’s not happening here.””Smurfs,” the latest film featuring the adorable blue creatures and starring Rihanna as Smurfette, opened in a lackluster fourth place with $11 million in North American ticket sales.”F1: The Movie,” the Apple and Warner Bros. flick starring Brad Pitt as a washed-up Formula One driver who gets one last shot at redemption, finished in fifth place at $9.6 million.”The current lineup in theaters is strong, with a broad selection of big titles including superheroes, action, monsters, horror and animation,” said Gross.”Superman” will soon get a new superhero rival when Marvel’s hotly anticipated “The Fantastic Four: First Steps” starring Pedro Pascal hits theaters in the coming days.Rounding out the top 10 were:”How to Train Your Dragon” ($5.4 million)”Eddington” ($4.3 million)”Elio” ($2.0 million)”Lilo & Stitch” ($1.5 million)”28 Years Later” ($1.3 million)

Polls released Sunday showed falling support among Americans for Donald Trump’s hardline measures against illegal immigration, as the Republican president celebrated six months back in power.Trump won last year’s election in part with promises to launch a historic deportation drive, riling up his base with exaggerated claims of mass violence committed by undocumented migrants, whom he referred to as “savages” and “animals.”Polls from both CNN and CBS show that Trump has lost majority support for his deportation approach.Fifty five percent of respondents feel the raids — frequently seen online in viral videos of masked, unidentified agents seizing people off the street — have gone too far, CNN said.This was up 10 percent from a similar poll in February, shortly after Trump took office.A majority — 57 percent — said they oppose plans for construction of mass detention facilities, with only 26 percent supporting the idea, CNN said.A CBS News poll found that 56 percent of Americans believe Trump’s administration is targeting migrants who do not represent a threat to public safety, up from 47 percent last month.According to the poll, only 49 percent of Americans approve of Trump’s immigration policies, down from 54 percent last month and 59 percent in February.Support remains nearly universal among Republicans, however, with 91 percent in favor of the deportations.Opposition among independents is nonetheless at 59 percent and among Democrats at 86 percent.Trump marked the six-month mark of his second presidency by heading out to his golf club in Virginia, near Washington, and posting on social media that the period was “being hailed as one of the most consequential periods of any President.””Six months is not a long time to have totally revived a major Country,” he wrote on Truth Social.”One year ago our Country was DEAD, with almost no hope of revival,” he said, adding that now the United States was the “most respected Country anywhere in the World.”In keeping with other surveys, the CBS News poll found Trump’s overall approval rating is underwater. Currently only 42 percent of Americans approve of his job, compared to 53 percent in February.

Authorities in Texas have sharply lowered the number of people still believed missing after catastrophic flooding earlier this month, saying the search continued for three individuals in the worst-hit area of the US state.At least 135 people died in central Texas, including more than three dozen children, after strong downpours sparked flash flooding at the beginning of the July 4 holiday weekend.Recovery teams have been combing the banks of the Guadalupe River in Kerr County, the epicenter of the deadly flooding, hoping to find the bodies of those still missing, which last week was estimated to be near 100.”The Kerr County Flood Disaster Joint Information Center can confirm that three individuals remain missing at this time from the July 4 flood disaster,” the county said in a statement late Saturday.”Extensive follow-up work” had determined that many individuals originally listed as missing had been verified as safe, it said.”We are profoundly grateful to the more than 1,000 local, state and federal authorities who have worked tirelessly in the wake of the devastating flood that struck our community,” said Kerrville City Manager Dalton Rice.”Thanks to their extraordinary efforts, the number of individuals previously listed as missing has dropped from over 160 to three.”Dozens of deaths were reported in other counties, with the body of at least one person in Burnet County, a local fire chief, yet to be found.The flooding of the Guadalupe River was particularly devastating for summer camps on its banks, including Camp Mystic, where 27 girls and counselors died.US President Donald Trump toured the devastation on July 11 with his wife Melania, as his administration faced questions over its response in the immediate aftermath and plans to devolve federal emergency management to states.

A driver was charged with assault after plowing into a crowd outside a Hollywood nightclub early Saturday, police said, injuring 30 people, with bystanders attacking and shooting the driver before he was detained by authorities.The suspect, identified as 29-year-old Fernando Ramirez, was charged on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) spokeswoman Rosario Cervantes told AFP.Ramirez had been “undergoing surgery” at a local hospital after suffering a gunshot wound from the incident.”He is not free to leave, he is in the custody of Los Angeles Police Department,” LAPD Commander Lillian Carranza told local news station KCAL.Ramirez had been kicked out of The Vermont Hollywood nightclub in East Hollywood before he deliberately rammed his vehicle into the crowd, US media reported.Based on reviewing a video of the incident, “when he hit bystanders, it was an intentional act,” the Los Angeles Times quoted LAPD Captain Ben Fernandes as saying.The crowd pulled Ramirez out of the car, reportedly a Nissan Versa sedan, and attacked him in the chaos that followed the car ramming, which took place around 2:00 am (0900 GMT), police detailed.Authorities were still searching for a gunman who shot and wounded the driver before fleeing on foot, Cervantes said.Footage posted on social media showed panicked people running outside the club and victims sprawled on a blood-stained sidewalk, while others sobbed nearby.”When officers arrived, they found the driver being assaulted by bystanders and determined he had sustained a gunshot wound,” a police statement said.More than 100 firefighters responded to the scene in East Hollywood.”We have 30 victims, 18 females and 12 males between the ages of the mid-twenties to early thirties,” Carranza said.Seven were in critical condition and six were in serious condition, authorities said. Ten suffered minor injuries while seven left the hospital against medical advice.- ‘Heartbreaking tragedy’ -Many clubgoers were outside when the car plowed into the crowd, a taco truck and a valet stand. “They were all standing in line going into a nightclub. There was a taco cart out there, so they were … getting some food, waiting to go in. And there’s also a valet line there,” Los Angeles Fire Department Captain Adam Van Gerpen told ABC News.”The valet podium was taken out, the taco truck was taken out, and then a large number of people were impacted by the vehicle.”At dawn Saturday, a tow truck hauled away the car, its bumper torn off. Club employees power washed the sidewalk outside The Vermont Hollywood, which had been hosting a reggae and hip-hop event.Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass called the incident “a heartbreaking tragedy.””The hearts of Angelenos are with all of the victims impacted this morning — a full investigation into what happened is underway,” she said in a statement.The Vermont Hollywood club said on social media it was “deeply saddened by the tragic incident.”The area of the car ramming is near Hollywood landmarks including Sunset Boulevard and the Walk of Fame — a sidewalk emblazoned with stars commemorating movie industry figures.