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Nation
new york
Schwartz confirmed new CDC director
NEW YORK -- Dr. Erica Schwartz has been confirmed by the U.S. Senate as director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The 54-year-old Schwartz becomes the 22nd leader of the Atlanta-based CDC, which is charged with protecting Americans from preventable health threats. Her resume includes medical and law degrees, a stint as deputy surgeon general, and a leadership position at the U.S. Coast Guard.
new mexico
State sues DOJ over Epstein probe
CEDAR CREST -- The state of New Mexico has sued the Department of Justice and Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, saying the federal government has blocked it from carrying out its own investigation into Jeffrey Epstein's sex crimes.
The lawsuit was filed in federal court in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday. The lawsuit said the Justice Department and Blanche had actively harmed victims and undermined public interest by withholding information from state investigators.
TEXAS
Judge rules gun law can't be enforced
AUSTIN -- A Texas judge has struck down the National Firearms Act to knock regulations on firearm suppressors and some guns.
The decision Wednesday comes after President Donald Trump's tax bill last year eliminated the $200 tax on select items. The ruling allows firearm owners to buy silencers, short-barreled rifles, short-barreled shotguns and other covered firearms without registering for them.
World
united kingdom
Four stabbed in mental health incident
LONDON -- London police have arrested a woman after four people were stabbed in the busy Covent Garden area.
Authorities say early indications suggest it was a mental health-related incident. Scissors were recovered at the scene. Four men were found with stab wounds after the incident on Wednesday afternoon. Two of the injured were discharged, while two remain in a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
congo
WHO: Outbreak spreading too fast
KINSHASA -- The world's fastest-growing Ebola outbreak in Congo is still spreading faster than efforts to track it, according to the head of the World Health Organization.
Aid workers say there have been 3,874 confirmed cases and 1,751 deaths as of Monday. Health workers in the outbreak's epicenter are striking over unpaid wages, worsening access to healthcare.
germany
Drone with explosives found at airport
BERLIN -- Authorities say a drone with explosives was found at Germany's Leipzig/Halle Airport and the device was defused.
The country's top security official said Wednesday that the incident posed a "new quality of danger." Regional police and prosecutors said an airport employee discovered a drone near the airport's south runway with "an unknown explosive device," and the object was examined by police. They removed its detonator.