Judge: Women could lose birth control coverage under rule; NEWS BRIEFING; Staff and news services; Mexico deploys 4,000 troops, copters against pipeline theft ; Poland: Huawei exec, Polish security expert spied for China ; Woman sought in death of ; Nev. manicurist found in Ariz.; In Europe, 21 deaths deemed weather-related ; Court says Ginsburg has no cancer remaining

OAKLAND, Calif. - A U.S. judge said Friday that a "substantial number" of women would lose free birth control coverage under new rules by the Trump administration that allow more employers to opt out of providing the benefit on religious and moral grounds.

Judge Haywood Gilliam made the comment at a continuing hearing over California and other states' attempt to block the rules.

The changes set to go into effect on Monday would allow more employers, including publicly traded companies, to opt out of providing no-cost contraceptive coverage to women by claiming religious objections. Some private employers could also object on moral grounds.

Gilliam previously blocked an interim version of those rules - a decision that was upheld in December by an appeals court.

The case is before him again after the administration finalized the measures in November, prompting a renewed legal challenge by the states.

At issue is a requirement under President Barack Obama's health care law that birth control services be covered at no additional cost. Obama officials included exemptions for religious organizations. The Trump administration expanded those exemptions.

The rules "protect a narrow class of sincere religious and moral objectors from being forced to facilitate practices that conflict with their beliefs," the U.S. Department of Justice said.

The states argue that millions of women could lose free birth control services, forcing them to seek contraceptive care through state-run programs and leading to unintended pregnancies.

Mexico deploys 4,000 troops, copters against pipeline theft

MEXICO CITY - Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said Friday he has ordered helicopters and 4,000 troops to guard the nation's pipelines and fuel depots in an offensive against massive fuel theft.

The helicopters are watching for organized gangs that drill illegal taps into underground ducts carrying gasoline and diesel. Lopez Obrador ordered key pipelines shut down after thefts soared recently.

Long lines continued at gas stations in Mexico City and outlying states Friday as tanker trucks struggled to supply fuel normally delivered through pipelines.

Most Mexicans understood the need to crack down on $3 billion per year in fuel thefts, but patience was wearing thin.

"We are asking for people's understanding," Lopez Obrador said.

Poland: Huawei exec, Polish security expert spied for China

WARSAW, Poland - Poland arrested a director at the Chinese tech giant Huawei and one of its own former cybersecurity experts and charged them with spying for China, authorities said Friday.

The two men - one a Chinese citizen identified as Weijing W. who was a former envoy in Poland before moving over to a senior position at Huawei and the other a Pole identified as Piotr D. who held several top government cybersecurity positions - were arrested Tuesday, according to Poland's Internal Security Agency.

It's the latest setback for Huawei in Europe, where some governments and telecom companies are following the U.S. lead in questioning whether using Huawei for vital infrastructure for mobile networks could leave them exposed to snooping by the Chinese government.

Woman sought in death of

Nev. manicurist found in Ariz.

LAS VEGAS - A 21-year-old woman sought for almost two weeks by authorities in Las Vegas after allegedly skipping out on a $35 manicure and using a stolen car to run over and kill a manicurist has been arrested in Arizona, police said Friday.

Krystal Whipple was taken into custody in the Phoenix suburb of Glendale, authorities said.

Las Vegas police said prosecutors will seek her extradition to Las Vegas where Whipple was sought in a warrant on murder and robbery charges in the killing of Ngoc Nguyen, 51.

Police said Whipple tried to pay for her manicure with a fraudulent credit card Dec. 29 before telling Nguyen that she was going to her car to get cash, then drove away, killing Nguyen as she stood in front of of the vehicle as it accelerated.

In Europe, 21 deaths deemed weather-related

BELGRADE, Serbia - Heavy snow paralyzed much of Europe for yet another day, cutting off mountain villages, sparking avalanches like one that crashed into a Swiss hotel and killing at least four more people Friday.

Workers at the Hotel Saentis in eastern Switzerland spent Friday shoveling out hip-deep snow after a 330-yard-wide avalanche smashed through the hotel's windows Thursday.

In all, at least 21 weather-related deaths have been reported in Europe in the last 10 days.

The Bulgarian Red Cross said two snowboarders were killed in an avalanche in southwest Bulgaria's Pirin Mountains.

A snowplow driver died Friday in Germany after his vehicle toppled into an icy river, while an electrical worker in Albania suffered a fatal heart attack while repairing damaged power lines.

Court says Ginsburg has no cancer remaining

WASHINGTON - Tests revealed that Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has no additional cancer following her surgery in December, and no further treatment is needed, the Supreme Court announced Friday.

"Justice Ginsburg will continue to work from home next week and will participate in the consideration and decision of the cases on the basis of the briefs and the transcripts of oral arguments," court spokeswoman Kathleen Arberg said in a statement.

Ginsburg had surgery Dec. 21 for two malignant nodules in her left lung, the 85-year-old justice's third bout with cancer.

This week, for the first time since she joined the court in 1993, she missed a round of oral arguments. Ginsburg is the oldest member of the court, and the longest-serving member of the court's four-member liberal wing.

Saudi woman: Rahaf Mohammed Alqunun, 18, who said she was abused by her family and feared for her life if deported back home to Saudi Arabia, left Thailand on Friday night for Canada, which has granted her asylum, officials said.

She had fled her family while visiting Kuwait and flew to Bangkok.

In Myanmar: A court on Friday rejected the appeals of Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, two Reuters journalists convicted of violating the country's Official Secrets Act during their reporting on the country's crackdown on Rohingya Muslims, maintaining the seven-year prison terms they were sentenced to last year.

Caption: Desperate search: People attempt to salvage items from the smoldering debris Friday after a fire broke out overnight and swept through Bakara, the largest open-air market in Somalia's capital, Mogadishu. There was no word from officials regarding the death toll.

MOHAMED ABDIWAHAB/Getty-AFP