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The new sanctions affect six individuals and 10 organizations with financial ties to Pyongyangs weapons program. We tried to answer a big question in the standoff: Can North Korea actually hit the U.S. with a nuclear weapon?

And an American soldier, James Joseph Dresnok, who defected to North Korea in 1962, died after living there for more than 50 years, two of his sons told a pro-North Korea website.

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The commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, Adm. Scott H. Swift, above, confirmed that divers found the remains of missing American sailors in the flooded compartments of the Navy destroyer John S. McCain, which collided with an oil tanker off the coast of Singapore.

The commander declined to say how many bodies had been located. Ten sailors had been missing since the accident.

A string of Navy accidents on the Pacifics western edge not only has raised doubts about its operations, but damaged U.S. prestige and deepened doubts from Asian allies about Washingtons commitment to the region.

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In a major victory for womens rights, Indias top court voted to outlaw a legal provision that allowed Muslim men to instantly divorce their wives by saying the word talaq Arabic for divorce three times.

Men could do the triple talaq in person, by letter or even over the phone. By contrast, a Muslim woman in India seeking a divorce must generally gain the permission of her husband, a cleric or other Islamic authorities.

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An expected visit by Pope Francis to Myanmar has set off intense debate about how hard-line Buddhist nationalists will react to any support he may pledge to the Rohinyga.

There had been speculation in recent weeks about whether the popes visit, which would precede his trip to Bangladesh, would include a side trip to Rakhine State and how hard-line Buddhist nationalists such as Ashin Wirathu might react.

The visit would be the first to Myanmar by any pope.

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And Frederik, the Crown Prince of Denmark, above left, was barred temporarily, at least from a bar in Brisbane.

The episode drew more attention to a new state law that has disappointed Australians and tourists alike by requiring that their identification be scanned to get into certain bars after 10 p.m.

China is struggling to revive its industrial heartland where unproductive, debt-laden factories are losing business as Chinas growth slows. The city of Shenyang is a crucial test.

Company names in China must now meet official criteria on taste, political sensitivity and length to win approval. Hangzhou Looking for Trouble Internet Technology could not be reached for comment.

Hackers have discovered that a central element of online security the mobile phone number is also one of the easiest to steal.

Three Chinese shoemakers must pay New Balance $1.5 million for infringing the American sportswear companys signature logo. Lawyers say is the largest trademark infringement award ever granted to a foreign business in China.

U.S. stocks were up. Heres a snapshot of global markets.

An earthquake in Italy struck near the island of Ischia, a tourist spot off the coast of Naples, killing two women and injuring dozens of other people. [The New York Times]

A Chinese human rights attorney, Jiang Tianyong, confessed to trying to overthrow the Communist Party in a trial that was choreographed as an attack on liberal political ideas. [The New York Times]

In Australia, a new chemical treatment could help wombats from scratching themselves to death because of a skin disease that is decimating populations. [ABC]

For half a century, stories have endured of an American aviator who was lost in the mountains of rural China during World War II. [The Los Angeles Times]

Wary people in Chinas Shandong Province will soon be able to use a smartphone app to hire personal bodyguards. [China Daily]

Tips, both new and old, for a more fulfilling life.

Your guide for back-to-school essentials.

Who really needs to be gluten free?

Recipe of the day: Embrace the meatless meal with roasted cauliflower and broccoli with salsa verde.

For Taiwanese, Chiang Kai-shek is a divisive figure, so debate has raged over what to do with thousands of statues of the former leader of the Republic of China.

A study suggests that an extinction crisis can be averted by linking together the worlds remaining forest islands, allowing native animals and plants to spread and become more resilient.

Finally, the deep seas are actually alive with light. Bioluminescence is so common in the oceans that it ranks as one of Earths dominant ecological traits.

They were a dissatisfied group of Americans, determined to break away.

Not Californians in 2017. Or Texans for decades. But on this day in 1784, settlers in western North Carolina declared an independent state. They were concerned that the state and national governments, which were in a debate over debts related to the Revolutionary War, did not have their best interests at heart.

The State of Franklin, in what is now eastern Tennessee, adopted a constitution with power divided among three branches, like the national government that its leaders hoped one day to join.

The state made treaties, levied taxes and set salaries, but not in currency. Instead, those salaries included 1,000 deer skins a year for the governor, 500 raccoon skins for the governors secretary and a single mink skin for the constable for each warrant signed, according to one account published in The Times in 1852.

Officials sought the help of Benjamin Franklin, but hopes of national recognition were never realized. The state only lasted a few years because of internal dissent and external pressure.

But it had an impact. Franklin was eventually absorbed into Tennessee, and its leader, John Sevier, became Tennessees first governor when it joined the union in 1796.

Sarah Anderson contributed reporting.

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Instant Divorce, North Korea, Afghanistan: Your Wednesday Briefing - New York Times