US National Security Adviser Sullivan Tests Positive for COVIDhttps://english.aawsat.com/home/article/3712026/us-national-security-adviser-sullivan-tests-positive-covid
US National Security Adviser Sullivan Tests Positive for COVID
White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan addresses the daily press briefing at the White House in Washington, US October 26, 2021. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File Photo
US National Security Adviser Sullivan Tests Positive for COVID
White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan addresses the daily press briefing at the White House in Washington, US October 26, 2021. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File Photo
US national security adviser Jake Sullivan tested positive for COVID-19 on Saturday, a week before he is due to accompany President Joe Biden to a meeting of the Group of Seven advanced economies, NSC spokesperson Adrienne Watson said.
Watson said Sullivan has not been in close contact with Biden, and is asymptomatic.
The White House announced last week that Biden would travel to southern Germany for the G7 summit and continue on to Spain for a NATO summit in late June.
It was not immediately clear whether the positive test would affect Sullivan's travel plans.
A photo released by the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) shows North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (C), accompanied by his daughter Kim Ju Ae (R), overseeing a test-fire of a large-caliber multiple-rocket launcher system at an unknown location in North Korea, 27 January 2026 (issued 28 January 2026). EPA/KCNA EDITORIAL USE ONLY
NKorea Says its Recent Live-fire Drill Demonstrated 'Huge Destructive Power'
A photo released by the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) shows North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (C), accompanied by his daughter Kim Ju Ae (R), overseeing a test-fire of a large-caliber multiple-rocket launcher system at an unknown location in North Korea, 27 January 2026 (issued 28 January 2026). EPA/KCNA EDITORIAL USE ONLY
North Korea said Monday it conducted a joint live-fire drill involving missiles, artillery and drones that it claimed demonstrated “huge destructive power."
The test including firing different types of weapons simultaneously, likely aimed at acquiring the ability to overwhelm South Korean and US air defenses.
Experts say North Korea is not slowing its testing activities even after US President Donald Trump recently scaled back a military exercise with South Korea in an apparent effort to revive diplomacy with leader Kim Jong Un.
According to The Associated Press, the North's official Korean Central News Agency said Saturday's drill was meant to practice the operations of an integrated weapons control system.
This picture taken on April 19, 2026 and released by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on April 20, 2026 shows the test-fire of a ballistic missile at an undisclosed location in North Korea. (Photo by KCNA VIA KNS / AFP)
South Korea’s military earlier said it detected short-range ballistic missile launches from North Korea’s eastern coastal Wonsan area on Saturday morning.
After observing the firing drill, North Korean Marshal Pak Jong Chon said the drill would “improve the level of specialization to bring down the enemy’s armed forces organizationally and structurally once an order is issued.”
He added that the weapons systems mobilized demonstrated “the huge destructive power of concentrated fire,” according to KCNA.
It’s extremely difficult to independently verify North Korean claims on its weapons tests. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said several missiles fired Saturday each flew about 250 kilometers (155 miles) toward North Korea’s eastern waters.
The flight distances signal that the weapons are designed to strike targets in South Korea including US military bases.
The firing drill, which included North Korea’s first public ballistic missile launches in about three weeks, came a day after the United States, South Korea and Japan wrapped up a trilateral military exercise that North Korea views as a provocation.
In August, Trump ordered the Pentagon to “substantially reduce” a major bilateral military exercise with South Korea, citing what he called a good relationship with Kim. But North Korea rebuffed Trump’s overture, saying that shortening the drill didn't change its “provocative, aggressive nature.”
The Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise eventually ended six days earlier than originally scheduled.
Buoyed by his advancing nuclear arsenal and deepened ties with Russia and China, experts say Kim likely thinks he has greater leverage in possible diplomacy with the US than when he first met Trump in 2018-2019.
Kim said earlier this year that he could return to talks if the US drops its “hostile policy” against his country and respects what he calls the North’s status as a nuclear state.
