US signals openness to Assad staying put

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(CNN)The Trump administration doubled down Thursday on prioritizing the fight against ISIS over ending the Syrian civil war and getting rid of its main protagonist, President Bashar al-Assad -- a suggestion that was swiftly criticized by hawks on the Hill.

Indicating a possible shift in US policy on the war in Syria from the days of the Obama administration, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said on a trip to Turkey that the "longer-term status of President Assad will be decided by the Syrian people."

And in New York, US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley was even stronger about the Trump administration's decision not to push for Assad's departure. "Our priority is no longer to sit and focus on getting Assad out," Haley told wire reporters Thursday, according to AFP.

"Do we think he's a hindrance? Yes," she said. "Are we going to sit there and focus on getting him out? No."

However, a US official told CNN that Haley's remarks were misunderstood. The official said the US ambassador was not giving Assad a free pass, and she called Assad a "war criminal" in an appearance Wednesday at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York City.

The official explained to CNN that the priorities of the administration now are not exclusively about Assad, but also defeating ISIS, stopping the spread of Iran's influence, protecting US allies in the region and trying to end the Syrian civil war.

If the US does definitively abandon the policy of requiring Assad's departure -- a position articulated by the Obama administration -- it would put its policy closer in line with Russia, which supports Assad, and at odds with allies in Europe and in Turkey, where Tillerson downplayed frictions that are already straining that alliance.

The comments drew heavy criticism from Sens. John McCain and Lindsey Graham, Republicans who have long advocated for an increased US military presence in Syria against Assad and his Russian allies.

"This overlooks the tragic reality that the Syrian people cannot decide the fate of Assad or the future of their country when they are being slaughtered by Assad's barrel bombs," Arizona's McCain said in a statement.

Meanwhile, South Carolina's Graham said, "If the press reports are accurate and the Trump Administration is no longer focusing on removing Assad, I fear it will be the biggest mistake since President Obama failed to act after drawing a red line against Assad's use of chemical weapons."

In Turkey, Tillerson's fledgling diplomatic skills were put to the test in his most challenging diplomatic mission since taking office. He met for two hours behind closed doors with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on the eve of a massive push against ISIS' Syrian stronghold of Raqqa. Tillerson's goal was to persuade Erdogan that the Kurds -- the Turks' sworn enemy -- are critical partners in the effort to defeat the terror organization.

The top US diplomat dodged questions at the news conference about US support for the Kurdish militia YPG, which the US considers the strongest fighters to go after ISIS, but said the two countries discussed "alternatives." His Turkish counterpart signaled that US support for the YPG remains one of a few stumbling blocks in US-Turkey relations.

"What we discussed today are options that are available to us," Tillerson said after a meeting with Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu. "They are difficult options. Let me be very frank. It isn't easy. They are difficult choices that have to be made."

Cavusoglu decried the US insistence on seeing Turkish Kurds at war with Turkey as separate from the YPG militia in Syria, which has received arms and support from Washington. He told reporters, "It is a sorrow for us that this sort of support has been extended (by the US to the YPG)."

A senior State Department official told CNN before the talks that Tillerson's message to Erdogan would be that the US is committed to working with the Kurds in the offensive against Raqqa.

Tillerson was set to tell the Turks that "we are going to do what we have to do," the official said. "It's not a happy message and they aren't going to like it, but this is what he has to tell them." The official continued that Tillerson also told them that "our priority is the long-term relationship with the Turks -- but at the moment, the emerging crisis requires us to use the folks who will fight."

Cavusoglu said that US support for the Kurdish forces belonging to the YPG militia, which it considers terrorists, has saddened Turkey and harmed efforts to reset the US-Turkey relationship after the election of President Donald Trump.

"We can fight Daesh together," Mr. Cavusoglu said, using the Arabic word for ISIS. But he added that "it is not correct to fight against one terrorist organization while co-operating with another."

He said there was no difference between the YPG militias working with the United States in Syria and the PKK, a group that has launched terror attacks against Turkey and which the US has branded a terrorist organization. While Tillerson noted Turkey had suffered attacks at the hands of PKK, he did not equate the group with the YPG.

Kurds aren't the only source of friction in the US relationship with Turkey, a NATO ally that hosts two US military bases.

Key among them is that the US has yet to hand over the Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen, a US resident whom Erdogan accuses of orchestrating a coup attempt last summer.

Turkey's demand that Washington extradite Gulen, whom Turkey blames for leading last year's failed coup, loomed over Tillerson's talks. Gulen denies involvement in the attempt.

Cavusoglu said Turkey provided ample evidence to the US and said that Attorney General Jeff Sessions had pledged to "evaluate the documents meticulously." He said Turkey wants to see "concrete steps," and asked for the US to issue a provisional arrest warrant for Gulen while the extradition process moves forward

"We need to take mutual steps to put relations with the United States back on track," he said.

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Sleep loss ‘starts arguments at work’ – BBC News

Kelly says DHS won’t separate families at the border

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Washington (CNN)US Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly on Wednesday assured Senate Democrats he doesn't intend to separate mothers and children at the border -- apparently walking back an earlier statement he made that such a policy could deter people from entering the country illegally.

