Reuters News Now

Top News

China’s rocket start-ups go small in age of ‘shoebox’ satellites. From the cheap, disposable boosters to reusable rockets more like SpaceX’s Falcon 9, Chinese small-rocket companies are approaching inexpensive launches in different ways. More coverage on the Race for Space.

Kim Jong Un warns of a return to tension. North Korean leader told Russian President Vladimir Putin peace and security on the Korean peninsula depended on the United States, warning that a state of hostility could easily return, North Korean media said. The demotion of Kim Yong Chol, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s point man for nuclear talks with the United States, signals that long-time diplomats who had been sidelined from the process will return to center-stage, diplomatic sources in Seoul and regional experts said.

Guarded by soldiers, defiant Sri Lankan Muslims pray for peace. As the Islamic call to prayer echoed through the subdued streets of Sri Lanka’s capital Colombo, crowds of Muslims were greeted with an unusual sight: their golden-domed Mosque flanked by soldiers armed with assault rifles. Fears of retaliatory sectarian violence have already caused Muslim communities to flee their homes amid bomb scares, lockdowns and security sweeps. The Sri Lankan government said nine homegrown, well-educated suicide bombers carried out the attacks, eight of whom had been identified. One was a woman. Police are trying to track down 140 people believed linked to Islamic State, which has claimed responsibility for the Easter Sunday suicide bombings, President Maithripala Sirisena said.

U.S. measles outbreak triggers quarantine at two Los Angeles universities. A nationwide measles outbreak has led health officials to quarantine dozens of people at two Los Angeles universities, officials said on Thursday. The United States has confirmed 695 measles cases so far this year, the highest level since the country declared it had eliminated the virus in 2000, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Wednesday. Many of the cases occurred in the states of New York and Washington.

Politics

Federal judge blocks new Trump abortion rule for health clinics. A judge in Washington state blocked a Trump administration rule that would prohibit taxpayer-funded family planning clinics from referring patients to abortion providers. “Today’s ruling ensures that clinics across the nation can remain open and continue to provide quality, unbiased healthcare to women,” Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson said in a statement announcing the decision.

U.S. judges order Michigan to revamp Republican-drawn districts in gerrymandering case. A panel of federal judges ordered Michigan’s Republican-controlled legislature to redraw nearly three dozen state and U.S. congressional districts, ruling that the existing lines illegally dilute the power of Democratic voters. The decision gives lawmakers until Aug. 1 to approve new district maps, which would need to be signed by Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer.

Tech

Uber unveiled terms for its initial public offering on Friday, telling investors the ride-hailing company and insiders would seek to sell as much as $10.35 billion in stock at a valuation of up to $91.5 billion. Uber also said PayPal had agreed to purchase $500 million of stock in a private placement at the price the IPO eventually settles at.

The armed wing of Hamas is using increasingly complex methods of raising funds via bitcoin. The Gaza-based Izz el-Deen al-Qassam Brigades, which is proscribed by the United States and the European Union, has been calling on its supporters to donate using the digital currency in a fundraising campaign announced online in late January. Originally, it asked donors to send bitcoin to a single digital address, or wallet. However, according to research shared with Reuters by leading blockchain analysis firm Elliptic, in recent weeks it has changed the mechanism, with its website generating a new digital wallet with every transaction.

Huawei hopes for Britain-like solution in New Zealand 5G bid. China’s Huawei said Britain’s decision to allow the firm a restricted role in building parts of its next-generation telecoms network was the kind of solution it was hoping for in New Zealand, where it has been blocked from 5G plans. Britain will ban Huawei from all core parts of the 5G network but give it some access to non-core parts, sources have told Reuters. In New Zealand, a member of the Five Eyes intelligence sharing network that includes the U.S., the Government Communications Security Bureau in November turned down an initial request from local telecommunication firm Spark to include Huawei equipment in its 5G network, but later gave the operator options to mitigate national security concerns.