British Lawmakers OK Three-Parent Babies

(WNS)–Lawmakers in Britain’s House of Commons voted recently to allow doctors to create three-parent embryos. The technique, which takes DNA from one egg and implants it in another, is designed to prevent children from inheriting potentially fatal genetic conditions. But critics say it could lead to the engineering of “designer” babies, with parents selecting specific traits for their children. They also warn children born as a result of the technique have not been studied enough to know what unintended consequences might occur. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned last year it could take decades to determine whether the procedure is safe. British Prime Minister David Cameron strongly supports the measure. He had a son born with severe epilepsy who died at age 6 in 2009. The measure now goes to the House of Lords where it must pass before becoming law.

ISIS Burns Jordanian Pilot Alive

(WNS)–ISIS claims to have burned alive a Jordanian pilot whose jet crashed during a mission to attack the terror group. Lt. Muath al-Kaseasbeh, 26, was the first pilot to be captured from the U.S.-led coalition that began airstrikes on ISIS in September. He was taken into captivity in December when his Jordanian F-16 crashed near Raqqa, Syria, the de facto capital of ISIS-controlled territory. Jordanian officials voted “punishment and revenge” in retaliation for al-Kaseasbeh’s death. At the tribal meeting place where the young pilot’s family gathered to wait for news, chants against Jordanian King Abdullah II broke out while his relatives wept.