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PBC News & Comment: Over 700 Boat People Die Crossing Mediterranean

Thousands of African refugees attempt fleeing to Europe, more than 700 feared dead in three separate shipwrecks over weekend…

–Italian coast guard scrambles to rescue boats that foundered off coast of Libya

–last week, Muslim refugees crossing the Mediterranean threw 12 Christians overboard

–6 Somali-Americans arrested for allegedly trying to join IS in Syria, but who bought their airline tickets?

–Der Spiegel reports that Islamic State’s takeover of northern Syria was carefully planned by former Saddam-era officer

–hot wars in Syria, Iraq, Yemen stoke orders and profits for American military contractors

–at The Intercept, Jeremy Scahill details that Ramstein air base in Germany is critical command-relay center for US drones

–SF Chronicle columnist Jon Carroll opines on drones and secrecy

–Israel’s Lieberman plays the anti-semitism card as EU wants accurate labels on products made in the West Bank

–Iran reveals new charges against American journalist Jason Rezaian

–as Iran nuke talks resume, Obama signals flexibility on sanctions removal

–new book charges that foreign donors to Clinton Foundation got favors from State Department when Hillary was in charge

–5 years after the Deepwater Horizon blowout in the Gulf, damage is still evident, only minor fixes have been made, here’s a recap from VICE

–Boston bomber penalty phase starts, as parents of youngest victim oppose death penalty

–on 4/20/15, Willie Nelson rolls out his own weed brand