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Myanmar Picks a New President, but He’ll Still Be No. 2

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Myanmar Picks a New President, but He’ll Still Be No. 2 Photo Myanmar’s Parliament chose U Win Myint to be the country’s new president, a mostly ceremonial post. Credit Aung Shine Oo/Associated Press MANDALAY, Myanmar — A longtime loyalist to Myanmar’s civilian leader, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, was chosen on Wednesday to be the country’s new president, a largely ceremonial role in which he is expected to be the official conduit for her authority.
The new president, U Win Myint, will succeed U Htin Kyaw, 71, who resigned last week after two years on the job. Mr. Htin Kyaw was widely regarded as an honest but powerless functionary who did the bidding of Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace laureate who has been condemned globally for her acquiescence to the military’s ethnic cleansing of Rohingya Muslims.
Mr. Win Myint, a 66-year-old lawyer, is expected to perform in a similar fashion. As president, he will be constrained by both the military-drafted Constitution and the strong hand of Ms. Au..

John Legend and the ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ Cast on Faith and Musicals

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Supported by Arts John Legend and the ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ Cast on Faith and Musicals Photo A live concert version of “Jesus Christ Superstar” will air Sunday night on NBC. Credit Virginia Sherwood/NBC John Legend hasn’t done musical theater since high school. But when NBC called to ask if he might be interested in playing the title role in a live broadcast of “Jesus Christ Superstar,” he said, “I had a hard time turning down the role of Jesus Christ.”
Now Mr. Legend, best known as an R&B singer and songwriter, is channeling his inner rocker as he leads a starry cast of the latest televised musical.
“Jesus Christ Superstar,” with songs by a young Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, is a rock musical about the week that ends with Jesus’s crucifixion. Controversial when it opened on Broadway in 1971 — some Christians found either the style or substance of the storytelling blasphemous, and some Jews were concerned about the portrayal of Jewish leaders — it has since become a staple..

El Al Sues Israel After Air India Flies Through Saudi Airspace

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El Al Sues Israel After Air India Flies Through Saudi Airspace Photo Israel’s national airline, El Al, is required to take a circuitous route to India that avoids the entire Arabian Peninsula. Credit Nir Elias/Reuters TEL AVIV — The Israeli government has hailed Air India’s new nonstop service from New Delhi to Tel Aviv as a historic breakthrough — the Indian carrier is the first commercial airline to take a geopolitical shortcut through Saudi Arabian airspace.
But Israel’s national airline, El Al, still has to take the long way and fears that it will suffer serious financial damage from what it views as aerial discrimination.
So in a first of its own, El Al petitioned Israel’s Supreme Court on Wednesday, filing suit against the government; the Civil Aviation Authority; Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu; the transportation minister, Yisrael Katz; and Air India.
Flying in a straight line cuts more than two hours off the usual flight time, and allows Air India to lower its ticket price. ..

Uber agrees settlement with family of self-driving car victim

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Elaine Herzberg died after being hit by an Uber self-driving car in the US earlier this month
The family of a woman killed by an Uber self-driving vehicle in Arizona has reached a settlement with the ride services company, ending a potential legal battle over the first fatality caused by an autonomous vehicle.
Cristina Perez Hesano, attorney with the firm of Bellah Perez in Glendale, Arizona, said “the matter has been resolved” between Uber and the daughter and husband of Elaine Herzberg, 49, who died after being hit by an Uber self-driving SUV in the Phoenix suburb of Tempe earlier this month.
The terms of the settlement were not given. The law firm representing Herzberg’s daughter and husband, whose names were not disclosed, said they would have no further comment on the matter as they considered it resolved.
Read more Uber agrees $10m settlement in gender and race discrimination lawsuit An Uber spokeswoman declined to comment.
The fallout from the accident could stall the de..