5 Things for Friday, March 10, 2017: South Korea, Russian Ties, Ax Attack

CNN/Stylemagazine.com Newswire | 3/10/2017, 8:11 a.m.
Here's what you need to know to Get Up to Speed and Out the Door
South Korean President Park Geun-hye

By AJ Willingham

CNN

(CNN) -- Here's what you need to know to Get Up to Speed and Out the Door

1. South Korea

South Korean President Park Geun-hye has been removed over alleged corruption. The country's first female president is now its first president to be impeached and thrown out of office. After judges finalized the decision, citizens took to the streets -- some in protest, others in celebration. Two people were killed when some demonstrations turned violent.

An election will be held in 60 days for a new president. Until then, South Korea's political uncertainty could be a problem for the region, as North Korea ramps up its nuclear weapons testing program.

2. Russia

Former Utah governor and 2012 Republican presidential candidate Jon Huntsman has signed on as Trump's new ambassador to Russia. It's not hard to understand why that's maybe not the most coveted job at the moment, since Huntsman will have to deal with tense issues like missile deployments, conflicts in Ukraine and Syria, and, oh right, Russia's role in the 2016 US election.

Speaking of, the FBI is still investigating records of an "odd" computer server connection between the Trump Organization and a Russian bank during the 2016 presidential campaign. Computer scientists say the link is definitely unusual, but there could be a perfectly innocent explanation.

3. Germany

A man wounded seven people with an ax Thursday in an attack at a train station in Dusseldorf, Germany. Police arrested the suspect, who they called "a 36-year-old man from the former Yugoslavia" who "obviously had mental problems." They believe he acted alone. A similar stabbing attack happened in July in Wurzburg, Germany, when police say a Pakistani teen influenced by ISIS propaganda injured five people before being shot dead by officers.

4. Marines

The nude photo scandal involving a Facebook group for Marines has started to blow up. Four branches of the military are now investigating, and more illicit photo exchanges have been found on other private Facebook groups and image message boards. Investigators are trying to figure out how many service members or veterans may be involved.

5. Kellyanne Conway

Remember when White House counselor Kellyanne Conway made an overt plug for Ivanka Trump's fashion brand on live TV? Yeah, the Office of Government Ethics still isn't happy about that. The agency's director sent a letter to the White House questioning the lack of punishment for Conway and disputing the administration's claim that ethics policies don't apply to the president's staff.

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IT'S DAYLIGHT SAVING TIME! Remember to set your clocks FORWARD an hour at 2 a.m. on Sunday, March 12. Yes, you'll lose an hour of sleep. Ugh.

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