Biggest news you missed this weekend
If you only read one thing this Sunday, we hope it's Paste BN's special report on the 30th anniversary of Chernobyl, the world's worst nuclear disaster. All our coverage here.
Earthquakes rock Ecuador and Japan
The death toll from Ecuador's massive magnitude-7.8 earthquake climbed to 238, officials announced Sunday. The strongest earthquake to hit Ecuador in decades also injured more than 1500, although officials said the numbers could go higher. The earthquake Saturday night toppled buildings, damaged roads and impacted cities hundreds of miles away from its epicenter near the small fishing village of Muisne. More than 135 aftershocks have been felt, according to Ecuador’s seismological institute. The Ecuador quake comes after two powerful earthquakes hit Japan last week, killing at least 41 people.
Ted Cruz wins all 14 Wyoming Republican delegates
Painstaking organization and in-person campaigning paid off again for Ted Cruz on Saturday as he nailed down all 14 delegates up for grabs at the Republican Party convention in Wyoming. The result added to Donald Trump's string of defeats in Western states. Trump still leads the overall delegate race. The AP delegate count: Trump, 744; Cruz, 559; and Kasich, 144. Needed to win: 1,237.
Stephen Curry says he's playing in Game 2 after injury
If Stephen Curry has anything to say about it, he will play in Game 2 against the Houston Rockets on Monday. Never mind the fact that the Golden State Warriors star is listed as questionable. Curry turned his right ankle in the second quarter of a Game 1 win over the Rockets (104-78) at Oracle Arena on Saturday. He scored 24 points before suffering the injury, then hobbled up the floor before eventually checking out and heading back into the locker room.
9 Gitmo detainees sent to Saudi Arabia; 80 prisoners remain
Nine Guantanamo detainees — all from Yemen — were transferred to Saudi Arabia on Saturday, lowering the remaining inmate population at the U.S. military detention facility in Cuba to 80, the U.S. Defense Department said in a statement. Although the nine have family ties to Saudi Arabia, it was the first time the royal kingdom agreed to take in non-citizens from Guantanamo. None of the detainees had been charged but they could not be released earlier because of violence and political instability in Yemen, which borders Saudi Arabia. Eight were cleared for release from Gitmo since at least 2010, and one was approved for release by a review board last year.
Russians buzz U.S. reconnaissance plane over Baltic Sea
A Russian jet flew dangerously close to a U.S. reconnaissance plane operating in the Baltic Sea last week, the latest in a string of dangerous encounters with Russian forces in the region, the Pentagon said on Saturday. The Russian aircraft, an SU-27 fighter, operated in an “unsafe and unprofessional” manner when it approached the RC-135 reconnaissance plane, the U.S. military said in a statement.
Will and Kate provide happier sequel to Diana's Taj Mahal photo
Prince William and Duchess Kate of Cambridge, after a colorful week in India and Bhutan, wrapped up another successful overseas tour at one of the most famous symbols of enduring love in the world: the Taj Mahal in Agra, north-central India. They posed, looking blissful in the sunshine. Will's mother, the late Princess Diana, posed before it in 1992 — alone. She was on an official trip with Will's father, Prince Charles, but their schedule had taken him to a meeting with Indian businessmen while she was left to tour the Taj by herself.
John Legend, Chrissy Teigen welcome baby girl
John Legend (birth name John Roger Stephens) tweeted on Sunday that he and Chrissy Teigen welcomed their first daughter, Luna Simone Stephens, on April 14. Teigen posted the baby's weight to Instagram. Why the social-media birth announcement? Earlier this year, Legend, 37, told Paste BN that he and Teigen, 30, wanted to share the baby news before any press did.