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AMSTERDAM, March 19 (Reuters) - A metal fragment from the crash site of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 matches a surface-to-air BUK rocket, a Dutch broadcaster said on Thursday, supporting a theory that the plane was downed by pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine.
The fragment was recovered by a Dutch journalist from the village of Hrabove several months ago near to where the plane was brought down last July, killing all 298 passengers and crew.
Dutch broadcaster RTL said it had had the shrapnel tested by international forensic experts, including defense analysts IHS Jane's in London, who said it matched the explosive charge of a BUK, a Russian-made anti-aircraft missile system.
The downing of the plane was a turning point in the conflict in Ukraine, which pits the separatists against Kiev's forces. Kiev and its Western supporters blamed the rebels for the incident and it stiffened the resolve of Western governments to impose sanctions against both leading separatists and Moscow.
Russia has argued that the airplane was downed by the Ukrainian military.
The Dutch Safety Board, which is investigating the cause of the crash, said in a reaction that its investigation was in "full progress and focuses on many more sources than only the shrapnel."
In preliminary conclusions published last year, the board said the plane had been hit by high velocity projectiles but did not specify the source.
"Additional investigation material is welcome, but it is imperative that it can be indisputably shown that there is a relationship between the material and the downed aircraft," it said in a statement on Thursday. (Reporting By Anthony Deutsch; Editing by Gareth Jones)

HAVANA (AP) — Old Havana's Museum of Metalwork is home to soaring colonial archways, galleries of gleaming artworks and five of the world's luckiest street dogs.

In the heat of the day, Vladimir, Canela, Aparicio, Leon and Carinoso sprawl in the grand entrance of the centuries-old stone building. At night, the animals patrol the streets with local police or sleep under the museum's grand stairway. Each wears a collar with a tattered card bearing its name, photo and the words "I live in the Museum of Metalwork."

More than a dozen state institutions ranging from Cuba's Central Bank to a public toilet have taken street dogs under their wings in recent years, assigning them official IDs and housing and granting them year-round medical care and protection from the city dogcatcher, animal protection officials say.

"I don't like dogs but I've really developed a soft spot in my heart for them," said Yarisbel Perez, a guard at a historic building overlooking Old Havana's Plaza Vieja, where two sets of guards share custody of P9 and Nina, the former named after a city bus line.

Despite the trappings of state protection, the roughly two dozen former street dogs enjoy, at most, a quasi-official status, conveyed by the frequently thin pretext that they are working security. Cuban law banning animals from workplaces contains an exemption for guard dogs and this legal cover for the ex-strays was bolstered when a dog at a government office in eastern Havana awakened a guard one night by barking when she heard someone trying to remove air conditioners from the windows, said Nora Garcia, president of the Cuban Association for the Protection of Plants and Animals.

"There was a public ceremony in which the dog received an award for saving the air conditioners," Garcia told The Associated Press.

The adoption of street dogs by some of Havana's most illustrious institutions is driven mostly, however, by the guards' love of animals and their desire for company on long shifts in a city with little crime.

Dogs in Old Havana benefit from the presence of dozens of state restaurants that donate leftovers to the animals, some of which have grown nearly obese. The dogs with Perez enjoyed an enormous dinner of half-eaten pork chops and leftover chicken and rice served on grease-soaked paper plates from a nearby restaurant.

"They don't eat bones," said Victoria Pacheco, a guard in the metalwork museum. "They eat cold cuts, mincemeat, hotdogs and liver."

The animal protection society maintains a list of 21 dogs living in state institutions, including a Communist Party gas station, offices of the Cuban Journalists' Union and a mechanical workshop of the Ministry of Public Health.

"They stay here and nothing happens to them," said Dalia Garcia, the caretaker of a public bathroom in Havana's Vedado neighborhood that's home to two former street dogs. "Everyone takes care of them, no one hits them. They don't bark and they don't bite anyone."

Other dogs haven't been so lucky, including a group snatched by the dogcatcher from Havana's University of Arts while their student protectors were home on vacation, Garcia said.

"They're official for us but the state doesn't always look so kindly on them," she said. "When they come and say there can't be any dogs here, they have to go."