Amazon Pauses Operations with 21 Air after Miami Cargo Plane Crashhttps://english.aawsat.com/world/5317964-amazon-pauses-operations-21-air-after-miami-cargo-plane-crash
FILE PHOTO: A damaged car next to the wreckage of an Amazon Prime Air cargo plane overran a runway at Miami International Airport, in Miami, Florida, US, in this screengrab obtained from a handout video released on September 8, 2026. National Transportation Safety Board/Handout via REUTERS
Amazon Pauses Operations with 21 Air after Miami Cargo Plane Crash
FILE PHOTO: A damaged car next to the wreckage of an Amazon Prime Air cargo plane overran a runway at Miami International Airport, in Miami, Florida, US, in this screengrab obtained from a handout video released on September 8, 2026. National Transportation Safety Board/Handout via REUTERS
Amazon said on Sunday it was pausing operations with Miami-based 21 Air, the cargo carrier that operated the aircraft for Amazon Air that crashed in Miamilast weekend, killing five people.
"After the tragic incident last weekend, we've spent time supporting the investigation and reviewing some of the surrounding circumstances, and we’ve decided to pause our operations with 21 Air, the operator of Flight 7598," Amazon spokesperson Kelly Nantel said in a statement to Reuters.
"We'll continue working to support the investigation and everyone affected."
Last weekend, the 21 Air-operated cargo flight for Amazon Air, which is Amazon's cargo logistics network, overran a runway while landing at Miami International Airport and struck multiple vehicles on the ground, officials said.
The aircraft was a 32-year-old Boeing 767-300 freighter that had operated as a passenger jet for various airlines from 1994 to 2015, according to Flightradar24, a flight tracking service.
The National Transportation Safety Board, which is investigating the crash, said last week the pilots of the 21 Air-operated plane considered aborting the landing after the aircraft touched down, citing evidence from a flight data recorder.
The NTSB also said one pilot cautioned that they were flying "too fast" just over a minute before touching down on the runway that they overran.
The cargo plane was on its third flight of the day, coming from San Juan, Puerto Rico. It had flown from Cincinnati to Miami and from Miami to San Juan earlier before the crash.
"We remain focused on supporting the families and loved ones who were impacted by this accident, as well as working closely with the NTSB and all our partners, like Amazon, as the investigation continues. We are confident in our safety policies, procedures and training," 21 Air said in a statement to Reuters.
FILED - 27 December 2011, ---, --: FILE PHOTO - A satellite picture provided by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), shows the Arabian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz, and the Gulf of Oman. Photo: -/The Visible Earth/NASA/dpa
Hormuz Shipping Traffic Remains Below 10-day Average
FILED - 27 December 2011, ---, --: FILE PHOTO - A satellite picture provided by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), shows the Arabian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz, and the Gulf of Oman. Photo: -/The Visible Earth/NASA/dpa
Commodity vessel transits through the Strait of Hormuz fell to a single digit per day, preliminary shiptracking data showed on Monday, well below a 10-day average of 14.
On Saturday and Sunday, four vessels exited the Gulf through the strait, including a Handysize vessel sailing in ballast, a Handy vessel carrying LPG, a Supramax carrying fertilizer and a Suezmax laden with crude or condensate.
Ten vessels entered the Gulf, including a mini-bulker carrying minor bulk commodities, a Handymax carrying grain, a Panamax carrying metals and a Supramax carrying dry bulk cargo, the data showed, according to Reuters.
The figures exclude any vessels that might have crossed the strait with their Automatic Identification System transponders turned off to avoid detection.
A vessel was struck by an unknown projectile while transiting the Strait of Hormuz, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said early on Sunday.
It said the crew's status, damage assessment and environmental impact were unknown.
Before the Iran war started on February 28, the strait typically handled about 125 large, commercial vessels per day, including tankers, gas carriers, bulkers and container vessels, accounting for some 20% of the world’s daily crude oil and liquefied natural gas supply.
A US blockade of Iran-related shipping has halted Iranian crude oil exports since it was reimposed in mid-July.
In the Bab el-Mandeb strait, 24 and 27 commodity vessels travelled through respectively on Saturday and Sunday, tracking data showed, compared with an average of around 27 ships over the last 10 days.
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