Kelly met with Senate Democrats Wednesday afternoon for more than an hour on Capitol Hill to discuss the administration's immigration policy, a meeting that some members left in "frustration" but others called "positive." Kelly also said he intends to hold a conference this spring on improving conditions in Central America, and discussed the status of deferred action recipients in the wide-ranging meeting.

In response to a question from California Sen. Dianne Feinstein, Kelly said that DHS wouldn't be separating mothers and children at the border unless there was an extenuating reason, such as illness, according to several Democrats who attended the meeting.

Kelly later told CNN that characterization was fair, "unless there is some other consideration." He denied that he had been considering a policy to separate families.

"I don't think I have said that," Kelly said. "Wolf Blitzer first asked me about this and I said everything's on the table, we might under certain circumstances do that, but I don't think I've ever said as a deterrent or something like that."

Earlier this month, Kelly told Blitzer that he was considering the policy as a deterrent; a senior DHS official also confirmed it.

"Yes I'm considering (that), in order to deter more movement along this terribly dangerous network," Kelly said at the time. "I am considering exactly that. They will be well cared for as we deal with their parents. ... It's more important to me, Wolf, to try to keep people off of this awful network."

Feinstein called the meeting satisfying, and said she got assurances on the families issue as well as assurances that there wouldn't be sweeps of undocumented agricultural workers in California unless they had another violation.

Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Illinois, who organized the meeting, called it "positive" and said it offered him more "clarity," though "what remains to be seen is what will happen next." The lawmakers leaving the meeting said they each had a turn to present the secretary with their concerns and cases from their district.

Durbin said he felt there was a "better line of communication with the secretary."

But not all lawmakers left satisfied.

"I leave with frustration," said Sen. Kamala Harris, D-California, who has raised concerns previously about immigration enforcement actions in her state.

"'Frustration' would be a good lead," said Sen. Patty Murray, D-Washington. "He stated he was not separating children from their parents, but that's not been our experience."

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said he presented Kelly with several "inhumane" cases he wanted more information on, and added that he would await Kelly's answers. One such case was a father arrested while on his way to drop off his children at school.

"I asked questions. There's still answers to come," said Vermont Sen. Patrick Leahy.

Speaking with reporters after the meeting, Kelly said his primary focus is deterring migrants from participating in a smuggling pipeline that takes their life savings, is "incredibly dangerous," has a "super high" rate of abuse for women and in which "young men are siphoned off" to work for the cartels.

"Please, please, please report that what we're trying to do is save lives, by encouraging people not to get on that network," Kelly said. "By the same token, we're working -- and I was briefing the President about this today -- we're working with the Central American republics ... with their presidents, with their religious leaders, with their business leaders to have a conference. ... So we're trying to improve the state of life in the Central American republics so the people don't have to come up here."

He said the Alliance for Prosperity conference would be in Miami "before the summer" and that Mexico has volunteered to cohost, with Canada and Colombia looking to be observers. Kelly said the conference would be run by the State Department.

Kelly categorically ruled out that his department had arrested any eligible Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals recipient, saying any crimes committed nullify DACA.

"By definition, they're no longer DACA if they have a violation. The DACA status is a commitment not only by the government toward the DACA person or the so-called Dreamer, but by that person to obey the law. And some of them don't. We have not picked up -- I don't care what you read or what people say -- we have not in my time picked up someone who is covered by DACA."

Advocacy groups have accused the government of detaining DACA recipients who had not committed any crimes. Several who were detained have since been released.

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Muslim family’s home vandalized; Quran torn, green cards stolen

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(CNN)A Muslim family returned from a weekend getaway to find their home vandalized.

Shoaib and Mahrukh -- who asked to be identified only by their first names -- and their two children were alarmed to find their Alexandria, Virginia, apartment burglarized. Their Quran was torn into pieces, anti-Muslim hate graffiti was written on the wall, and valuables, ranging from their passports with green cards to computers and gold jewelry they had received as wedding gifts, had been stolen.

"We were in pure shock and disbelief," Shoaib said. "I remember thinking when am I going to wake up from this nightmare."

The family, who immigrated from Pakistan last year, had been visiting relatives in New York when they learned what had happened.

According to the Fairfax County Police Department report, a maintenance employee entered the apartment to do work while the family was away and found it in disarray. It was broken into sometime between March 24 and March 27.

Shoaib does not believe they were targeted for their religion, but rather because their apartment has no cameras surveilling it. "I think that only once they came in they realized Muslims live here and decided to rub it in our faces," he said.

The incident is under investigation as a burglary and bias-related incident. Police are hopeful that a number of tips they have received will pan out, Officer Tawny Wright said.

The same Fairfax police report includes another bias-related incident in the county on the same day, about 9 miles away, in which swastikas were spray painted inside a building and on trees.

After learning of the apartment incident, Rebecca Link, a Fairfax County native, decided to open a GoFundMe page on Shoaib and Mahrukh's behalf. "I couldn't believe it. There has been so much hateful stuff in the news and suddenly it hit home," Link said.