Similarly sad fates await street dogs who aren't chosen for special treatment by state workers, including some of the dogs who wander, matted and skinny, through groups of quasi-official dogs on the streets of Old Havana.

"Sometimes we feel bad and we give them something to eat," Perez said. "But if we start taking care of all of them, it would get to be a zoo around here."

Ryanair, the Irish airliner famous for its ridiculously cheap ticket prices and lack of luggage space, announced Monday that the company's board has approved transatlantic flights.

The airline "would like to offer low cost flights between 12-14 European cities and 12-14 US cities. The business plan is there but it's dependent on attaining viable long haul aircraft and we estimate that's 4 to 5 years away," a Ryanair spokesperson told HuffPost via email. Ryanair confirmed that the flights to and from Europe would start at $10.

Michael O'Leary, CEO of Ryanair, has said for years that the airline would offer cheap transatlantic flights as soon as theyacquired long-haul aircrafts. Ryanair confirmed via email that they are currently "talking to manufacturers" but provided no further details.

Once the equipment is finally in place and flights begin, customers should expect to pay all sorts of additional fees on their $10 ticket. As O'Leary has previously stated, passengers will be charged extra for luggage, meals and sitting in business or first class.

(Reuters) - The Paris kosher supermarket where four hostages were killed in January by an Islamist gunman reopened on Sunday morning to "show that life is stronger than barbarity," supermarket officials and France's interior minister said.

The Jan. 9 attack on the Jewish foodstore by Amedy Coulibaly, who pledged allegiance to the Islamic State and also killed a policewoman in a separate attack, had been coordinated with two other gunmen who killed 12 people at satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo two days earlier.

"There we are, we are open again," the new manager, Laurent Mimoun, told local media, wearing a black kippa and visibly moved in the supermarket, completely refurbished and bearing no trace of the deadly attack.

"We are thinking about all the victims, this has been the driver behind reopening the shop," he said.

The shop reopened with an entirely new staff since those present at the time were still recovering from the attack on sick leave, according to shop managers.

"It is important to pay respect to the memory of those who fell under the fire of barbarity," Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said as he attended the reopening, which took place under heavy police surveillance.

France has both the largest Jewish and Muslim populations in Europe, leaving people to fear heightened tensions after the attacks and authorities to insist all would be protected.



"This foodstore reopens bravely to show that life is stronger than everything," Cazeneuve said, adding that French authorities would "do everything so that all French people can live freely."

The attack prompted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to invite French Jews to emigrate, leaving French Prime Minister Manuel Valls scrambling to reassure the community it was safe and an integral part of France.

The Hyper Cacher group said in a statement released by local media that the reopening was a sign of the resilience of France's Jewish community.

"With (this) we reaffirm that life will always be stronger than barbarity. We are more determined than ever to allow our clients to eat kosher," the statement said.

A Los Angeles police officer was arrested at the U.S.-Mexico border when he allegedly tried to smuggle a Mexican citizen into the country in the trunk of a car.

The cop and another woman were collared at the Otay Mesa, California border crossing on Saturday evening, according to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection press release. The Los Angeles Times identified the pair as LAPD officer Carlos Curiel Quezada Jr., 34, and Angelica Godinez, 31.

At about 6:30 p.m., Quezada and Godinez made it through an initial checkpoint in a 2014 Nissan Juke, according to the release. But CBP officers moved them aside for further inspection in a Z-Portal, which is an imaging device similar to an X-ray. The device found "anomalies in the rear cargo area of the vehicle," and there officers found a 26-year-old man, identified as Antanasio Perez-Avalos, who allegedly had no legal ability to enter the country.

Quezada and Godinez were charged federally with bringing a person into the country without presenting them to an immigration officer. Both pleaded not guilty. Quezada was also put on paid administrative leave pending an internal investigation with the LAPD, according to the LA Times.

The arrests come on the heels of another LAPD officer being linked to a crime, according to NBC News. Henry Solis, a rookie assigned to the department's Devonshire Division, was named Friday as a person of interest in the fatal shooting of a 23-year-old Ontario, California man.

