News Wrap: Protesters demand climate action in Glasgow ahead of COP26

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• Judy Woodruff:

  In the day's other news: Protests broke out in Glasgow, Scotland, ahead of the U.N. climate change summit that begins this weekend.

  Demonstrators carried banners and signs with flames, while others waved smoking flares to depict global warming. They insisted that world powers must act now.

• Andrew Nazdin, Director, Glasgow Actions Team:

  From wildfires in the U.S., to flooding across the world, we are in a full-blown climate crisis. World leaders know this. They have seen what's happening. Now is the time for them to come together here in Glasgow and hammer out a deal to avert the worst of the climate catastrophe.

• Judy Woodruff:

  Also today, a U.N.-backed report said that 10 of the world's great forests, including Yosemite National Park, are emitting more carbon dioxide than they absorb. Researchers blamed wildfires, logging and land-clearing for farms, among other factors.

  Oil company executives are denying that, for decades, they dismissed the dangers of climate change and denied any role in causing it. They testified today before a committee of the U.S. House of Representatives. Democrats accused them of outright lying.

  We will get the details later in the program.

  On the pandemic, the state of Florida filed suit today over a vaccine mandate for federal contract workers. The suit argues President Biden has no authority to require vaccinations.

  And, in Russia, daily infections and deaths hit new records again. The country's official death toll has topped 235,000. That is the highest in Europe.

  In Myanmar, there's word that the military has systematically tortured and murdered people since seizing power in a coup in February. The Associated Press reports the army and police have killed at least 1, 200 people. Human rights groups say no one seems immune.

• Matthew Smith, CEO, Fortify Rights:

  It's targeting a wide variety of Myanmar citizens, young and old, various ethnic groups. All of these facts indicate to us the widespread and, in some ways, systematic nature of the torture that's occurring in the country right now.

• Judy Woodruff:

  The AP investigation finds that more than 9,000 people have been taken into custody since the military takeover.

  Taiwan's president voiced confidence today that the U.S. would defend the island if China attacks. Tsai Ing-wen also confirmed that a small number of U.S. troops are in Taiwan training its troops. China quickly denounced any military exchanges. It regards Taiwan as part of its territory, and has stepped up military harassment of the island.

  Back in this country, the U.S. Justice Department will pay $88 million to survivors and families of nine people killed in Charleston, South Carolina, in 2015. Dylann Roof carried out the mass shooting at a Black church. A faulty background check allowed him to buy the gun he used.

  In Washington today, family members of the victims welcomed the settlement.

  Eliana Pinckney, Daughter of Shooting Victim: They paid attention. And they valued my father's life. And they valued the lives of the eight other people who died. And my father is not the only one. This is a step in the right direction for the government to continue acknowledging the African Americans who are losing their lives on a daily basis. This is the start to change.

• Judy Woodruff:

  Dylann Roof was convicted of the killings and he was sentenced to death. His legal appeals are continuing.

  Former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo is now facing a misdemeanor sex crimes complaint. It was filed today in Albany and accuses him of groping a woman at the governor's mansion last year. Cuomo resigned in August after a state attorney general's report found he had sexually harassed numerous women.

  Facebook has officially changed its corporate name to Meta. The new name refers to a combined physical and virtual reality Internet of the future, dubbed the metaverse. Today's announcement came as the company is facing allegations about disinformation and damage to children.

  The nation's economic growth slowed sharply in the third quarter. The U.S. Labor Department reports it ran at a 2 percent annual rate, as COVID cases surged and supply chain problems worsened. Growth topped 6 percent in the year's first two quarters.

  And, on Wall Street, stocks rallied despite the report of weak growth. The Dow Jones industrial average gained 239 points to close at 35730. The Nasdaq rose 212 points. That's more than 1 percent, to close at a new high. The S&P 500 added 44. That's about 1 percent, also reaching reached a new high.