The initiative raised over $7,000 in its first 24 hours, prompting Shoaib to express his gratitude. "Yesterday we felt extremely lonely and frightened but seeing how quickly and overwhelming people of all backgrounds have come together to show support has restored our faith in America and in humanity more than ever," he wrote on the page.

The family will not return to live in the ransacked apartment, because the notion that someone went through their belongings there had left them with a "disturbing feeling," Shoaib said.

However, he added thatthey will look for another place in the same county, which they believe is safe and welcoming. "It's important not to let these kinds of things have an impact on you because that's when hatred wins," Shoaib said. "We are not willing to let that happen. We are not running away."

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How the Red Sox stadium upgrade revamped Boston neighborhood

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(CNN)It's one of the most enduring symbols of baseball in America -- if not in the world.

Opened in 1912, Fenway Park stands in the heart of Boston and has been home to the Boston Red Sox, the city's Major League Baseball team, ever since.

For years, the sporting ground hosted countless games. It's where the Red Sox won the World Series in 1918.

They went on to win multiple World Series, but didn't have another victory in their home ground at Fenway Park until almost a century later in 2013.

Located in the Fenway-Kenmore neighborhood -- known as "The Fenway" -- it has become major sporting landmark, attracting baseball fans worldwide.

But when ownership of the Red Sox was transferred from the Jean R. Yawkey Trust to magnates John Henry, Tom Werner and Larry Lucchino at the turn of the millennium, it became clear that the sports ground was urgently in need of a revamp.

"When we arrived in 2002, major investment was needed -- in terms of water issues, structural issues, seating capacity issues, player amenity issues," Sam Kennedy, president of the Red Sox, tells CNN.

They were faced with a tough dilemma: should they tear the stadium down, or save and improve it?

They decided to give the iconic grounds an expensive upgrade.

"$300 million is a lot of money, but it needed to be invested," Kennedy tells CNN.

The transformation

In 2006, the revamp of Fenway Park began.

New seating, as well as clubhouses for premium ticket holders, were added. A series of renovations from 2002 onwards means capacity has been increased to 37,731.

An exciting addition was made to the iconic "Green Monster" -- a 37 feet (11.3 meters) high wall that functions as a target for right-handed baseball players.

Where there once stood a net to catch home run balls, seats were added, creating a unique view of America's most beloved ballpark.

The grounds were also adapted to host other sporting events and concerts -- rock gods Aerosmith and The Rolling Stones have graced the venue, with Lady Gaga set to perform in September.

In 2016, Fenway Park saw 2,955,434 visitors to Red Sox games alone -- an 11.5% rise from 2002.

Revival of an area

The revamp didn't simply mean a new lease on life for the sports ground -- it had a far-reaching effect on the Fenway area, too.

"Once we committed to staying, businesses, developers, city planners knew there would continue to be three million people coming into this neighborhood each and every baseball season," Kennedy says.

Steve Samuels, who helms real estate development firm Samuels & Associates, is building a luxury condo in The Fenway -- a 32-story tower named Pierce Boston.

The developer has been actively building in the area for almost two decades -- though the unveiling of this luxury residence is a sign of the times.

"With the Fenway's transformation into a thriving hub for people to live, work, and play, and the public's enthusiastic response to what we've created, we felt that now was the time to offer people a place to purchase a luxury product," Samuels tells CNN.

Before Samuels began developing the Fenway in 1999 -- just a few years before major revamps began at Fenway Park -- the area mainly consisted of "fast food joints and car repair shops", he says.

There was already a residential community in place, he says, but there weren't lifestyle amenities like dining options.

These are integral to "establishing and solidifying a neigborhood".

"When we first got started, there wasn't anybody else investing in the neighborhood in a meaningful way," he adds.

"Part of that was just the logistics of compiling all the parcels of land -- we had to piece it all together to make it work. And there was also a sense that people didn't appreciate the potential of the area that has now been realized."

Rise in value

Piece Boston, which is set to open in 2018, has already sold 50% of its units at an average cost of $1,600 per square meter.

The median sales price of a property in Fenway-Kenmore have risen from $305,000 in April 2011 to $710,000 in April 2015, according to online real estate resource Trulia.

The annual number of overseas visitors to Boston between 2005/2006 and 2015 increased by 61.4%, according to the US National Travel and Tourism Office.

"The changes they implemented have complemented what we already created in the area over the past 18 years," Samuels says.

In with the old

Amid such rapid development, Samuels is conscious of preserving the fabric of the neighborhood.

Instead of tearing down old buildings and replacing them with soulless office units, many of his ventures are run out of restored buildings.

Casual eatery Tasty Burger, for example, is housed in an old gas station.

"Glitz is actually not a word that we want to associate with the Fenway. In fact, I'd say we are the opposite of glitz," Samuels tells CNN.

"We've worked really hard to keep the history and character of the neighborhood ... and celebrate the roots that were already here."

With so much development underway he thinks the Fenway is becoming a "new hub for startups in Boston".

"We are encouraged by all the great business putting down roots in the area."

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Google’s big ad problem reaches Australia

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