By Sharon Begley
NEW YORK, March 17 (Reuters) - Although numerous studies have shown that regular use of aspirin or related drugs can reduce the risk of colorectal cancer by about 30 percent, scientists have found an important exception: The medicines can actually increase the risk in people with certain genetic variants, new research shows.
The result, published on Tuesday, is yet another step on the road to "precision medicine," which aims to match treatments to patients' genetic make-up. If confirmed, it could alter recommendations for preventing colorectal cancer, which is projected to kill 49,700 people in the United States this year.
In an editorial accompanying a paper in the Journal of the American Medical Association, Dr. Richard Wender of the American Cancer Society and Thomas Jefferson University called the discovery "scientifically noteworthy."
"I anticipate the time when genome sequencing to determine a lifelong (colorectal-cancer) prevention and screening strategy is a reality, although it's some time off," he said in an interview.
Physicians sometimes prescribe aspirin or other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs for patients with a history of colon polyps. For most people, however, that is not recommended, because routine use of NSAIDs can cause gastrointestinal bleeding.
The new research, funded largely by the U.S. National Institutes of Health, aggregated the results of 10 observational studies involving 17,187 people in the United States, Canada, Australia and Germany. Regular use of aspirin or NSAIDs such as ibuprofen was associated with about 17 fewer cases of colorectal cancer per 100,000 people.
But the consequences were very different for people with some DNA variants: 34.7 additional colorectal cancer cases per 100,000 people in those with variants of one gene, and 21.1 additional cases per 100,000 in people with variants of another.
The variants are found in 4 percent to 9 percent of people of European ancestry.
Since NSAIDs can have serious side effects - gastrointestinal bleeding can be fatal - "it's a high priority to see if we can use genetic information to target preventive interventions for individual patients," said Dr. Andrew Chan of Massachusetts General Hospital, senior researcher on the 53-author paper.
It is too soon to recommend genetic screening to guide decisions on NSAIDs for cancer prevention, at least until the results are confirmed, Chan said, "but this is a first step in that direction and toward precision medicine." (Reporting by Sharon Begley; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn)

Every time I stop and withdraw cash from an ATM or use my credit card to buy something online, I wonder how many people in Asia have access to such services. In fact, these simple transactions are beyond the reach of 45 percent of adults in East Asia and the Pacific alone. They are excluded from the formal financial system and will remain so until they open a bank account.

To ensure ongoing economic growth in Asia and for the poorest to have a chance to benefit from the region's growing prosperity, we must prioritize bringing financial services readily and cheaply to the "unbanked".

Across the region, governments are starting to realize the benefits of giving the poor access to basic banking services. Conditional cash transfers -- an increasingly effective and popular way of targeting subsidies to those who need it -- are best transferred via individual bank accounts, avoiding middle men. In India, for example, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has managed to provide 75 million people with savings accounts in only six months, mobilizing up to $1.7 billion in savings that were previously outside the formal financial system.

But financial inclusion is much more than just handing out bank accounts, making loans, and encouraging financially illiterate people to put their life savings in the hands of strangers. Without the right market infrastructure, access to credit will never be affordable -- or safe -- enough for those who need it the most, and will not become a true game-changer for development in Asia and the Pacific. So moving forward, there are three ways we can make progress on serving the region's huge unbanked population.

1. Expand consumer data to boost true risk-based lending.

Finding and using traditional data -- basic information like the amount of bank loans, mortgages, credit cards, and retail credit -- is relatively easy for banks and financial institutions. But so-called "alternative data" such as education loans, utility payments, and microfinance loans, which provide a more comprehensive view of a consumer's debt levels and ability to repay, is much harder to harvest.

With more alternative data, banks would be better able to assess would-be borrower's credit risk. This would make them more willing to extend credit to those they may have discounted previously. At the same time, a fuller credit picture would prevent borrowers from taking on debt they cannot repay. This has been demonstrated in the US where use of alternative data in risk assessment has helped reduce account arrears, and improved cash flow to give consumers much-needed liquidity.

