News Wrap: Three more men to face trial for Whitmer kidnapping plot

• Judy Woodruff:

  In the day's other news, the murder trial of former police Officer Derek Chauvin opened in Minneapolis with dramatic video of his fatal encounter with George Floyd.

  It showed Floyd pinned by Chauvin's knee on his neck for nearly nine-and-a-half minutes. The defense argued that drugs and health problems caused Floyd's death. We will look at all of this in detail after the news summary.

  A judge in Michigan today ordered three more men to stand trial for allegedly plotting to kidnap Michigan's Governor Gretchen Whitmer last October. The FBI says they were anti-government extremists who were angered by COVID restrictions. Eleven other men have already been charged in federal or state courts.

  In Myanmar, security forces killed more protesters after the deadliest weekend since the military coup. Demonstrators with slingshots clashed with security forces today, and at least five were killed; 114 were shot dead on Saturday.

  Meanwhile, thousands of Myanmar's ethnic Karens fled into Thailand for escape — to escape airstrikes by Myanmar's military. Thailand denied that it is forcing them back to Myanmar.

  The Biden administration responded to the killing in Myanmar by suspending a key trade deal. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki called the military's actions unacceptable.

• Jen Psaki:

  We continue to make clear that we will impose costs on the military regime for the deadly violence against peaceful protesters and the suppression of human rights.

  We, of course, continue to work with our allies and partners and like-minded institutions as we condemn the actions of the military, call for the immediate restoration of democracy and hold those who seize power accountable.

• Judy Woodruff:

  The announcement does not stop all U.S. trade with Myanmar, but does make it more difficult.

  Traffic in the Suez Canal has resumed tonight after a huge container ship was freed. It had blocked the waterway for a week. The vessel was escorted out by tugboats once salvage teams dislodged it with help from a high tide. With that, a backlog of some 370 ships resumed their passage through the canal.

  Back in this country, U.S. Senator Thom Tillis announced that he has prostate cancer and will undergo surgery next week. The North Carolina Republican said that he expects to make a full recovery. Tillis is in his second term and is 60 years old.

  There's word that Russian hackers breached the e-mail account of President Trump's homeland security chief. The Associated Press reports that Chad Wolf and his cybersecurity staff were targeted in the so-called SolarWinds attack. Officials discovered the hack in December. At least nine federal agencies were affected.

  And on Wall Street today, the Dow Jones industrial average gained 98 points to close at 33171. The Nasdaq fell 79 points, and the S&P 500 slipped three.

from:pbs