Greater use of alternative data must, of course, be accompanied by adequate protection of consumer rights so that customers are reassured that personal information remains private.

2. Maximize the range of collateral to back secured transactions.

The more collateral that is available, the better the chances of securing a bank loan. That's why borrowers should be able to present not just physical collateral but also "reputational" collateral where good past credit history, for one, can be used as an asset.

Governments can help expand collateral-based lending by developing user-friendly electronic registries to log moveable assets like raw materials or machinery. This is already reaping benefits in the Solomon Islands, where a new Secured Transactions Act and online business registration system is helping companies apply for loans using boats, cars, or farm equipment as security. Other Pacific island nations are doing the same to improve the business climate and encourage investment.

3. Use digital finance to provide financial services.

Digital finance through mobile devices makes it easier and cheaper to use bank services and can be a way for commercial banks or governments to reach far-flung populations. Bank Indonesia is working on a digital program for conditional cash transfers after a 2012 survey showed that only 48 percent of Indonesian households had access to a savings account. The Philippine Central Bank has teamed up with mobile providers to offer mobile money services to over 50 million clients. Mobile banking has also put hundreds of rural women in business in Papua New Guinea, and brought savings and credit to distant rural communities in Vanuatu.

Digital finance, though, is no silver bullet. It exposes less financially literate clients to greater risk, so policymakers and their private sector partners must figure out the best way to reach more people but at the same time keep them safe from phishing, spam, and scams. One important way to overcome this challenge is to work with schools so the consumers of tomorrow can learn the basics today and make good financial decisions -- using all banking services available -- when they become adults.

If the end result of all this means that I might have to queue behind new customers the next time I go to the ATM, that's a longer line I'd be happy to wait in.

--

Stephen P. Groff is the Asian Development Bank's Vice-President for East Asia, Southeast Asia and the Pacific. This article first appeared in the Asian Development Blog.

Few people in America face more discrimination and are more misunderstood than transgender people. Often, it is the misunderstanding that leads to the discrimination. Tonight, the CBS Evening News with Scott Pelley will try to shed some much-needed light on their world by telling the story of Landon Wilson, who was kicked out the U.S. military simply because he is transgender.

In 2011, repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" allowed gays, lesbians and bisexuals in the military to come out of the closet and serve openly. But the ban on service by transgender people continues, because it is based on military medical regulations put in place before the American Psychiatric Association declared, in 2013, that "gender nonconformity is not in itself a mental disorder."

Back in 2009, when Chaz Bono announced he is a transgender man, I realized that I -- like most Americans -- knew next to nothing about what "transgender" and "transitioning" mean. I confessed my ignorance to Mara Keisling, the Executive Director for the National Center for Transgender Equality, who generously schooled me, leading to "A Pro Bono Transgender Primer."

Six years later, transgender rights are a hot topic. And if we're going to have a meaningful national conversation, we have to start by understanding the vocabulary. As Keisling told me two weeks ago, "The simple way to really describe it is that transgender people are people whose gender identity, that is their internal sense of their gender, just doesn't line up with what the doctor told our parents when we were born." Keisling says being transgender is not a choice; people usually know from early childhood that something just doesn't feel right. And she explains that transitioning is a continuum that may or may not involve hormones or surgery. It can be limited to changing the sex listed on a driver's license.

Of course, it's a lot easier to change a driver's license than societal attitudes. Fortunately, the national discussion is increasing. For example, the hit Amazon show, Transparent, created by Jill Soloway, is providing insight into the daily issues faced by transgender people and their families by following a father who comes out as a transgender woman. Landon Wilson told me it's important to understand the impact of transitioning on family and friends. He told me:

You know, that's something that I think that we often forget to emphasize. When people begin their transition, they are not the only ones transitioning. And it's easy to forget that, because it becomes so much a focus on your own personal development. But it's your family that transitions, as well. It's your friends that transition, as well.

As for changing the law, that is coming slowly. Last July, President Obama signed an Executive Order "prohibiting federal contractors from discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity." But that didn't apply to the military. When the new Defense Secretary, Ashton Carter, was asked last month about transgender troops in an "austere" place like Kandahar, he said, "I don't think anything but their suitability for service should preclude them." Does being transgender render a person unsuitable for service? Not according to a report one year ago by a commission established by the Palm Center, led by former U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Joycelyn Elders and Rear Admiral Alan M. Steinman, a physician. It found "there is no compelling medical rationale for banning transgender military service, and that eliminating the ban would advance a number of military interests, including enabling commanders to better care for their service members."

Given the arc of the current discussion, the eventual repeal of the ban seems likely. But every day the policy remains in place means another day of secrecy for the estimated 15,500 transgender persons in the military. For Landon Wilson, the hiding is over, but his plans have been shattered. He loved being in the military and hoped he would have a long career. For now, he's working temporary jobs and volunteering for SPARTA, an advocacy group supporting LGBT military members, veterans and their families. "If there's anything that the military has taught me," he said, "it's learning to adapt quickly. And sometimes you take what you have and learn to make the best of it." As the interview ended, I asked, "But if you had the opportunity to re-enlist?" He answered without hesitation, "I would re-enlist in a heartbeat. And I look forward to the day that it happens."

1. You don't feel the need to gossip anymore.

2. Jealously is futile and starts to fade away as a controlling force of your mind.

3. You handle conflict directly, maturely and respectfully.

4. You know how to apologize and admit fault.

5. You stop chasing the people who don't want you. You are over the chase, and want to devote your efforts to people who deserve them.

6. You can, and do, say no. Even if you are pressured, you don't need to please the masses when it means doing something that isn't in your best interest.

7. You have more self-control.

8. You don't have the time or interest in playing games. You are honest and straight-forward about your intentions.

9. You appreciate your parents. You are thankful for the people in your life who have worked tirelessly to do what's best for you -- even if you didn't know it at the time.

10. You start wanting to talk about what really matters. A need for more thought-provoking and engaging conversation develops.

11. Time with friends starts becoming a little different. You're more considerate of one another. You're more appreciative of the time you have to spend with them, because it becomes increasingly more difficult to have.

12. You gain more patience.

13. Productivity provides you with more fulfillment than it once did.

14. You live by your own standards.

15. You start to eliminate people who have become parasites to your happiness and success in life.

16. You care more about your health and realize how directly your choices can affect the way you feel.

17. You find yourself more concerned with what is going on in the world around you. You actually want to keep up with the news and understand your surroundings.

18. You make more of an attempt to be organized and timely.

19. You let go of grudges and realize how meaningless they truly are.

20. You exercise politeness and respect, and value both qualities in others.

21. You stand by your convictions.

22. You more carefully consider the effects of your decisions.

23. You're proud of who you're becoming, and find yourself looking for ways to further grow as a person.

24. Your career becomes more important to you.

25. So does your future.

26. You have realized who your true friends are.

27. Your idea of "going out" changes, as do many of your priorities.

28. And the idea of "staying in" doesn't carry near the negativity that it used to. It actually sounds pretty freaking awesome some nights.

29. You want what's best for others. You don't feel like you're in some weird competition with the rest of the world.

30. You want to learn more and more every day.

31. You're braver.

32. You're stronger.

33. You know your strengths and weaknesses.

34. You're confident in who you are. You know what matters to you now. You know who and what is worth fighting for. You are still you, full of life and laughter, but you're a version of yourself that you've been building for a long time. You've fallen on your face. You've made the wrong decisions, but you have learned. You have grown, and you will only continue to grow. You're becoming that daunting term -- "adult -- and it is lovely.

Being an adult doesn't mean locking in a 9-to-5 job and procreating. Being an adult doesn't mean having everything figured out. Being an adult isn't some threshold you pass through at a fully mature and developed stage of life. There really isn't one, anyway.

Adulthood is a journey into strength and self-empowerment. Being an adult means being who you are. It means experiencing and appreciating the aspects of life you learned were worth your efforts. It's an opportunity. It's courageousness. It's kindness. It's thankfulness. It's respect. It's knowledge. It's life, and here you are starting to figure some of it out. So, good for you. Rejoice in the wonders of a lifetime of growth.